My 10 year old son will not sleep by himself. He says he is afraid of ghosts. He is seeing a therapist, but nothing is helping as of yet. If he sleeps with us, he is fine.
Hello and understand your predicament.
Agree that your son needs to grow out of his insecurities. You will have to wean him gradually and boost him up psychologically. To begin with let him sleep for a few hours alone, then gradually increase the time. The more you force him, the more anxious he will get.
Have an open discussion with your child and help him with any issues that might be troubling her. Many times parents tend to get stressed that the child is not sleeping as wished and communicate this anxiety to the child which forms a vicious cycle, so relax and let bedtime be a pleasant experience then a task which needs to be completed, tell him good relaxing stories or let him read good books prior to sleeping.
If symptoms persist consult your doctor for professional counseling.
Take Care and Hope this helps!
Sounds like he has some anxiety issues. I used to when i was younger be very afraid of the dark and i was terrified of sleeping. I did have a night light but the fear still use to be a problem. I would think the worsted and had a very active imagination, I would hear noises and think that someone was going to break in or burn the house down. My mom told me that what i was hearing was the night life and that it was harmless, which helped me, she just kept reassuring me that everything was going to be ok. Finally i kinda grow out of it and i could sleep fine on my own. I suggest talking to a local doctor or psychologist about these issues and see if they can help you to know what to do better, as i am not a health professional and i am only going on my experiences. I know it must be frustrating and concerning but i do think at it can be "treated" if that's the right word and I hope that he will grow out of it as i did. though i do believe it take me a few months to do so.
Best of luck