My 5-year-old son just said he wanted to shoot himself with a gun and kill himself.?

Question

What the heck? I have no idea where this is coming from! I'm freaking out here! Normally he is a sweet, happy, silly little boy. I have no idea where he even picked up this language. We moniter what he watches on television, we are a normal happy, family. I don't even no how to react to this. (What I WANT to do is freak out and tell him I don't ever want to hear him say that again!) HELP!!!!! Is this one of those things that he's saying stuff just to see what my reaction is (He was just upset because I told him he had to go to bed.), or should I get him to a psychologist ASAP?

Answer 1

i find it very unlikely you son is even remotly capable of understanding the meaning of what he said. at his age people get shot die and come back next week
dont ever suggest that he not talk like that in so much as you will want a child that will tell you if he is ever at that point later on.
this is more of a statement that may mean mom i have had one bad day . or mom i feel stupid school isnt going well .
that kind of thing . its his way of letting you know there is a problem that is big he is depressed and he wants you to help pull it out of him because at this point he does not have the words to do it or he is thinking i am ashamed of this . but mom figure this out.
now sure this could also be as a result of just some thing on tv
in fact it could be that he heard about someone doing that and wants to understand
overall i say ok if you have guns lock them up of better yet get rid of them . but overall this is most likely his way of saying help yes but not to the point of running off to a shrink or calling school
just to the point that you him dad take the time to let him know that he could fail every test in school smell like a frog walk like a duck and you would still love him so he can tell you and ask you anything there is no limit none not now not ever. and you need to make that a cardinal rule for yourself that this boy can ask you anything come to you anytime even if he fills his pants with frogs
rolls in mud and breaks the car window with the baseball all in one hour you still will sit down and let him talk .
that is what i think this is.

Answer 2

Sounds like a drastic response for telling him just to go bed. I would definitely say he is lacking something, maybe attention. He certainly got your attention with that comment. I would have definitely held him a little longer than a hug goodnight the night he said that. But I do think that kids at that age don't understand the finality of "kill" and "death". I wouldn't get too upset over it. He could've picked it up from a buddy or overheard an adult use the same action. Kids have the biggest ears and catch more than you think when we talk. You also might want to think back a day or two and think of anything that may have upset him. Boys tend to hold things in for a while before exploding with something like that. You can almost always pinpoint what went wrong to make him so upset. He was not upset about going to bed, I would almost bet that there was something else he was upset about. You should create an open dialog with your son. You really need to start creating those open lines of communication with your son early in life so that he can feel free to tell you when he's upset about something. I have two sons. It's only gets more interesting the older they get.

Answer 3

Looks like everyone else said it before me, but most of them are right. Your son probably doesn't know what it means, but don't take it lightly. Make sure you explain it in a way that he can understand. Even something like "If you do that, we won't be able to play with your Hot Wheels ever again!" can work. Kids aren't exactly deep thinkers, but they know how to assemble sentences with words they don't know. They do understand what it is like to not play with their toys, though.

I do have a five year old nephew who sometimes comes up with something like that. After talking about it, he says he didn't know what it really meant until we explained it. He obiously didn't want the action to actually happen and he didn't have any bottle up anger. Your son is probably something similar.

If you notice a pattern, you might want to consult his doctor or a psychologist, but I doubt that will be necessary once he knows what "dead" and "kill" mean. Just talk to him and keep an eye out for abnormal behavior. Good luck.

Answer 4

he may have heard one of his freinds in day school or neighborhood say something like that. I'm sure he picked it up from somewhere becuase 5 year olds would normally never think of anything like that. I totally understand how upset you must be. But if I were you, I would quietly and firmly tell him that what he said is NOT acceptable ever. Don't over-play it becuase I doubt your 5 year old fully comprehends the implication of what he said. Treat it like when your kid utters a bad word or phrase. You don;t have to explain what the bad word means, do you? You just say that "in this house, we don't ever say such things." Becaseu all little kids want to 'belong' chances are he'll never say it again and consequently forget about the "bad thing he said" - like my grandsons.

Answer 5

i am not sure that a 5 year old has a concept of life and death being permanent...it's probably just something he heard at school or on tv....keep an eye on him, though...has he seemed depressed lately? or is he just saying the most "out there" thing for it's shock value? i would sit down with him and talk to him about how this is wrong and why. if he continues having problems, i would definitely take him to see someone.

Answer 6

Does your son go to Kindergarten? Sometimes...there are kids there that might talk like this...and he is picking it up from them. My son is 6...and he goes through about the same thing you do. He might be having some problems in school...and is too interverted to tell you. My 6 year old son is very shy...and you have to force things out of him. This might be the way your son is. My son has also said that in anger...and then walks off and forgets. Hey...is he the middle child...because the one I am talking about is. That might be the problem if he is.

Answer 7

Hi Mountain C!!!

Sweetie if I were you, I would NOT be typing at this moment!!!
I would be on my way to the psychologist, YES!!!

No, is NOT normal behavior, is NOT funny, and anyone needs to take any type of threats like that EXTREMELY SERIOUSLY!!!
Regardless if this threats are for himself or for others, this needs Professional Mental Health, intervention ASAP!!!!

No time to waist on this one. But don't give up your parental authority in exchange for fear!!! Your child needs to know at all times, who is whom, this will help him get in touch with reality.

Keep him always as close to you as possible, for now on, monitoring, even from the distance. It will also be good for you to pay a visit to school, to find out if there is something going on.

This also should be discuss with the teachers, and shool councelor. Is imperative this statement takes priority as to know the "REAL" reason or source of this thoughts and feelings!!!

Please, have him be seen by a professional at once!!! And follow- ups are essencial. PRAY!!!

GOOD LUCK, GOD BLESS YOU & HAPPY LIFE

ALLIV Z

Answer 8

If it helps my son has said that, I explained to him what dead is in children's terms. I do think it's a stage they have no ideal what kill themselves mean. Don't overreact, well I know you will your a mom, but don't in front of him, my son only said it once, and never again. I think if we make if a big deal he will be more apt to think about it more. Good luck. Just love him!

Ps: In cartoons when they get hurt, or should have die they live, hope that makes sense.

Answer 9

I definately think that you should talk to him about this ASAP. Find out what he meant by saying that. It may be that he just heard it somewhere and was repeating it. In that case, then a good talk about why that was innappropriate to say and better ways to express himself would be good. If he expresses any feelings of sadness, desire to hurt himself, or others, then you should talk to a therapist. Sometimes children say things so that others will help them. I would, in either case, talk to his primary care physician since they are a good place to start when it comes to kids. Good luck!

Answer 10

You are only going to make it worse by making it an issue. If you go to a shrink then they are going to keep him for observation and medicate him. Yes, no reason but to blame the meds and you don't want meds. My advice is the issue is already over and by "freak'n" out you are conflicting with the boys ability to reason a situation and him just saying he wants to kill himself is a new statement to just state that he doesn't want to go to bed.