Sticky enveloping cold horror, squeezing the heart… Many are familiar with the sensations that the fear of the dark gives rise to. What and when does this feeling arise, and most importantly, how and is it possible to get rid of it?
Children's fears
Fear of the dark in a teenager is most often an old childhood fear. They arise at an early age, during periods of particular vulnerability. It can be generated by a loud sound in a dark room, and the stirring of curtains, and the creaking of a bed. This is probably due to the fact that the darkness is not clear, frightening. And it is not known what the enemy is and where he is hiding … And what is not visible is especially frightening, because the child's imagination is limitless.
Actually, if something specific scares you in the dark - a wolf, Babai or someone else, this is a fairly simple situation that is easy to deal with. But if the cause of the horror is not clear, it rather indicates that the child is afraid of surprises. He needs at least minimal coverage, so as not to be alone with his fears, otherwise it begins to seem to him that there is no salvation, danger is everywhere. In such cases, the child often cries, tries to keep the parents in the room or come to them.
How to help
First of all, parents need to understand that the fear of the dark is a frequent occurrence, which means that many have already gone this way. Of course, each child is unique, but the methods of treatment are more or less universal.
Like other diseases, this one is easier to prevent than to cure an existing disease. There are a number of ways to both prevent and get rid of fear.
The most common treatment is to fake fear. The resulting image must be destroyed: crush the sheet, burn it in the presence of the child. Cut off all the terrible tentacles, tear off the paws, do everything so that the child sees that it is not difficult to cope with his fear.
If there is a character who caused the fear of the dark, you can fight him "with his own weapon". To do this, you need to take as a basis a fairy tale or a story about him and remake it in such a way that the other characters can easily deal with the villain and celebrate it.
Kids will understand better if one of the toys will "guard" them. A teddy bear that has not closed its eyes all night will drive away the most terrible monsters from the child. The main thing in this situation is for the baby to choose his "bodyguard" himself, because you don't know exactly which animal will better cope with the child's monsters.
It can be useful to play hide-and-seek or hide-and-seek in a darkened room - in such a situation, children can go a little further than their fears usually allow. During the struggle, an excellent solution would bea flashlight that can be turned on at the slightest sign of "danger". This will help the child fight fear, because he knows that he himself can be "saved" at any moment, and this gives him the courage to stay in the dark a little longer.
Prevention
In order not to think about how to get rid of the fear of the dark at an older age, you can try to prevent its appearance in childhood. You can’t save yourself from everything, but you still need to exclude the main causes:
- Be careful what your child watches on TV. Based on the degree of impressionability of the child, you need to give or close access to certain cartoons or movie scenes.
- You should not play active games in the evening, do not read new stories, do not watch new cartoons.
- In the nursery, but at night, toys should be removed so that in the dark they do not seem like creepy monsters.
- In no case should you laugh at other people's fears, cowardice, because ridicule can lead to a child hiding their problems. This, in turn, leads to increased fear, which will be very difficult to get rid of.
Culture of darkness
Attention of scientists, philosophers, townsfolk has long attracted darkness. Gloom, darkness, blackness are interesting because anything can find shelter in them, including evil.
Western poets associated darkness with depression, danger, despondency. Most religions mention darkness in connection with something bad. For example, in the Bible, darkness is one of theEgyptian executions. It is also a place of "crying and gnashing of teeth".
In the Qur'an, darkness awaits all sinners. Thus, for religion, pitch darkness is the finale awaiting sinners, a kind of analogue of hell and complete evil.
Fear
Fear of the dark in medicine is called nyctophobia. Most often it manifests itself in childhood, but it is not uncommon for adults to have a lifelong fear of the dark. Psychology says that such long-term unsolvable problems can develop into a phobia.
As a result of observations, it becomes clear that although adults may be afraid of the dark, they still try to fight this feeling. However, they also try to turn on minimal lighting at night, do not leave the house in the evening and at night, do not use transitions without light, and use other tricks to help control the fear of the dark. In adults, this is carefully hidden.
However, in rare cases, nyctophobia can develop into a mental disorder, the treatment of which requires the help of specialists. Sometimes even methods require hospitalization.
Causes of occurrence
In order to know how to overcome the fear of the dark, you need to know what caused it. The causes of this disease have been studied by scientists from different countries for several centuries. The result of these studies was a list of the most obvious causes, but it is unlikely to be complete today.
- Genetic predisposition. Scientists believe that any fear can be inherited. Nyctophobia is no exception - often it is at the genetic level that it is transmitted to descendants.
- Limited abilities of the organism. A significant part of the information a person receives through vision. This is the way the brain learns about danger and how to avoid it. But if darkness has thickened around, then a person is deprived of the opportunity to learn about what surrounds him. And this helplessness is the cause of fear.
- Uncertainty. Since in the dark it is impossible to assess the degree of danger and find ways to eliminate it, a person is tormented by the unknown. And it is precisely the desire to avoid this that makes a person shy away from meeting with darkness.
- The past. We all come from childhood, so various incidents at an early age can lead to the fact that there is a fear of the dark in adulthood. For example, scary stories about a dark room, punishment in a room without light - are there any reasons to be scared in childhood?
Treatment
No disease should be ignored, as well as the fear of the dark in adults. Treatment will not be the easiest, but it is worth it. If you feel that the disease is running, it is better to consult a specialist. However, sometimes you can try to solve the problem yourself
1. Determination. Do your thing regardless of your fears. If you need to go into a room without light, you should do it. Scared to go outside in the dark? Get a dog and then, willy-nilly, in the evening you will have towalk with her. Fear will recede, and walking with a friend is not so scary.
2. Evaluation. Just imagine what the action will be. So, walking into the darkness, you need to know that the flashlight will turn on first, then you need to open the door, walk to the car, etc.
3. Make a decision. Just decide that it's time to stop being afraid. The time of fear has passed.
4. Analysis. Think carefully about where the fear comes from, how real it is, how real the danger is. Imagine how you can get rid of it. Fear, mentally conquered, becomes much weaker.
5. Workout. Courage also needs a boost. You can overcome your phobias gradually. For example, start at dusk not turn on the light, going into the twilight. Then you can gradually move into a dark room: turn on the light a second later than yesterday, allow yourself to enter an unlit room for a couple of moments, etc.
Conclusion
So why has the darkness been so frightening for man for centuries? What is hidden in its gloomy depths? Perhaps this is just the original fear of death, destroying the very concept of life? The sages of the Ancient East said that the most terrible evil is happening in daylight, and the most terrible darkness is in the soul of an evil person. And instead of being constantly afraid of the dark, it's better to light at least a tiny candle.
