Yesterday, I offered 3 tips for helping your child overcome his or her fears of the dark. Today I would like to discuss three more.

• Soothing music



• Monster Sprays



• Sharing the family bed

If you have lullabies or other soothing music that can help your child fall asleep more easily, put the music in a CD player, turn it on very softly and leave it on repeat, so should she wake up frightened in the middle of the night, she will have her comforting music to lull her back to sleep. If your child is from another country, try to find a CD of music in her first language, as that will be far more comforting to her than lullabies in English which she doesn't yet understand.

For overcoming fears of monsters, have a nightly routine of opening closets and shining lights under beds to reassure your child that he is safe. One mother I read about fills a spray bottle full of water with just a dab of her own cologne and calls it Monster Removal Spray. She sprays it in the closet and under the bed, telling her child that it will eliminate any monsters at all that could possibly appear in the dark. Having a dab of her cologne in the spray lets her child continue to smell the familiar scent of his mother after his mother has left the room.

Last, but not least is the issue of the family bed. Some families are very comfortable with the idea, while others say "no way." I fall in the middle. When a child is new to our home and wants to have comfort at night, I feel that there is nothing more comforting than letting them snuggle up with you in a warm bed should they desire it. After they have fallen into a deep sleep, however, my poor husband is the one who gets nudged and awakened to take them back to their bed. I don't sleep well with a child kicking me all night in bed, so I do feel that after they have received the comfort they need, they need to return to their own bed. Some children sleep without hardly moving and I can handle that in my bed, but I have been blessed with children who seem to think they need to sleep perpendicular to me and kick me in the head or face. They are the ones who get carried back to their own bed!

Another option that I have never tried but is one that many parents have used with success is to have a sleeping bag or small mattress next to the side of their bed. When a child comes in their parents' room needing comfort, they are allowed to lie down on the sleeping bag next to their parents' bed. That way they still have the closeness they desire with their parent, but all are still able to get the sleep they desperately need.


Next...night terrors

Overcoming fear of the dark



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