Raising Children.net

Key points

·  Sleep is important for growth, immunity, learning and memory.

·  Babies, children and teenagers need different amounts of sleep.

·  Sleep patterns change as babies and children get older.

·  We all move through cycles of deep and light sleep throughout the night.

 

Amount of Sleep Per Stages 

Newborn 14-17 hours / 24
 

Babies 3-6 months. develop night and day sleep patterns, and they tend to start sleeping more during the night. Babies usually sleep for 12-15 hours every 24 hours.

They begin to take 2-3 naps a day 2-3 hours

 

Babies 6-12 months: go to bed between 6-10 PM

They take less than 40 minutes to go to sleep.  Some take longer. 

Sleep 6 hours a night but could wake up once (2/3 of babies)

 

Toddlers

11-14 hours every 24 hours

10-12 hours at night and approximately a 2 hour nap

 

Preschoolers 3-5 years old

10-13 hours a night

Some nap 

 

School age 5-11 years old 

9-11 hours could be sleepy on a school night at 7:30

 

Teenagers

8 to 10 hours a night of sleep 

Changes to the internal body clock or circadian rhythm during adolescence mean it’s normal for teenagers to want to go to bed later at night – often around 11 pm or later – then get up later in the morning.

 

Over 90% of adolescent children don’t get the recommended amount of sleep on school nights. Getting enough good-quality sleep is important during this period, because sleep is vital for thinking, learning and concentration skills. Lack of sleep in these years has also been linked to mental health conditions like depression and anxiety.

 

In REM sleep, your eyeballs flicker from side to side underneath your eyelids. REM sleep is also called dream sleep.

Non-REM sleep consists of deep sleep and light sleep. It’s difficult to wake a child in deep sleep. Children in light sleep wake up easily.

 

Adjusting Your Child's Sleep Schedule in 5 Easy Steps

1.  Follow a consistent bedtime routine.

2.  Establish a relaxing setting at bedtime.

3.  Make the bedroom quiet, dark and a little bit cool.

4.  Do not have computers or televisions in a bedroom.

5.  Get up the same time every morning.

Adults should get 7+ hours a night

 

***Anxiety is frequently connected to sleeping problems. Excess worry and fear make it harder to fall asleep and stay asleep through the night. Sleep deprivation can worsen anxiety, spurring a negative cycle involving insomnia and anxiety disorders.

Insomnia

Insomnia is characterized by an inability to initiate or maintain sleep. It may also take the form of early morning awakening in which the individual awakens several hours early and is unable to resume sleeping. Difficulty initiating or maintaining sleep may often manifest itself as excessive daytime sleepiness,

Other factors can affect an insomnia diagnosis like addiction or depression

 

Excessive daytime sleepiness (including episodes of irresistible sleepiness) combined with sudden muscle weakness are the hallmark signs of narcolepsy. The sudden muscle weakness seen in narcolepsy may be elicited by strong emotion or surprise. Episodes of narcolepsy have been described as “sleep attacks” and may occur in unusual circumstances, such as walking and other forms of physical activity. The healthcare provider may treat narcolepsy with stimulant medications combined with behavioral interventions, such as regularly scheduled naps, to minimize the potential disruptiveness of narcolepsy on the individual’s life.

 

Medication: Provigil. And other central nervous system stimulants

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