My Almost Four Year Old Seeing Ghosts?

Updated on August 10, 2010
M.M. asks from Plano, TX
15 answers

HEllo MAMMAS!!!, sorryfor the weird question and thanks in advance for any feedback
Since this past Friday, my son ( he is almost four) has been telling me that there is man in the hallway that leads to his room. HE says this "man" has a hat one his head. I ask him where and he points and then says Scary,,and then runs off to the living room. HE has been telling me this around the same time, it has been around 7pm
I'm not sure where this is coming from BUT, ive been dismissing it, telling him, "There is no one there"
Im not sure what to think , could he be making this up? he doesnt usually make stuff up, well at least not yet.
any feedback is appreciated,

1 mom found this helpful

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C.T.

answers from San Antonio on

does he maybe not want to go to bed? Is he buying time? Maybe he does see something have the house blessed and tell the "man" to leave. Just when you do....pay attention you may anger him if he is not a peaceful entity.

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E.G.

answers from Atlanta on

If our physical bodies are filled with energy, that energy has to go somewhere when the physical shell is gone. So, I'm thinking your son is an extremely sensitive and perceptive person.

Others will probably say the same thing to you here.

E.

4 moms found this helpful
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D.P.

answers from Pittsburgh on

He very well could be seeing something. Energy remains after matter is gone. I would ask him to draw pictures about it, talk about it. I wouldn't tell him "there is no O. there" because who knows.
You might want to do a prayerful cleansing of your house. Go through every room, pray and ask the energy to move along.

3 moms found this helpful
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K.S.

answers from New York on

So first check, it's not something he's seen on TV (you never know what they catch as you're flipping through the channels) or it's not a ploy to not go to bed (my 4 year old is making an art out of distractions to not go down)?

If not we had/have this problem. There's at least 2 maybe 4 spirits in our house (it's pretty old). I've seen them as has my oldest daughter. She was really young so I don't think she realized what they were. She was also able to talk to them. Hubby didn't believe it until they started turning on/off his bedside lamp. hahaha

It got really bad one night and I prayed and then told everyone that they are welcome to stay but that they all have to stay outside. Creepy thing is once I was done saying this and praying (all in my head) my daughter turned to me and said "Mommy, the man and the little boy said that they're going to go outside but stay by my window"! I think there's one more (a little girl) that didn't get the memo but she stays in the attic room.

Try asking/telling them they have to get out, that it's your house and they are not welcome. Any time my daughter has asked about ghost/spirits/angels in her room I've told her that if she doesn't want them there she has every right to tell them they need to leave. I don't recommend telling him that he's seeing things that aren't real. To him they are and he needs to feel empowered to be in charge of the situation.

Best of luck. Let us know how it ends up!

~Kristal

2 moms found this helpful

D.D.

answers from New York on

Could be shadows or his imagination so I'd start off by doing something simple like making "Ghost be gone" spray. It's similar to monster be gone spray but different. lol.

Get a can of air freshener in a scent you usually don't use. Make a label that says it's ghost be gone spray. Then the next time your son says there's a man in the hallway grab the spray and explain that it'll get rid of ghosts. Have him spray it and see if it works.

At his age he's got an active imagination so the ghost might be an unreal fear. If it is like monsters in the closet then the spray will work and he can use it as often as he needs until he's not afraid. Probably easier to do that than cleanse your house of yell christian things with could confuse or frighten your son.

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J.L.

answers from Pittsburgh on

My friend grew up in a very old house that was passed down for generations. Her nephew spent a lot of time there and he started to talk about a man named Jack that would play with. Everyone just thought he had an imaginary friend until one day we we're all looking at old photos and all of the sudden, Ryan, my friends nephew, pointed to a picture and said "There's Jack!" Well, it was my friends great-grandfather's brother that lived in the house and his name was Jack! No one even thought of the brother Jack because it was so long ago, they just thought he had an active imagination! One night, I spent the night at my friends house and in the middle of the night I heard someone say my name in a loud whisper. I quickly woke up and looked around, my friend was sound asleep. However, her two cats were sitting straight up with thier ears upright and staring towards the door. I got up to make sure her mom didn't call for me but everyone was asleep in the house. Now, I could have been dreaming, but I don't think so. I don't have any advice for you, I just want you to know that he very well may be seeing something. I agree with the others that children and animals are more attuned to that kind of thing.

2 moms found this helpful

L.P.

answers from Pittsburgh on

If you believe in the paranormal, which I am kind of on the fence, then you might have heard that children have not learned to 'block out' their sensitivity to these kinds of experiences. I don't know if I buy into that or not, but I do believe in an afterlife, so I guess it's not that big of a stretch to believe in things like angels, or ghosts, the remaining spirits after the physical body is gone. I can't remember the exact scenario now, but I remember wondering myself, if my son had had paranormal experiences, or whether he was experiencing the typical childhood fears associated with unknown sights and sounds, and probably too much tv, namely Scooby Doo. LOL

I don't think I'd totally dismiss him. But I think I'd ask him if/why he's afraid of this man. And if he is, I'd conduct a 'getting rid of the man' ceremony. I'd stand in the spot where he sees the man, with your son if he's willing, and firmly tell the man, "YOU MUST LEAVE THIS HOUSE. YOU ARE SCARING ___________ AND WE WANT YOU TO LEAVE US ALONE AND GO BACK TO YOUR OWN HOME AND NEVER COME BACK."

Or, maybe you could frame it as though the man is an angel, just checking in to make sure all is well? Just a thought...

Let us know what happens.

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P.W.

answers from Dallas on

I have to agree with Julie B. I tried to teach my kids to relax and visualize from the time they were teeny tiny. I believe your son could be seeing a spirit. I would just make light of it. Ask if he is friendly or just there? Ask if he has a name. Just smile and be interested. Don't look spooked out or that might exacerbate his fear. If you son says anything concerning then you can figure out what to do next, but that will probably never come to pass.

My little nephew used to see a woman that looked a lot like the deceased grandma he never knew. As he grew older she faded away.

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J.B.

answers from Atlanta on

Well, he could be making it up, but I believe in spirits. I also believe that often, children and animals can see things we don't. Research your home's history -maybe he is seeing something! If he keeps it up, just say, "Well, I cannot see anything there, but if you do, just understand that he's not going to hurt you. I know it's probably scary to see him, but don't pay any attention to him." If it goes on for awhile, I would seriously consider having a sensitive person or someone of that nature come into your home to check it out. Remember -no matter what your beliefs about the afterlife or lack thereof -we are energy, and energy never dies -it just changes form...

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R.D.

answers from Richmond on

While kids have very vivid, lively imaginations, I truly believe that they are sensitive to spirits. My 6 year old is sensitive (my 5 year old is not). Chances are, this is NOTHING, he saw something in a book, on tv, heard it from a friend, whatever... As long as he's not scared, I would play into it. What could it hurt? You're encouraging him to use his imagination and creativity. If it's truly troubling you, you could ask your pediatrician for advice. If he really REALLY thinks he's seeing a ghost (who knows? maybe he is) then explain to him that the ghost can't hurt him. Ask him questions, like does this man ever say anything to him? What is he doing? What is he wearing? Sometimes getting familiar with our fears makes them not so scary after all. Best wishes!

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J.L.

answers from Minneapolis on

j

1 mom found this helpful

A.G.

answers from Pocatello on

Well I don't know how spiritual you are but to go along with what J L said I would have whats called a blessing on your house. It's when you have a religious figure come into your home and basically say a prayer to bless your home and all who live in it. I know someone from the Mormon LDS Church would do it and they would do it for free....I think Catholics do it too but they might charge you...I'm not sure. I know when the LDS Church does it it's a nice prayer nothing weird or scary. They would just kneel down in your home and say a prayer to bless your home and to have God and Christ there for help and love. If you are interested you can go to www.Mormon.org, then go to worship with us and if you put in your address it will tell you the closest church to you and the number to the bishop who can then have someone come to your house. Good luck to you. I really believe that there are good and bad spirits out there and if your son says he is seeing one and it's scary I think it's worth looking into. And it won't hurt anything to have a house blessing.

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M.J.

answers from Sacramento on

I wonder if the website for the show Paranormal State might have any useful tips? I would track that down and see.

Good luck!

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C.P.

answers from Chicago on

My cousin used to play with the little boy and his friend (Who we think may have been our uncle who passed away as a small child based as the little boys friends name was the same as our uncles imaginary friend) but used to tell my aunt that the old man was mean.

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A.B.

answers from New York on

I saw spirits all the time when I was young. In the house out on the street wherever. As I got older that faded till I had my last sort of confrontation with one in my grandfather's house in Italy, I was 25 and I believe i was tuselling with my great grandmother, as I was sleeping in her room and I think she didn't approve of my choices I was making(lol). My son saw and still sees and talks to spirits, one is my beloved grandgfather who my son adored till he passed away when my son was 3. The whole thing freaks my hubs out, but that's what is going on with us. Get son to try to give you more detail and never act scared about it. If he says the man is scary ask him, is he scary becasue he surprises you by being in the hallway or becasue he says scary things. If he is truly frightened you are going to have to consider a house blessing.

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