Healthy Habit #4, Get lots of rest
My kids have generally been good sleepers. In fact, I used to tell people “My kids have always slept through the night… since they were 3 months old!” Till one day I told someone that, and my husband corrected me and said, “They don’t sleep through the night, you just didn’t hear them when they woke up!” I guess I’m a deep sleeper. We had them in a basket in our room until they were three months, which is why I DID wake up when they did, and as soon as they went to their own rooms, I slept straight through their midnight waking. I’m guessing they just started sleeping through the night, cause no one was there to answer their cries. Part of me feels like a bad parent, but part of me is glad they are such good sleepers now.
Kids need sleep. Between ages 5-12 they need 10-11 hours per night. When my kids don’t get enough sleep, they are moody, sensitive, cranky, argumentative etc.
Follow a bedtime routine.
- Wind down by listening to lullaby music.
- Go to sleep at the same time every night. The hours to get the most restful sleep are before midnight. Early bedtime is key.
- Limit caffeine in the afternoon and before bed.
- Do not allow the bedroom to be a place for television.
- If they need a bedtime snack, let it be a small amount of complex carbs.
- Keep them active during the day, so they will be wiped out at bedtime.
One thing we just began struggling with is our 10 year old (our night owl). He tends to get anxious and it is effecting his sleep. Some mornings he will wake up and on the verge of tears tell us he didn’t sleep all night. He has songs running through his head and literally can not turn his brain off. We haven’t fully addressed this, because we don’t know how to help him. We suggest writing in a journal the thoughts he’s having in the middle of the night to see if that will get it out of his head. We’ve also suggested relaxation techniques like deep breathing and muscle tensing-relaxing exercises. Any other ideas?
For a discussion about eating before bed, check out this post.
Posted: August 20th, 2009 under Uncategorized.
Comments
Comment from Jen
Time August 20, 2009 at 7:35 am
Poor kid! That happens to me, but at age 10? I hope that you get some good ideas. I may try them for myself. =D
Comment from Pam
Time August 20, 2009 at 8:38 am
We’ve been terrible about bedtimes for summer! I have been so tired with this pregnancy that often I’ve been in bed for hours before the kids get there. With school beginning I am going to cut out evening TV for them and read a family read a loud and do family devotions before bed. Hopefully this will lead to better sleep hygiene for ALL of us.
Comment from beth
Time August 20, 2009 at 3:17 pm
I don’t know if it will help, but I have a CD for stress relief that I used to listen to at night to help me get to sleep. You can borrow it if you want to try it.
Comment from Teri
Time August 20, 2009 at 4:19 pm
My 13 year old does that sometimes and usually we can track it to worry. He’s worried about one thing or another so we talk through them all until he can settle down. Or it might be he has some sort of anxiety disorder? I have a book called “Freeing your Child from Anxiety” that might have some ideas in it – I can get it to Eliece if you want to borrow it.
Comment from Laura
Time August 20, 2009 at 8:18 pm
My 3 year old is already exhibiting signs of being a troubled sleeper. She can’t turn her mind off until it gets dark. We considered melatonin but after researching it decided not to. Then we found a recommendation for warm milk with honey. That seemed like a much safer experiment. I have also read that TV or computer use 2 hours or less before bedtime keeps your mind racing. So we don’t let the kids watch TV/computer after dinnertime. These two things have really helped her calm down at night and fall asleep faster. (Along with keeping the same routine every night, etc.) Hope something works for you!
Comment from Sarah
Time August 22, 2009 at 3:18 pm
Our 12 year old daughter has this issue to and she tends to be a perfectionist and worries about things. She ends up getting worked up about not being able to sleep which makes it worse. I’ve had her take hot showers to relax her and drink some chai or hot tea. It has helped her. I haven’t noticed it in awhile, but it was definitely worse during the school year.
Comment from Vennesa
Time August 22, 2009 at 7:39 pm
I have a 9 year old worrier with similar issues. We just take time to listen to him and talk to him before bed. I also try to change the subject and give him other things to think of at times like this.
Comment from Amy
Time August 24, 2009 at 5:53 am
Thank you for all your suggestions. I’m always surprised at how many people are going through the same things as we are.
Comment from Katie Arrayan
Time August 24, 2009 at 3:05 pm
I was also very anxious as a kid. My parents used to play books on tape at night and that helped a lot – something about focusing on someone elses thoughts helped me stop focusing on my own. I listened to a lot of Amy Grants Bible Stories…might not be up your alley but Amy Gs got an incredibly soothing voice!
Comment from Vanessa
Time August 24, 2009 at 9:59 pm
I go through that myself and tonight my 5 year old took forever to fall asleep which I attribute to anxiety over his new kindergarten class. A health food store would carry a powder called “Natural Calm” which is a magnesium/calcium type powder which you mix with warm water. It really does help. Also, the power of touch is amazing…ie. light back rub etc. I would definitely look into that. Good luck! oh ya, I have several friends who have pulled their kids out of school to do home school and they said the change in their child has been miraculous. Obviously that’s not for everyone and I hope I never have to but that too could be somthing to look in to.
Comment from Wendy
Time August 20, 2009 at 6:28 am
My ten (now eleven) year old went through the same thing. I started thinking that he may not need as much sleep as the little ones in the house. Our normal routine is school bedtime at 8 o’clock and we wake up for school at 6:30am. We decided that since he was older, we would allow him to stay up and read in his room. There were mornings that he didn’t want to get up because he had read really late into the night. I hope that it is part of him learning about how much sleep he needs. Anytime he gave me trouble waking up, I wouldn’t let him stay up later for awhile. There were times when he said he didn’t sleep very much. It still happens but the reading seems to wind him down a bit and it is required for school(accelerated reading) so its a learning thing for him and us. Still working on it when necessary.