My child has some fears (monsters, dark, noises...)

First, you need to judge whether or not the fear is legitimate. Your instinct may be swaying you in one direction or the other.

Lots of times legitimate fears elicit so much attention that they linger long after the actual fear is gone - replaced with a new bad sleep habit. For example, child is scared of monsters so mom stays with him to fall asleep. Months later he has just gotten used to mom staying with him and the original fear of monsters is probably long forgotten. This is the same thing that happens with made up fears in the first place.

Or sometimes parents even accidentally plant the idea of fear with the child. If your child suddenly wakes overnight for no reason, you may have said "what's wrong? are you scared of something? did you have a nightmare?". If that question is then followed with lots of snuggles, love, reassurance and attention, you may have just "planted" a fear by showing your child that saying these things elicits a favorable reaction from you.

If your child has a REAL fear, you should address it head on in the light of day, NOT at bedtime. Ask them what they're afraid of. Lay in their bed and look from their angle. Is there a weird shadow? Does the blinking light on the smoke detector bother them? Move things around if possible to change shadows or put tape over the blinking light. Try and get them to show you what they are afraid of and then work with them to fix it while reassuring them that there is nothing to afraid of. You can use glow in the dark bracelets to add low light to dark corners, under bed or closets.

If they are scared of something in their imagination - like monsters, try using play to give them a different idea of monsters. Why do monsters have to be bad? Look for a book - like "Monsters Love Underpants" that makes monsters fun. Have your child draw a monster and then talk about how silly it looks. Give him a friendly name and tape it in his room. Use these types of playful tools to diffuse the fear and reassure your child of the truth that monsters are not real.

Remember, you need to reassure and help your child to understand they they are safe in their room. Your words AND your actions deliver this message. If your reaction is to stay in your child's room and never let them be alone, your child may think that it's actually NOT safe to be alone. So, you need to reassure with your words and your actions.

Address the fears head on and then move forward with the plan.