Uncanny Intuition in your Child: Why not to Dismiss it!

uncanny intuition in children

This could be an off topic from what I’ve been writing in this series. However, from the point of view of a child with uncanny intuition, I deem it important to be included.

Alert: The post contains controversial beliefs and can be creepy to some parents.

Have you ever sensed that your child possesses uncanny intuitive abilities? Perhaps she has exceptional perceptions of emotions of others, or once she had a sudden stomach upset when someone in the family was about to face something terrible.

Not uncommon, children can exhibit strange perceptive abilities which may surprise, interest or worry their parents. Some parents understand that it can happen to little children and don’t take it very serious while others may panic and want to set their child right, assuming it is a problem to be dealt with.

From 1st to 30th April, I write one post a day on The Things that really matter to Children. Scroll to the bottom of this post to see the complete list of posts in the series.

U for Uncanny Intuition of your Child: Why not to Dismiss it!

It is believed in some cultures that young children below five years of age can see, hear and smell things which adults cannot. You may want to imagine a ghost, a spirit or an alien. I cannot talk about a definitive form of what they see or hear but I’ve experienced with my children and I’ve also listened to such stories from other parents. Once when my son was around three years, he told me he needs a nail cut and a head bath since it has been long. While it was actually true I was sure he could not have known it by himself. I asked him how he knew this. He pointed to the empty space in front of me and said, “This uncle wants me to tell you.”

Yes, my blood froze!

The invisible ‘uncle’ has appeared in his conversations quite a few times later. But, whosoever that ‘uncle’ was, I was glad that he had a genuine care on my boy and the fact that my boy was least scared of this ‘uncle’ was relieving.

I was once playing a game with my girl in front of the mirror. I was pointing to my reflection and her reflection on the mirror alternatively and addressing our names. She was enjoying the game and in the middle, after a period of thinking, pointed to another part of the mirror and asked me who it was.

I didn’t freeze this time because by that time, I had already heard a few conversations my children used to have with imaginary (maybe reality to them) beings in the house. Most common were peekaboo with the invisible beings, which some of you may have experienced too.

In scenarios like this, if the child is not scared, it may not worry us. But if the child were to tell us that they see someone and they are afraid about it, firstly we need to acknowledge their emotions. They might be talking about something that is in their reality. By constantly and repeated ridiculing that there is no one there and the child is just imagining, or even worse threatening that the next time the child says the same, you’ll be angry, you are dismissing his emotion. Bring them close to you, keep them hugged. Without attaching an anxiety, talk to them gently about what they are seeing. Ask them to describe what it is and what exactly makes them scared. The feeling of insecurity they receive from you can be the only consoling factor for them. On no grounds, be upset or angry with them. Most often, as children grow, they’ll leave past visualizing strange beings. If it persists for too long and is making your child emotionally stressed, try a change of place or seek help. 

Other kinds of intuitive perceptions in children can be of feeling in their bodies the emotions of others. The intensity may vary from child to child. To an intensely sensitive child, this could be disturbing. They might show fear or anxiety when they begin to realize that the parents are going to pick up a nasty fight. They may get extremely upset when they witness unjust or pitiful situation happening to someone or even in the televisions. Young children below seven years may lack the emotional maturity to deal with the exceptional perceptions they are experiencing. It is critically important for parents to identify such emotional difficulties if their child were to go through. It’s different from dealing with their everyday tantrums. They need love and understanding and anything out of the loving way is going to make them feel worse.

In one of the past life regression workshops I’ve attended, Dr. Newton mentioned that a 4-year old child he had been attending to would always tie a knot around her doll’s neck and make it hang. And this was happening repeatedly. During the therapy sessions, Dr. Newton got to know that the child was hanged in one of her previous births. Whether past lives are true or not is a topic of another discussion. But if you believe, know that children up to five years of age may carry the memories of their past lives. They may act out or talk about unusual things or incidents from their unconscious memories. Closely following your children may reveal insights about your children’s inner world.

I don’t know how relevant the new age labels of children are like indigo child, star child, empath or intense child. I don’t know how psychiatrists will deal with these symptoms. But, I know that, much is in the hands of the parents – how they provide a psychological security to their children when their children are sensitive!

Have you ever experienced uncanny intuition from your children. Would you like to comment here how you dealt with it? It can be helpful to several parents reading this post.

List of posts in the Series

4 Replies to “Uncanny Intuition in your Child: Why not to Dismiss it!”

  1. While reading your first para, I was scared and felt that someone might be watching me from a corner but I cant see him or her! Phew…
    I am yet to experience this but I do believe in past lives and cycle of birth and death. I read somewhere that a child in the womb see dreams related to past lives etc.
    Even recall incidents from my childhood that I was very scared of dark places and felt as if someone is waiting to grab me (I think it happens with most of us). I had vivid dreams in which I saw ghosts or strange beings…I do not know its relevance now, but your post had me thinking!
    Read my U post here UBUNTU

  2. Wow! I can only imagine how chilling an experience is when your child talks about imaginary people. You are absolutely right though, so many people snub an imaginary insight and the child never talks about it in the fear of being dismissed or scolded. The moment there is an affirmative thought, they can open up more and talk about it. This way, you can look at tackling the real issue rather than turning a blind eye towards it. Although it sounds like such a simple thing, it is fascinating how many times real emotions and thoughts are snubbed in the norm of being ‘Normal’. Thank you for a very sensible post.

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