My child pretends to be sick, why he does it
"Mommy, my belly hurts"And yet, after taking him to the doctor, they tell us that he is like a rose, or in the middle of a family reunion, the child complains of an annoyance that later reveals itself as nonexistent." Why do these children pretend? Does it lead them to say that something hurts them? In most cases it is just a way of draw attention.
A technique with which to remember that Still there and that require adults to turn to them. However, this behavior must be treated properly and, what is more important, stop the lie so that it is never repeated.
Why do they pretend
The first of all is go to the origin, to why. This is because children usually have to imitate behavior that they have seen results in great attention. This does not mean that children pretend because they see their parents lying, but because they observe that sick people receive care and become the center of attention.
Younger children think that if they are sick, parents will respond attending to them and fulfilling their wishes. Sometimes, your desire to be cared for is such that, even if there is no illness, the child really feels bad. It somatizes your mood and feels it as a physical ailment.
How to know if they are sick
It's very important differentiate between a real case of illness and a false one. In the event that the child is suffering from a condition, the treatment must be initiated. Otherwise, your way of acting will have to be corrected. Here are some ways to know if the child is lying:
- Missing the symptom clear. Lies have short legs and one of the ways in which they are often caught is the lack of symptoms. The child who says he has a cold but no snot or cough, he may be faking.
- The days of illness. The conditions are random and you can never know when you are going to get sick. However, if you see a pattern and the child gets sick every time you have an exam or some responsibility nearby, you have to look carefully if you are not pretending.
- Duration of symptoms. The symptoms can be faked in the search for attention. However, the child can suddenly "heal" after achieving his goals, a test that he pretended to get attention or get rid of a responsibility.
How to act
If it is finally proven that the child was faking, the first thing will be to sit with him and talk about how bad what is lying? It must be understood that if he does not tell the truth, it is possible that when he is really ill, he will not receive real attention and he will continue to suffer that discomfort.
There will also be reproach them for this behavior to see that they have obtained the opposite result to the one they were looking for.
In other cases in which children are capable of provoke some symptomsIt is important to have a specialist to deal with this issue. It will be necessary to deepen in the reasons why the minors behave like this.
Damián Montero
