Report: Forcing Costumes on Babies Can Ruin Purim

From the archives: Purim is a happy and joyous occasion for Jews, but forcing babies and small children to masquerade in unwanted costumes can cause them trauma, according to psychologist Shlomit Kanotopsky.

“Parents who buy costumes for babies often do it for themselves,” says the psychologist, who works at the Ziv Hospital, located in Tzefas. She suggests parents be especially sensitive to children’s fears and trauma that can develop by wearing unwanted costumes, which parents sometimes insist on to justify what often is an expensive purchase.

While adults and older children know Purim as a happy occasion and enjoy masquerading, but many little children cry and suffer from trauma during the holiday, says Kanotopsky. She explains that changing identities is not always good for little children, who are in the process of developing their own identities and need a stable environment. “It is important not to force children to dress up,” according to Kanotopsky, who suggests that parents help get their children acquainted with a costume several days ahead of time and then “let the children play with it” without dressing up.

{Matzav.com Israel News Bureau}