You Might Have Had ‘Nyctophobia’ As A Kid Without Even Realising It

<div><img src="https://img.huffingtonpost.com/asset/68f66574180000a89cfe3a47.jpeg?ops=scalefit_630_noupscale" alt="" data-caption="" data-credit-link-back="" data-credit="zeljkosantrac via Getty Images" /></div><div class="content-list-component text"><p><span style="font-weight:400">Raise your hand if your child has experienced fears at bedtime that a monster might be lurking somewhere in their room, perhaps under the bed or hidden in a nearby wardrobe.</span></p><p><span style="font-weight:400">It turns out there’s a specific name for that fear: </span><a href="https://psychcentral.com/health/teraphobia"><span style="font-weight:400">teraphobia</span></a><span style="font-weight:400"> (fear of monsters). And it’s one of many common phobias that impact kids. Others include fear of dogs, fear of vomiting and fear of the dark, to name a few. </span></p><p><span style="font-weight:400">As parents, we do our best to help children navigate these types of challenges, but it can also sometimes be perplexing trying to figure out how to help most effectively.</span></p><p>“Parents can get overwhelmed when they try everything in their arsenal of commonly used support strategies, only to produce very little result in alleviating these fears,” licensed therapist <a href="https://www.sarahkipnestherapy.com/">Sarah Kipnes</a> told HuffPost.</p><p>If this sounds familiar, read on for a look at some of the most common phobias your child may experience, what may be behind the phobia and how to help.</p></div><div><img src="https://img.huffingtonpost.com/asset/68f6658f1800008821e8ebd8.jpeg?ops=scalefit_630_noupscale" alt="Your kid's phobias might be trigge