Fear is a type of emotion such as anger, sadness, love, and happiness. Children have many fears like fear of the dark, fear of separation, and many more. At this time, parents are always worried and think that “how to remove fear from child mind” or “what should they do“. If you are also facing the same doubts or want to know some tips to handle child fear then you are on the right article.
In the early days, children are quite fearless. They do things without fear but as the children grow their imagination and curiosity also develop. Children learn about danger and become aware of something that frightens them. Fears develop in children due to many reasons like regularly warned, overprotective parents or some children are just sensitive. They will slowly grow out of fear with your understanding and help. Let’s talk about a few tips with types of fear:
FEAR OF THE DARK
Fear of the dark is one of the most common fears in childhood. This fear is also common in later stages of life. If your child is scared of the dark then you can:
- Open the door of room in which child is present to pass the light
- Leaving a light ON at night
- Keep child busy with games and activities during a day so they are not able focus on fear
And as time continues, children will realize that there is nothing to fear from the dark.
FEAR OF SEPARATION
Fear of separation is normal in infants and toddlers but not in older children. If they show this fear in the adolescent stage then this can be a separate anxiety disorder. In separate anxiety disorder, child:
- Always cling to the parents
- Difficulty in sleeping alone at night
- Not want to stay in room alone or difficulty to stay in friend house
Separate anxiety children show also symptoms like depression, difficulty in concentration, they think their family might die and experience nightmares. If your child(adolescent stage or later) shows these symptoms and indicates this disorder then you should talk to the doctor.
TANGIBLE OBJECTS FEAR
Children develop fears of tangible objects like dogs, cockroaches, and some kind of different shape objects, etc. It is not necessary that children should have frightening experiences with the object for their fear. This fear can be due to their imagination because as children grow, their imaginations are unpredictable. If we force a child to face the tangible object (that fear them), It will not help them to overcome. Children will outgrow this fear slowly with time.
SOCIAL FEAR
Social fear/Social phobia is also called anxiety disorder. In this disorder, children have a fear of being embarrassed. They get embarrassed in social conditions like:
- During a performance
- Speak in class or public
- Eat, drink or write in public
In these types of situations, children show tremors, sweats, muscle tone, etc. Children think that others will notice them and make fun of them. Parents should always encourage their children and teach them slowly steadily about how to communicate with others.
FEAR OF DEATH
Some children have fear of death. They think that what happens to their pets or family members who die. It is very important for parents to explain to the child that the deceased one has gone to god in heaven. Parents can also say that person was old, weak, and complete their life. It is necessary that parents teach a lesson to a child about life so that child has a correct vision.
STEPS TO REMOVE FEAR FROM CHILD MIND
Ignoring the fear of your child is not going to make the situation better. Encouraging your child and talking about their fear will boost their confidence. Parents should always help the child to develop skills and confidence to overcome fears. The following steps will guide you to dealing with your child fears:
- RECOGNISE THE FEAR – As a parent, you should know about your child’s fear. It is real to the child or not. If you talk to the child about fear it will help you and the child so that child feels at ease and you can guide them.
- NEVER FORCE – You should never force a child to face the fear. It will not help the child to overcome the fear.
- NEVER SHOW YOUR WORRIES – Those parents who show their worries and problems to their children create anxiety in the child’s mind. Parents should always create a good environment in front of children even there is a bad situation.
- HAVE PATIENCE – Parents should be very patient while dealing with child fear because It can take time. Parents should give the child enough time to think about challenges. If you are overprotective to the child then the child will not learn or try to overcome it.
- STAND WITH THEM – As we talk overprotective is not a good thing but at the right time, parents should stand with their children. A child should never feel that he or she is alone.
PARENTS AND CHILDREN BONDS SHOULD BE THAT STRONG, NO FEAR CAN BREAK IT.
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