How to answer the thorny question? Mascot/Getty Images
ADVICE – This is the question every parent dreads. Child psychiatrist Stéphane Clerget provides the keys to intelligently answering the question and saving the “Christmas Magic.”
As Christmas approaches, many children wait to see Santa Claus through one of the windows of their apartment or house. But from some age, the myth of an old gentleman in red, with his long white beard, handing out gifts to (wise) children from all over the world, sitting on a sleigh pulled by his faithful reindeer, begins to raise questions. Even going so far as to make loved ones doubt his existence… Then comes the question every parent dreads. “Is there Santa Claus?” Child psychiatrist Stéphane Clerget (1) sheds light on the difficult process of responding to this request.
Madame Figaro. – At what age does a child begin to doubt the existence of Santa Claus?
Stefan Clerget. – The age of intelligence is constantly developing, but always remains 5 to 6 years old. This average tends to get “younger” as children inform each other in schoolyards. Sometimes, however, it happens that some families want to preserve the magic of Christmas and therefore make the youngest believe in the existence of the character until they are 8 or even 9 years old.
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What can this “lie” cause in a child?
A feeling of anger may arise in him, like a return to reality. This mainly develops in the one who experiences this truth more as a lie than as the destruction of a myth.
So how do you tell him that Santa doesn’t exist without giving him too much of a rush?
We must allow the child to realize by himself that he is only a myth. If he starts to doubt something and question you, just tell him that Santa Claus exists for those who believe in him. “And you, do you believe it?” We must approach the issue with belief rather than absolute truth.
A child may feel angry
Stéphane Clerger, child psychiatrist
What role does the social environment play in this “revelation”?
Some families maintain a rather strict position on this topic. For them, you should definitely not tell a child that Santa Claus exists, because that would be entering an unreal world. However, most families have grown up with this myth and like to perpetuate it in the younger generations.
(1) Author: Pocket child psychologist. everything you need to know about raising a child from 3 to 11 years oldÉditions Marabout Poche, 2013, 448 pages, €6.50.
*Originally published in 2016, this article has been updated.
Source: Le Figaro
