wimpy 7yr old - HELP!!!

[ouchwithNo.2]

Help please....
End of tether and need some advice please.
Our son is 7yrs old and a real wimp.
The smallest graze or cut and he acts like a complete drama queen for well over an hour, he will walk around holding his finger, refusing to bend it, put it in the bath saying he is going to die.
He will yell and make stupid exaggerated crying noises and wailing.
NOTHING will calm him - a plaster will hurt (apparently - even though he has to wear a plaster eyepatch for 2hrs a day and frequently that removes bits of eyebrow with no worries), soap will sting etc...
Yesterday he had a bit of an upset tummy, it is going around the school so we bought some Dioralyte(sp?) - blackcurrant.
45 MINUTES to drink it. Screaming it was poison we were trying to kill him, he was going to die etc etc.... it tastes just like fruitshoot which he drinks so why the problem?
I am dreading a tooth coming out and god forbid he breaks a bone.
If he has a red dot on his skin like a pimple or scratch then he starts worrying it will bleed or how he got it.
Nothing bad has ever happened to him so he hasn't been affected by a deep cut or having seen anyone hurt.
Why is he like this? There really is no reasoning with him, I don't pander to it and tell him to stop being silly, people have far worse and he is a boy and boys do these things but to no avail....

 

[Reedy]

My 8 year old niece is like this (although not as bad) and she's always been like it we kind of just accept it now & try to ignore it x I sometimes think its for attention x
Have you spoken to him about it? x

 

[LaaLaa]

is he the same at school?

 

[Bix]

Maybe a bit of sympathy would help. I agree that little things needn't be pandered to, but it's also nice to let them know that you do care. If my eldest hurts himself, I give him a cuddle, an 'oh dear' and a kiss to make it better, then I quickly change the subject and move on so that he doesn't dwell on it.

 

[sabby52]

My eldest was like this, but only in the house, he always behaved differently when outside, if he hurt himself in the house it would be the worst ever, but when he got bashed in the face with the ball at football it was ok because his friends were there !!!! lol I just got on with it and accepted it was just him, he would have got a kiss and a cuddle if he hurt himself and maybe a little treat to take his mind of it. He is now 13 years old and is fine

 

[shiawase]

If you just ignore it or tell him he's being silly then he could be going over the top to get your attention! My sister was exactly the same at that age, infact when she was 12 and had a stomach bug she was in the bathroom crying and screaming (it was annoying to be fair!) but i sat in there with her calmed her down n held her hair, its only natural to want to be comforted when you are in pain. He's only 7, so i guess its a big deal when he's hurt himself/feeling ill! Give him a hug and then distract him with something fun to do!

 

[Lucy22]

A friend had the same problem with her son.

She was about to send him for counselling when she talked to his teacher in school about it and discovered he was the most placid, content child in class that barely made a sound or complained about anything. Even if had an accident and hurt himself, she said he never cried more than any other child who had hurt themselves ie. not to the same extent he'd have made a fuss at home.

Turns out he was pretty much doing it for attention. Not sure how the situation was resolved in the end but I know he's a much calmer child now.

Sorry that wasn't too helpful, hope everything works out for you and your son

 

[MrsW2B]

Hiya Hun,

Sorry to hear you are having problems, but you aren't alone, my son is exactly the same (He will be 9 in Oct) and it is really getting me down TBH, its taken me a while to realise it but I have come to the conclusion that it is all for attention, he isn't like it at school and he dosen't behave like it when he goes to friends houses or grandparents etc, not too sure what to do but I have just started to ignore the bad/silly behavior as sometimes when he does things he looks around to see whos watching, so from now on only good behavior gets rewards.
Hope things get better for you soon x

 

[Hotbump]

When I was small I was the same when my oldest brother passed away. I would get on everyones nerves, I would ask my dad to check if my heart was beating every hour, I would think that everyone was trying to poison me etc...They would do more harm then good when they showed me their frustation and to this day im still scared of many things. So having experience this personally i doubt its for attention, just reassure him that he is fine, have patience with him its a very scary thing to go thru.

 

[Tigerlily01]

Enroll him in a kids martial arts class...it builds confidence, and he probably won't make a fuss in front of his peers or teacher, so he'll get used to being uncomfortable and not complaining. And the kids that age never actually get hurt in those classes, just tired. If you find the right teacher, he'll see that being strong is "cool," and start complaining less, I'd bet.