Tackling Nightmares & Trips to the Parent’s Bed

Susie, 8 years old, and I designed the following project to address her fears that led her to run repeatedly to her parent’s room:

We created a set of two-sided flashcards—on one side she drew specific fears and on the other her thoughts about things that help her to feel less scared. For example:

• One side BURGLARS (she drew some scary looking masked ones) and other the side (partly written by her and dictated by her) WE HAVE A BURGLAR ALARM and THERE IS ALWAYS A GROWN UP IN THE HOUSE.

• One side MONSTERS (again, she drew some scary ones) and on the other side MONSTERS AREN’T REAL, REMEMBER I THINK MONSTERS ARE FUNNY IN THE DAY, and MOST MONSTERS ARE BORN AFRAID OF PEOPLE

...And so forth for a set of 8 cards.

We designed a special carrying envelope for the cards. Her mother added a special card telling Susie how much she loved her and how brave she could be. Susie was very excited about the cards, which she was to keep with her at night and refer to when she got scared.

The results were quite dramatic—almost immediately Susie began staying in her room though the night.