Is children liking creepy things really abnormal?

When I was a child this was considered a sign of mental illness. Yet networks would come out with shows like "Invader zim, Courage the cowardly dog, goosebumps, beetle-juice cartoon" that was targeted to children age 10 and under. So really how common is it and should it be a sign of mental health risk? As well as some children are known to have severe nightmares as children which generally they grow out of. So is being curious about monsters, demons and other such things really abnormal or dangerous?

Yes all children who do are sick and need to be in mental institution 3
Sometimes its a sign of mental illness but not always 14
No this is never a sign of mental illness 31
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Comments ( 13 )
  • Jeaneathean

    Children enjoy being scared in a controlled safe environment. It teaches them how to deal with emotions.

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    • charli.m

      You said it better :)

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      • Jeaneathean

        I preferred your account.

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  • charli.m

    No, it's not abnormal.

    Have you ever read traditional fairytales? Not the sanitised Disney versions.

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    • Yes I have. I know the truth behind mermaids, sirens and everything else. Though its not really very surprising. I mean they have Winnie the pooh but in real life you would never touch a real bear getting honey from a tree. They do this with everything not just fairy tales.

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      • charli.m

        That's...not what I'm talking about :/

        http://imgur.com/iDbDvrT

        (Thanks to whoever posted that on chat the other day. Sorry I don't remember who (and I know I should)).

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  • squirrelgirl

    Funny enough, I clicked this topic with the Beetlejuice cartoon in mind. I was so obsessed with that show when I was a kid that I would often pretend to be Beetlejuice himself. I also loved that other little piece of animation that Tim Burton produced during that era, The Nightmare Before Christmas.

    Unfortunately, I wound up with a whole slew of mental illnesses over the years that I've had to be on heavy medications for, BUT I do NOT blame anything I watched in my childhood. If there were any environmental factors in my mental health issues, it was probably due to bullying and always living in a packed house with extended family members who I didn't get along with. Most of it is bad genetics; 4 out of the 6 people in my immediate family (including myself) have been treated for psychiatric problems. And that's not even getting into extended family, which is a mess on both parents' sides.

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  • macaroniheyo

    Some shows I watched as a kid scare me or make me uncomfortable now, even though I loved them then. It's normal

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    • I believe the reason for this is that as a child you really did not understand the show. To you it was just a cartoon. However some shows they had for children back in the day were full of disgusting/sexual insinuations that a child would never understand. I think watching as an adult you probobly understand the puns a lot more and find it disgusting/disturbing/wrong. One show they did this was "Ren and stimpy" and there is all kinds of wrong with that show.

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      • macaroniheyo

        Actually, I never saw anything wrong with sexual jokes, but there was a show on Nick awhile ago called Mr. Meaty and well, *shivers*.

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      • PureLikeSnow

        Let's not forget about Rocko's Modern Life.

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        • I don't really see what everyone keeps saying is wrong with that show.

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          • A heffer, kangaroo, and turtle walk into a bar.

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