Parenting dread: kids scared of the DARK

What were you afraid of as a kid? Do you remember feeling nervous about meeting your teacher on the first day of kindergarten? Was a night light a necessity in your childhood bedroom? For children, fears are a natural part of growing up and learning about the world. When attempting to help your child overcome a fear, try to remember what fear was like at their age. After you’ve established some ground rules based on understanding, you can begin to nudge your kids toward overcoming their fear.

Use humor. A very common fear among children is a fear of the dark. Being unable to see the room as it normally looks can be worrisome. Add a big imagination to those unfamiliar shadows on the wall at night, and your kid might end up with monsters under the bed. To combat this, try having an impromptu lightsaber battle in the dark or make funny shadow puppets with a flashlight. By associating a humorous topic with a frightening situation, you can help alleviate a child’s fear of the dark over time.

Help them relate. Show your child examples of other young people who have the same fear, and let them know it’s perfectly normal to be scared sometimes. Many kids are afraid of things they’ve imagined. Try telling a story that puts the fear into perspective. By showing well-crafted examples of characters overcoming their fears, like the children’s book “Scaredy Squirrel” by Mélanie Watt, or one that makes the monster more relatable like “Leonardo, the Terrible Monster” by Mo Willems, your child will be more likely to shake the fright.

Model confidence. Children will mimic your every move. Try to remain confident around your kids so as not to let your own fears scare them. If you slowly move away from a bee at the park instead of swearing and swatting as you bolt, your child will be less likely to develop a fear of insects. Manage your fears to give your child a sense of safety and calm.

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