Anxiety at Bedtime – Henry was scared of bears

Henry’s mum tells his story:

Three year old Henry was scared of bears.  His anxiety about bears was waking him up multiple times in the middle of the night and he was also taking a considerable time to go back to sleep.

I have never tolerated disturbances at night so responded by doing the controlled crying technique, which has always been successful in the past.  On this occasion it made his anxiety so much worse and we got to a stage where he could not be in a separate room from me during the day. We were all tired and cranky during as a result.

Mandy was hugely supportive at getting me to use the gradual retreat approach and helped me create a sleep fairy for Henry with realistic goals that he could achieve.  The anxiety gradually disappeared.

Now if he wakes in the night he goes back to sleep immediately!

So much better!