[KatBoo]

hi. my 3-yo has recently started saying that he's scared of the dark.

I'm not sure if it's a delay tactic or if there is genuine fear...I suspect a mixture of both. Does anyone have any tips for how to deal with this situation, or recommended toddler books about the subject?

Thanks
K

[vegemite_kid]

I read in a sleep book for toddlers that it is a phase that children do go through. We purchased ours a wind up torch to help us ride it out! Wait until the monsters in the room start! ("monster" spray worked well for a while for us).

If you want a scientific book then try Dr Ferber's book "Solve Your Child's Sleep Problems" a great resource for any age - including yourself!

[Neha]

My 21 month son as the opposite issue he wants no lights in the room and he wakes up in the middle of the night and just stands and looks over his cot on our bed and just calls mama in a very calm voice , he goes in to our closet and closes the door and we are afraid that he might be afraid of the dark but he loves, he is so thrilled that he is hiding the closet and then after a minute he opens the door and says peek a boo .

[carang]

our son has jsut started this business too.

we bought a little table top lamp from ikea (the cheapest they have on offer) that has a red lampshade, so it seems to emit a red light. it's great because he can see, but it' isn't so much that he could even look at a book properly. we've also left their ensuite bathroom light on with the door ajar in the past. he seems to forget about it every once in a while and will go days without mentioning it, then all of a sudden it rears it's ugly head again.


the only thing about monster spray is that i woudl be worried that it actually re-inforced the fear as they now think they must be real...anytime, my boy mentions monsters, i laugh and say that the ONLY real monsters in OUR house are my two kids! and it all ends in laughter and then he forgets about it...