| | | | How To Cope With Your Child's Sleepless Nights |
By Sally A
If your child suffers from insomnia, it is unlikely to be just he or she that is unable to sleep at night. As a parent, your child's sleep patterns also affect you, as well as other members of the family. If it lasts for a significant time period, it can begin to affect his or her education, as it will undoubtedly affect his or her concentration levels. Here are some tips on how to cope with your child's sleepless nights.
If a child has difficulty falling asleep at night, many parents worry about him or her having a sleep disorder. This can be true for a small minority of children, but it is not the norm. Most of the time, the sleepless nights are a direct result of your child being over stimulated during the day. This means that his or her mind has not been able to relax enough for sleep to happen quickly. Bad habits are enough major cause of insomnia in children. The good news is that both of these factors can easily be overcome.
Lay down ground rules
Be firm with your child regarding bedtime. It is important that they go to bed at a reasonable time, and stick to this routine. If the routine slips for the odd night, this should not be a problem, as it should not dramatically disrupt his or her sleep pattern. The problems tend to start when he or she fails to stick to the routine for nights on end, as this can affect his or her body clock. Letting your child stay up late on Friday and Saturday nights is not going to be doing them any favors.
As well as going to bed at the same time every night, you should also ensure that your child gets up at the same time every morning, in order to establish good sleeping habits. It also resets his or her body clock.
Ban distractions
Your child needs at least an hour before bedtime to relax their mind. Distractions such as watching television, using the computer or listening to music (that is not relaxing) hinder this as they stimulate his or her mind to the point at which they cannot fall asleep, which means that it is a good idea to ban your child from doing these activities in the ninety minutes before bedtime.
Encourage exercise
Many children do not get enough exercise, and this is another reason why they may suffer from sleepless nights. It is also vital for maintaining a healthy mind and body in general.
Check the lighting
Make sure that there is not too much light entering your child's bedroom, as this will help to keep him or her awake. A blind is often a good idea as it can shut out more light than curtains. Ensure that the LCD lights from electrical items are not in your child's line of vision when he or she is in bed.
These tips should go some way towards helping your child to establish or re-establish good sleeping habits, but sometimes, there may be another underlying reason why your child cannot sleep. Stress is a good example of this. If you suspect that this may be causing his or her sleepless nights, encourage him or her to discuss problems or concerns with you, instead of worrying about them during the night.
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