Childhood Insomnia and Sleep Problems
Problem Of Sleeping In Kids
Children have a sleep problem when they have bedtime fears and cannot get to sleep because of them. You must work with your child on getting to the point where he or she feels relaxed and sleepy throughout the night. This may take a bit of time, but with the right tools, you can make this happen.
Children who have difficulty falling asleep or staying asleep over a long period are more likely to have psychological disorders including anxiety disorders, depression, bipolar disorder, eating disorders, and other problems. You can treat the underlying reasons for their sleeplessness and improve their behavior before the disorders come about. If you notice that your child’s behavior has changed during the past year, including behaviors related to school, family, home, and friends, you should see your doctor. These could be warning signs of more serious problems.
- There are medications that can be used for bedtime problems in children.
- One of the things that your doctor will do is to teach your child ways to relax and fall asleep without thinking about a bedtime story.
- You can also make lifestyle changes such as removing any sedatives from your child’s diet, limiting TV and video games, exercising more, and taking vitamins and minerals.
- You can also make possible changes in his bed like introducing an acid reflux wedge pillow instead of the normal pillow and weighted blankets.
If these methods are followed, there is a good chance that your child will start to feel better and have fewer sleep difficulties.
Why Are Kids Affected By Insomnia
Children’s sleep cycles are much more dynamic than ours and many factors affect their sleep cycles such as the number of people in the house, their day length, their sleep environment, their activities, as well as environmental factors like light and noise. A lack of sleep can be detrimental to all aspects of a child’s life.
Some things children experience as they grow and develop can also contribute to disruption in their sleep patterns. For example, during the teenage years, children go through a period of dramatic physical growth. This also can affect their sleep patterns as well as cause them to become less receptive to bedtime. Developmental and environmental factors are known to change sleep patterns. These factors include but are not limited to, body weight gain, puberty, pregnancy, lactation, heredity, gender, and race
How Much Sleep Do Children Need?
The amount of sleep required will vary with age and the physical development of your child.
- Toddlers and infants need a fairly good amount of sleep and sleep for 11 TO 14hours is a day. Growth-to-age children typically enter the school-age years, where they will sleep longer and also have increased muscle mass and activity, which can reduce the quality and duration of their sleep.
- Adolescents may need more sleep at night as they continue to experience significant changes in their activity levels as they move from childhood into adolescence. They need up to 10 to 13 hours of sleep a day
- On the other hand, children generally need more sleep when they are in their elementary school years.
- Sleep requirements also increase along with children’s intellectual abilities. For example, children who are considered slow learners or have problems with concentration and/or retention will benefit from having the appropriate amount of sleep.
What Are The Indications That Your Kid Don’t Get Enough Sleep
There are several signs that your child isn’t getting enough sleep, and if you don’t know what’s wrong you may be keeping your child in the dark about why they’re not feeling well, and what’s causing the bad mood and behavior that are evident. If you don’t address the problem now, it will only get worse down the road.
- The most obvious signs that your child isn’t getting enough sleep are constant crying, waking up during the night, and not being able to sleep.
- Another way to tell if your baby is not getting enough sleep is if they’re not eating properly during the day, or if they’re not getting enough sleep at all. If you notice that there are problems with either of these signals, it’s time to talk to your baby’s pediatrician.
- One of the biggest causes of a baby not sleeping through the night is that their parents don’t pay attention to them. Let’s face it, we all love our children and want the best for them, but sometimes our sleep habits leave a lot to be desired. If you are one of those people that constantly toss and turn in your sleep, and you don’t realize it, there is a good chance that you are not taking your baby’s sleeping issues seriously. If you two would work on getting better, and your baby received proper care, there is no reason that they couldn’t develop the same problems as other kids who are not getting proper care.
How Can Kids Cope With Insomnia
Insomnia is the most common sleep disorder suffered by adults and children alike. Insomnia can affect both children and adults and generally falls into two categories, there are bad sleeping habits and then there are the good habits or the ways of coping with insomnia in children. Children need to understand the difference between the two so that they are better able to understand when it is not appropriate to sleep.
There are several ways of coping with insomnia in children that can help to promote healthy sleep habits.
- One of the ways of coping with insomnia in children is to make sure that bedtime routines are followed which includes having bedtime music, reading children’s stories before bed, and providing a comfortable bed to sleep on. Bedtime can be one of the longest and most difficult parts of the day and if a child feels like they are being rushed at night or not getting a good night’s sleep, they may be more likely to become disoriented during their rest.
- You can also try buying a duvet and comforter of the right size for your kid for they are a great help in comforting and maybe your child will be able to take the proper amount of rest with the help of them.
- Another way of coping with insomnia in children is through encouraging the proper growth and development of sleep cycles by getting them on a sleep schedule similar to the rest of their day.
Conclusion
It is important that children get seven to eight hours of sleep each night and that this nap time is consistent. If children don’t have consistent sleep schedules, they will not be able to establish a routine for when they will go to bed and will become more likely to not sleep through the night. A good way of coping with insomnia in children is to provide a sleep schedule that is consistent throughout the week.
Thank you,
Glenda, Charlie and David Cates
