"VIVID IMAGINATION CAUSING ANXIOUSNESS?"

"My 22-month-old daughter has recently started asking both myself and her father "Is it okay?" often. Sometimes it is when she takes a fall, sometimes she asks us if we are okay (example maybe after she has done something that she knows she is not supposed to do) and she also has now started asking us if "The monster is okay?". I think she is beginning to develop some fear of imaginary monsters as well. I am wondering if this is all normal behavior for this age or if we have done something horribly wrong to make her afraid? If so, we of course want to take the necessary steps to correct it as soon as possible so that she is not feeling so anxious."

It is typical for a child�s imagination to become very vivid at this age. This is why I think it is important to look at your child�s environment and try to see it through her eyes. Try to be sure she isn't seeing any frightening images on T.V. or in books. Also, talk about the characters that she is watching, i.e. �That big bird is yellow and funny!�, �That Mr. Cookie (our name for cookie monster) sure eats a lot of cookies, I bet he gets a tummy ache�. When these vivid images are first presented to your kids, they may not know how to interpret them � scary or funny. When parents and kids are laughing together at the funny Elmo bouncing around the screen, then it helps the child not to be afraid. Of course, this can be more difficult when there are older children in the house because of the things they like to watch.