| | | | Children and Sleepwalking |
By Susan M. Keenan
Occasionally, a child may go through a period of sleepwalking or have an individual incident of sleepwalking. Many children never experience this phenomenon at all. If your child does sleepwalk, remember that this is a normal part of growing up for some children. Be clear about that with your child, so he or she does not experience any shame upon learning of the incident.
Sleepwalking is the term used when a child, or anyone, partially wakes up. Usually, he or she is not coherent and fumbles rather than makes clear, decisive movements. In addition, the child has no memory of the incident. The child will have a glazed look in the eyes and will appear to look without actually seeing.
In some cases, the child may not actually get out of the bed. Instead, the child may sit up, mumble, and make motions with his or her hands. It may appear as thought he child is trying to comb hair, close buttons, or rub the eyes. In other cases, you may not be able to distinguish what the child is attempting to do.
When a sleepwalking child does get out of the bed, he or she may walk clumsily. Fortunately, a sleepwalking child usually walks slowly and rarely goes very far.
If you have a sleepwalking child, a few cautionary steps should be taken. At night, you should close and lock all doors and windows. Any sharp objects should be placed out of the child’s reach. When and if your child walks around during the sleepwalking episode, these steps will help to keep your child safe.
In addition, a parent, who encounters their sleepwalking child, should not make any loud noises in an attempt to wake the child. Rather, it is important to remain as quiet as possible. The parent should attempt to guide the child back to their bed and settle him or her in for the night. It is not necessary to wake the child.
A parent, or caregiver, should not panic or worry if a child is found sleepwalking. Generally, such behavior is not indicative of any underlying psychological or emotional problems. Additionally, the behavior usually subsides and stops on it own. If, however, the child continues to sleepwalk over a lengthy period of time, the parents should consult a pediatrician.
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