Parent asks quiet questions to help the child build an imagined safe space: where is it, what's in it, what does it smell like, who if anyone is there. The child constructs it using their own imagination. Once built, it becomes a repeatable mental destination they can return to independently.

How to do it

1Lights out. Child lies still. "Close your eyes. Imagine your perfect safe place."
2Ask quiet questions: "Inside or outside? What do you see? What does it smell like?"
3Let them build it entirely with their own answers. Don't suggest. Just ask.
4"You can go there anytime. It's yours." That's what makes it work.

Variations

If they can't picture anything or say "I don't know": offer one small sensory prompt ("is it warm or cool there?") rather than a whole scene — one detail is enough to start, the rest can come another night.
"You can go there anytime. It's yours" is the ending — say it and let the silence sit rather than asking them to describe more.

💡 Parent tip

Once the safe place is built, invoke it in one sentence on future nights: 'Remember your safe place? Go there.' No rebuild required. Building it takes a calm, willing child — if they're mid-meltdown right now, use a physical reset like the Blanket Press instead, and save this for a quieter night.

What your child develops

Safe-place visualisation — a named internal refuge is a clinically validated anxiety regulation tool
Imaginative autonomy — a child-authored safe place is more powerful than a suggested one
A portable self-calming resource — once established, the place can be accessed without adult involvement