One of my children is afraid.
She’s afraid all the time.
She sleeps with a blanket over her head. She won’t stay in a room by herself, even in broad daylight. She prefers to stay in her bathroom with the door shut at all times because, apparently ghosts don’t use toilets.
Yes, it is ghosts she is afraid of. A ghost in particular actually. I sat down and had a long talk with her about this problem the other day. It really has become a problem. This fear of hers prevents her from functioning. She won’t do her chores because she can’t be in a room by herself. She showers right after school because she wouldn’t dare set foot in her bathroom after dusk. Before she’ll flush the toilet she opens the bathroom door and then quickly flushes and dashes out of the room. I can’t say what the bathroom dashing is all about but I’d venture to guess that the sound of the toilet agrivates the spirits.
You can see how this poses a problem.
Anyway, the ghost in question resembles a skeleton. But he’s part ghost too. He looks something like this:
At least that’s what I’m picturing.
I’m not sure what to do. This problem is ongoing. It started over two years ago. And rather than having improved with age, the irrational fear seems to have worsened.
Please help me. I’m about bathroom-dashed out.
Any suggestions?
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i don’t have any great suggestions for you but i know what she’s going through. i too had an irrational fear of going in our basement storage room when i was growing up. dracula lived in there and you could not convince me otherwise. i would dash up the stairs so fast and explode onto the floor at the top. my parents tried to talk me through it but honestly i didn’t get over it until i was about 20. i’m not helping am i?
I can guess which child you are referring to. If this has been going on for 2 years, it is perhaps more than a fear now but a phobia. I have heard of parents having a child use a “ghostbuster wand” at night to clear all the “boogie men” from under the bed, etc. Would she go for that? Probably, too old for that tactic! I remember being afraid when I was a child for a long time that something was under my bed at night & I wouldn’t put my feet on the floor until the sun came up! After that, I was afraid my house was going to catch fire & how I would save my sister who was a baby at the time.
Here’s a good article I found – http://kidshealth.org/parent/emotions/feelings/anxiety.html
Everything I have been reading says if it is a fear that has been going on for a long time & is affecting day-to-day life, you should see medical help.
Ask the dr. when you see her @ Disney World!
Good luck!
I was terrified of our basement as a kid. It was a 100+ year old house with the dank creepy basement. Anyway, I would chant to myself over and over , “God is with me, God is with me, God is with me.” Because I needed the reminder, and because it made me feel safer. Surely nothing horrible would happen while I was saying that, right?
Now many moons later, I still find comfort in it. I’ve been known to recite those words in heavy turbulence, or while entering surgery..or, if I’m being truly honest, after watching The Ring and having my insensitive (or is it just rational?) husband walk upstairs first and leave me downstairs with the boogie man.
I get irrationally freaked over horror movies, so I especially would watch out for things like that, or books she may read. She’s welcome to my chant if it will help.
Sorry for her though – I truly sympathize. :(
How about “Ghost Away Spray.” My nieces had a bottle to this. Air freshener with a fancy lablel she had never seen. I’ve also heard you can buy a spray bottle on line that says this on the label. Just an idea.
Ask your pastor to come over and visit and bless you in your home. Tell him/her about the problem and ask them to specifically address this “ghost” to ease the fear. Maybe showing her that you believe her will help too. Then she won’t be facing this “ghost” alone.
I have one that is afraid of the dark. Same symptoms….can’t be alone, would never sleep by herself, hates to be outside after dark and often asks when it will be night time.
As for ghosts, she thinks they are cool. I think because she has watched the really stupid scary movies with her Dad and they both laugh at them. One being Night of the Zombies or something like that.
As for suggestions…..I am at a loss. Haven’t been able to cure the dark so far. But maybe funny ghosts would help. How about Casper?
2 years is a really long time. I actually believe in spirits(ghosts) and hauntings but I have no clue if what’s going on in your house is imagined or if a time or two she experienced something unexplainable. I agree with Jaime about calling a Pastor to come bless the house. I think the most awful thing for her is going to be thinking she’s all alone in this and no one believes her.
Oh Darcie-
I especially like Heather’s idea of teaching her to remind herself that she is never really alone because God is always with her, this is a great comfort!
I was also wondering if maybe she could be in charge of changing the bathroom. What about if you took her to the store to pick out paint chips and then you had her new special paint color mixed in the super-duper-deluxe anti-ghost paint they sell at some special stores ;) You could even have a party in the bathroom while everyone repainted it. I was just thinking about how sometimes my kids like things better when they had a hand in making them happen.
Whatever you do, I hope it works for both Cassidy and you!
I was Blog hopping and saw this post. I actually once thought I saw a ghost next to our bed. It was a man and he was nodding his head up and down. I actually woke my husband up and told him there was a man in our room; it was that real to me.
My husband actually had the priest come out and bless the house. It was quick and I really felt a lot better. I have never been scared since and I have never seen the ghost again. Good Luck!
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