Summary of Selma H. Fraiberg's The Magic Years

Please note: This is a companion version & not the original book.

Sample Book Insights:

#1 We should not be shocked that children experience anxiety. Every stage of human development has its own dangers, and we cannot avoid many of these fears. We should not try to eliminate all anxiety, and we should not give substance to the idea of bogies by behaving like bogies ourselves.

#2 The way in which the child manages his irrational fears determines their effect on his personality development. If a child feels helpless and defenseless before his imagined dangers, he will develop an attitude of fearful submission to life. But normally the child overcomes his fears.

#3 Mental health is not just the product of a special dietary regime, but the work of a complex mental system that reacts to experience, adapts to experience, and maintains a balance between inner needs and outer demands.

#4 The highest order of mental health involves a solid and integrated value system, which is both conscience and ideal self. The balance between the two forces within your personality is what keeps you healthy. If you find yourself in conflict with either your conscience or society, your ego will try to find solutions that satisfy both parties.