Includes bibliographical references (p. [365]-366) and index.

P.1 Understanding and responding to your child's fear -- P.2 Coping with fears -- P.3 Overcoming fears -- P.4 First fears -- P.5 Separation fears -- P.6 Animal and insect feasr -- P.7 Nature fears -- P.8 Transportation fears -- P.9 Medical fears -- P.10 Social fears -- P.11 School fears -- P.12 Spatial fears P.13 Fear of fear -- P.14 Fear of death -- P.15 Growing up less fearful in a fearful world.

"Mommeeee, Daddeeee. . . I'm scared." What parent hasn't heard this at one time or another and been unsure of how to respond? All children are afraid of something at every stage of their lives. It's normal for an infant to be wary of strangers, for a small child to feel nervous around a big dog, or for a teenager to suffer from stage fright. But there are steps parents can take to make certain their child outgrows these developmental fears in a healthy way. This book teaches them to do just that. Monsters Under the Bed introduces parents to the fears common in children from infancy through adolescence, including fear of social events, cars, airplanes, heights, enclosed spaces, insects, and the weather, among others. It covers vital information on each, including how to tell the difference between a normal fear and a phobia, what not to do with a frightened child, how to desensitize a child to his or her fear, how to overcome a fear that has lasted too long, and how and when to respond to a child's fear. By implementing the easy-to-use strategies in Monsters Under the Bed parents can help children quell current fears and also develop coping skills for managing the new fears and anxieties that can emerge as a child grows. During the past twenty-one years, the authors - a behavioral psychologist, an educational consultant, and a former teacher - have developed the most comprehensive and practical system to date for teaching parents how to help their children overcome their physical, mental, and emotional reactions to fear. Here, the authors provide parents with the same hands-on approach that they have shared in their previous books, Good Behavior and If Your Child Is Hyperactive, Inattentive, Impulsive, Distractible. . . Helping the ADD/Hyperactive Child. Although Monsters Under the Bed is based on sound philosophy and research, it is not merely theory-oriented. It is a tool that can be used daily for understanding, minimizing, preventing, and overcoming your child's fears, offering effective solutions in specific situations. With their warmth and common sense, the Garbers and Spizman present many helpful anecdotes within the four-step framework that parents can use to guide their children through everything from momentary scares and normal fears to anxiety attacks and full-blown phobias. The authors also provide a selected reading list for parents and children on specific fears. Since fear is a continual issue throughout a child's development, Monsters Under the Bed is a resource that readers will return to through the years. Overcoming fear takes time and patience, but the payoffs for your child can last a lifetime.