Son scared to sleep alone?

Question

hi i have a 6 yr old son who until now has always slept well.last week he went to a mates house and watched a video that was a comedy and had monsters in.since then he has been freaking out every time i put him to bed and if i put him back or turn the light on hes still upset.in the end i had to put him in my room as he kept waking up screaming or not sleeping at all.any ideas how to reasure him as im worried he may keep doing it and might want to always stay in my room.we are all knackered from little sleep,i would keep putting him bk but am worried neighbours will complain plus he gets quite distressed.

Answer 1

You shouldn't have let him see the movie. I suggest talking to him, and telling him that the monsters arn't real. Give him a confort object. Tell him your in the same house as him, and nothing bad will happen.

Answer 2

One of my friends just had the same prob. with nightmares about bugs for his daughter (4 yrs old). I used Monster B Gone spray when my kids were little & it worked perfectly. Just put some water in a water bottle & add a touch of food coloring to make it look more "real". Let them spray where they saw the monsters & tell them this make them go away. My friends daughter used it 1 time & the nightmares were gone.

Answer 3

Let him sleep in your bed... or at least fall asleep there.

If you dont want him in your bed then lay down in his bed until he falls asleep and then go back to bed.

You want him to feel safe!

Answer 4

This calls for a little creative thinking ... as clearly he's been traumatised by what he's seen, particularly as you weren't with him to comfort him at the time - no criticism intended.

How about a dreamcatcher in his window? Or a sprinkle of lavender oil (anti-monster drops) on his pillow? Or a soothing relaxation CD to listen to when he's dropping off to sleep? I've done all these to help my son sleep better.  I also read a book to my kids last week about a Kiss Soldier (a parent's kiss on the finger popped onto the bedpost which acts like a soldier to ward off the baddies).

My son's been having bad dreams (he's 5) which I noticed come when he's been playing computer games. I stopped him playing them and the dreams stopped! So make sure you have a relaxing, calm, safe bedtime routine and let him suggest things which will help him feel brave. They have such active imaginations at that age and anything you can do to reassure him (other than spend nights being kicked!!) is worth a go. Good luck.

Answer 5

Try putting water in a spray bottle.  Call it Monster killer.  Let him put it by his bed.  That way he feel more in control of the situation.

Likely it is just a phase and he will grow out of it soon.  If necessary having him in your bed for a few more days or a week or two is not forever.

Answer 6

Just keep reassuring him that monsters aren't real and he is safe in his own bed.  Maybe let him listen to some music or a story-tape before he goes to sleep.  If he cries, give him a cuddle then put him back to bed. I know how tough it is, my five year old daughter gets scared of the dark.  But you have to keep persevering, and he will get over it. Good luck x

Answer 7

Two things that helped my 6 year old grandson to sleep better.

1) Bought him a dream catcher

2 I know this sounds daft, but I got him a little self inking rubber stamp from the toy shop which is an animals head of his choice (Lion, dog, elephant etc) and told him that only anybody with a stamp on their hand that he had actually stamped (mum dad etc) could enter his room at night. Worked wonders. He's now a happy chappy again.

Good luck

Answer 8

try putting your son to bed in his own room with the lights still on and stay there with him until he falls asleep, this way he will feel safer

try this for a while and then see if he is comfortable enough without you but still with the light on

if not than try just you but no light

after a while he should feel more confident about sleeping on his own in his own room without you or a light

if he has a tv in his room with a self-timer you could always put him to bed half an hour earlier so that he falls asleep with a light on

i used to do this when i was younger and it worked

try leaving the hallway light on as well (again, i did this)

and it also worked

good luck and i wish you a your son a peacful sleep :)

x*x

Answer 9

or you can do the sleeping bag trick. put him in a s.b. and everynight, make him go closer to his room. thats how i learned.