March 4, 2009
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Coulrophobia
Child Psych today was a lot of kids with ADHD on vitamin R (thats med student humor for ritalin)
In true 4th year fashion, my duties are pretty much limited to watching the attending talk to the child, occasionally taking a blood pressure or pulse, and once in a blue moon interviewing the child myself before the attending.
One of the kids we saw today has some anxiety issues, and is unable to sleep in her own bed, constantly running to mommy or daddys bed (they sleep in two rooms so at least one of them can remain resting when this happens)
What, you may ask, scares this little girl so much that she feels physically unable to sleep in her own bed?
Well, she believes that an evil clown lives in her closet.
Shit, I would be terrified too.
The plan at this stage, was to use a calendar and every night the girl spent in her own bed alone like the big 2nd grader she was, a smiley face would be drawn on the calendar. Two smiley faces in a row, and the girl would receive a reward, like a trip to chuckee cheese or a movie with a friend.
She was having none of it…she didnt want to be a big girl, she didnt believe her stuffed animals would protect her, she didnt care about the reward if it meant risking the evil clown getting her.
So I suggested what always works…erm, I mean worked, past tense…for me when i was worried about clowns or zombies, or clown zombies getting into my room.
Instead of taking a stuffed animal to bed, take a baseball bat.
The Josh…repairing childrens psyches, one violent act at a time.
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Why Not Zoidberg
Comments (10)
I remember when my niece started having nightmares, and I wondered what in the hell she could be scared of. Then it dawned on me that all children stories are filled with ghouls, and ghosts, and monsters, and such.
You’re right – give them bats.
LOL, I hope you’re over this childhood fear, you’ve mentioned you like zombies – sounds a bit counter phobic? =p My bros like zombies too – I don’t quite understand it, must be a manly thing to like… great post!
heck ya i would be scared of going to sleep with evil clowns… clowns are scary and yes i would recommend a bat but i think i used a tennis racquet… hahaha.. i gave those clowns a good forearm and backhand swing..
I hate clowns too! Vitamin R, ha ha ha. I love it. So… did the baseball bat thing work?
you know what works for monsters is a can of monster spray. I am sure I can find a can of evil clown spray….they don’t cost too much and it would work.
You’re doing Child Psych now?
The bat sounds like a good idea, good practice for eye-hand coordination as well.
Clowns are scary to me. Always. As a kid, I avoided them like the plage and now…well, I walk away.
…I’m a little curious as to where she developed this fear. I used to be terrified of sleeping in the dark because I thought that a great big, red eyed MINOTAUR was waiting outside my window to rip my head off. Not eat me, rip my head off. I thought this up when I was six. I think it’s because my mother read a lot of Greek folklore to me.
You know, my parents were vigilant about the kind of stuff I got to watch (hardcore Christians that they are), and I’ve never had a scary dream about a zombie, clown, serial killer or much of anything else. If kids are having irrational fears like that, it’s probably a lenient parent’s fault.
I also didn’t get to go to a movie theater until I was fifteen, but I barely have the will to control my attention enough to go to movies anyway. That’s probably more my fault than my parents.
omg, i wood not let any child deprive me from sleeping with my husband! hehe