Handling Fear & Pain Related Articles & Blog Posts

More than half a million tonsillectomies are performed each year on children in the U.S. More than sixty percent of those children report significant pain in the days that follow. Acetaminophen with codeine is in widespread use for post-operative pain, but the U.S. Food and Drug Administration is now investigating the safety of codeine for [...]

Sometimes children tumble, skin their knees, and keep right on playing happily. Other times, the slightest ‘owwie’ can cause children to dissolve in tears. Research published in the June 23, 2003 online issue of the Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences suggests that the pain people feel is real, that the amount of pain [...]

I have a 7-week-old who is very fussy. All he does is cry. He is in pain and I feel so bad for him. He barely sleeps at all. When he is fussy he is also extremely gassy. Any…

Related concepts: Bad Dreams Introduction to nightmares: Mommy, I had a bad dream… What are nightmares? Nightmares are unpleasant dreams that awaken a dreamer from sleep. We’ve learned much about nightmares from traumatic events, which are known to cause a predictable pattern of nightmares: first dreams that relive the event, then dreams that relive the [...]

Introduction to colic: It usually strikes toward the end of a long day, when your baby is just about at the age when your sleep deprivation has really begun to set in. Your baby stops being the quiet, peaceful, miracle baby and begins screaming every evening. It is no wonder that parents become frustrated, discouraged, [...]

My baby is terrified of taking a bath. We use a soft-sided, smaller tub within the big tub with warm water. He screams and cries the entire time. If he sees the water before we put him in the…

Getting stitches on the face is no fun for anyone, but it is especially frightening to young children. A study published in the January 2001 issue of Annals of Emergency Medicine evaluated different ways to reduce distress in children needing facial laceration repair. Some of the children received a topical anesthetic alone, some received an [...]

Children’s health issues are just the same as adult health issues — only smaller.  In adults, back pain is a common musculoskeletal problem.  In children, back pain should be taken seriously. 

Dr. Greene, our son Andrew has been having frequent severe headaches. What exactly are migraines? What can be done about them?
The Halverstadts – California

My 13 year old daughter has developed a fear of not being able to go to sleep. This problem started after she was forced to go to sleep without light as a result of Hurricane Fran’s assault on our…