Please help with little brother!?

Question

Hi,

My little brother is afraid to sleep in his room by himself. He snuck in my room last night and slept on the ground with tons of pillows, and its totally annoying me. He is 9, and I used to let him sleep with body pillows on the ground, but I got tired of the mess and me having to clean up. So really, I want him happy to be in his own bed in his room and not bothering me at night!

He is afraid of burglars, murderers, and ghosts. He is pretty smart and won't fall for the "ghost spray" stuff. How can I get him to be by himself and be happy? Thanks.

I tucked him in last night and talked to him about it and why our house would be a crappy house to try to break into or anything- we live in a gated community. No luck!

Sorry so long. Thanks. God bless.

Answer 1

He may have seen things on TV that are scaring him. The news or movies show a lot of things can be scary for a nine year old. First you and your parents/guardians need to discuss his fears with him, you may be able to alleviate some of his fears through a discussion. You may find out that his fears stem from something other than intruders. You can also try sitting with him in his room until he falls asleep and then returning to your room. Go over a small check list each night of why he shouldn't worry, you live in a gated community, the doors and windows are locked, you and/or your guardians are just a few doors away. You need to establish a bedtime ritual that takes place in his room, bringing him a glass of water and reading him a story or having him read to you in his bed.You may want to try walkie talkies. You can keep one and he can have one tell him if he's really scared he can talk to you. Give him a night light, and a flash light to keep by his bed. He may also benefit from a stuffed animal he can hold onto for security. Because you are his older sibling he looks to you for guidance. Teach him what he should do in a scary situation, if anyone was to come in the house how he could protect himself. It's most likely a phase that he will grow out of. Continue to reassure him that he is safe and teach him out to protect himself. He will become less insecure as time goes on. Becareful not to yell or scold him for wanting to be in your room, that will only highten his fears and make him feel like he can't go to you when he needs you. He needs to be secure in that fact that you are one of the people who protect him, and care about him. Most of all have your guardians involved in making him feel safe.