If a child is afraid of dark, does that mean that he is going to suffer from schizophrenia or parano
health advisory
Hospital
Mental Health
2007-11-15 19:00:51
My personal recommendation would be to find out as much information as you can from various sources, and take this with you to a doctor to ask them questions.
A child psychologist or youth worker MAY be able to help, but screen them to first.
Blessings, Gypsy Queen
Not necessarily. It could be his unconscious mind expressing a fear of something or he has linked darkness with fear. Perhaps he had a nightmare and woke up beliving it was real and he was in darkness. Try talking to him about why he is scared and invest in one of theose night lights that you plug in. They can be very reasurring and help the child. As to it leading to schizophrenia and paranoia they are completely different defects of the mind. If in doubt seek medical advice.
no it does not! being afraid of the dark is actually a sign of vivid imagination. if however the dark seems to interact with the child (the child starts hearing laughter or voices) it is most probably a sign of the fact the child is troubled by something or even the fact that he is suffering from anxiety!
the best thing to do is to make the child confront his/her fear in a safe and controlled environment (together with mom and dad). associating good memories with the dark can make the child feel comfortable with the dark and manage to treat it as it is not some monster but a mere optical phenomena.
No, absolutely not. Fear of the dark is a normal childhood emotion. Take your munchkin to the store, let her pick out a groovy nightlight, and make sure you let her know there's nothing to be afraid of. Be soothing, and she will grow out of it.
I think all kids are. My two are, age 6, and 14 mnths.
If so we have a world full of such diseased people. Most children are afraid of the dark. In fact, so are most adults to some degree. Wander down a dark city alley; spend the night in the woods without a flashlight or fire. The darkness represents the unknown and we all fear the unknown at least a little. Let the child have a nightlight. Don't try to force the issue. He will lose his fear in time.