“Mommy! I had a bad dream!”
This statement is always screamed at the top of their lungs at 2:45 am, right??
I am not a Mom that does well with less than 8 hours sleep. I don’t know how my some of my fellow Moms stay up late to watch shows or to work. There are also the super crazy ones that wake up early to “gasp!” workout!! You all are rock stars!
So when my daughter started waking in the middle of the night with bad dreams I had to run out and get all the books I could to read to her about why she shouldn’t be scared.
The goal was to have her understand that bad dreams aren’t real and to hopefully be able to sooth herself back to sleep when she wakes up. Hey, we all have bad dreams so it isn’t like I expect her to never have them but if I can get her to understand what happens when she wakes up then it will be better for everyone.
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Kids Books to Help Stop Bad Dreams
- Berenstain Bears and the Bad Dream by Stan and Jan Berenstain – we have to start out with this classic series. You can’t go wrong. In this one Brother and Sister see movies that are a little scary and both have bad dreams. It is a great book to keep on hand and I highly recommend even more of this series whenever there is an issue you a book to help kids to understand. I also have Berenstain Bears and Teasing that we used when the boys needed to understand when teasing is no longer fun.
Mommy, Daddy, I Had a Bad Dream by Martha Pieper – love this story about a happy kangaroo. We hadn’t ever read any books with a kangaroo as the main character so she loved this one. This one has won so many awards that I can’t even list them all. It was also written by a psychotherapist so really helps kids learn to handle the feelings bad dreams bring up all by themselves. I really love that!!- Ready Freddy, Help! A Vampire’s Coming! by Abby Klein – This one is for boys slightly older than the picture book stage. I would say this is for ages 6 and up. My boys like all the Ready Freddy books. They have that gross boy humor that I must admit is not my cup of tea but if it gets them to read then I can go along with it. Freddy problem solves and figures out how to deal with his bad dreams.
- The Dream Jar by Lindan Lee Johnson – I have not read this book as it is only available in hardcover (more than I want to spend) or Kindle and our library does not have it available. It has the best reviews on Amazon of any book about bad dreams so feel like I must add it to my list. I hope to get my hands on a copy soon.
I have a hard time verbalizing the “why’s” of emotions with my kids. Books really help me discuss tougher topics and explain how to react in certain scenarios. I was such a book worm as a kid that books are the first thing I turn to when explaining emotional topics to my kids.
So next time you are dealing with a tough situation in your house like bad dreams or teasing first look at some books to help your kids find solutions. Do you have any favorite books to deal with childhood issues?
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I love this post. I only wish my two were a little younger, but I’ll def pass it on to others who have kids that age.
I love using books for a variety of reasons, but using them to stop bad dreams wasn’t on my list. Thanks for a new list of books to share!
This is such a great and informative post! I’ve never read any post about how to comfort your children when they have bad dreams until I read yours. Great references of books, too.
I love that Berenstein Bear book when I was a kid. I haven’t read it in years. I need to find it for my kiddos.
I love that there is a Berenstain book for just about any problem.
As I read the title of your post, I instantly thought of Berenstain Bears! That is just too funny! I grew up reading some of these books and I know when I have kids, I’ll be looking forward to reading to them!
Ooh what a gret idea for a post..love this. Will be looking at these for mu LO
I used to have nightmares a lot growing up and although I have never heard of these books before I am going to put them on the birthday list for my cousin who gets scared at night. Great work x
Thanks. I used to have the same nightmare for years as a kid. Funny how we can remember.
Those are awesome and very helpful. My daughter doesn’t have bad dreams, at least it’s not as often. It would be nice to have books like this to read before bed time! Thanks for the list!
My kids often have nightmares. I never would have thought to turn to a book, which is odd because reading is something we spend so much time doing in our home. Great list!
Thanks. I have found that there is a book for almost everything. Love it!
These are some great books. I really hate it when the kids have bad dreams. You feel helpless in many ways. These books would really help.
Love the list of books to help a bad dream! Such an amazing resource for parents and to help kids feel better in the night!
Karen | GlamKaren.com
These are such cute book ideas! We love getting book recommendations and reading. We will have to check some of these out.
I loved Berenstein Bears when I was growing up. I think I would get that book for my son. He’s still 1 and hardly get to make him pay attention for more than 5 mins sometimes. But hopefully I get to instill the love of reading in him soon.
| yvonnesowell.com |
Such a lovely post. These are great books that every child will like. So nice it should do the trick
Aww I love the Berenstein Bears! Such a cute list that is sure to help with those kiddos that have bad dreams.
When my daughter was four, she had her first back-to-school panic attack. Over the years we have investigated a lot of tip and are now planning to sharing these books with friends who are going through the same thing.
I used to have night terrors when I was a kid so I know how scary they can be for kids. These are great for easing kids from having bad dreams.
My daughter is almost 6 and this is her every night! Love the idea of picking up books!!
I love using books to talk through potentially difficult topics, especially when emotions are involved!
Me too! Books help me articulate what I really should be saying.
This is a post that will be helpful to many. I have a friend who will love what you’ve shared.
Yes saving this for later! Great suggestions!
Thanks!
This is so neat that they make books for bad dreams!
aw, such good ideas! I’m 30 years old, and I always have to watch disney channel before bed! I always notice it helps with nightmares! These look like such cute little reads, too! Will have to keep them in mind for when I have my littles!
My daughter doesn’t really have bad dreams, but I’ll keep these books in mind. Especially the Berenstain Bears book – she loves them!
What a great list!!!!! Thankfully I haven’t had to deal with this, but you never know!! Great to be prepared
Bad dreams are the worst! I remember when I got bad dreams, I would crawl into my parents bed! Sometimes they were so deep in their sleep that I had to sleep where they feet where in the bed!
This is great! My daughter actually has night terrors so often!We have a few books to help but these were great!
Glad these help.