Noah's been asking about bad men a lot lately. I don't know how to answer him. He wants to know if there are bad men in the world. Then he wants to know why.
I really don't know what to say to him other than "mommy and daddy will always keep you safe."
What do you guys think? What do you tell your kids?
And is this obsession with "bad men" normal for a 5 year old?
It's hard to say. My kids are with me because their biological father killed their baby sister (my niece).
ReplyDeleteWhen my nephew (from my other sister)came up to visit for Christmas, I guess the cousins got to talking and he came out and asked me: "Do mommies and daddies kill their babies?"
I was heartbroken and unsure what to do. I ended up telling him the truth; that sometimes they do. But not that it was normal or anything that a baby could do to deserve that. I felt he needed to know the truth up to what he could handle at the age of 8.
I also made sure to let him and my kids know that all men aren't bad and I used my husband and my nephew's father as examples of men who do the right thing and are good.
I guess you have to gauge where he's at and see if you think he's mature enough to deal with a revelation like that so that it doesn't become a constant worry or threat to him.
I remember when deciding whether or not to admit Santa's not real was the hard topic. I hate to think about how fast they are growing up, earlier and earlier
ReplyDeleteWow! That's a deep one today Katt. I think it's best to tell them the correct answers to all their questions, but certainly keep in mind their age at the time. You don't need to go to far with him. You know, something like "There ARE bad men in the world, and bad woman. And we don't really know why they are bad. They just get confused sometimes and do things they shouldn't do". Don't try to over explain it to him, it will just bring more questions. Keep it simple.
ReplyDeleteHope that helps!!
Are they talking about stranger in school?
ReplyDeleteMy daughter has been talking about how bad people try to take you and blah blah blah. I just try to tell her that we live in a very safe place. That as long as we are aware of what is around us and know not to talk to strangers we will be fine.
Good luck!