Night Terrors

First off what are they? A night terror is a partial arousal from very deep, nondreaming sleep (stage 5 Non-REM sleep).

During the event itself the child is not fully awake. He may scream, thrash around, be inconsolable, his pupils dilated, push you away if you try to hold or restrain him and sweat profusely. Some parents would even describe their child as looking possessed.

So what can you do while this is happening? Not a whole lot. Just try and keep him from hurting himself, and let it ride. Most episodes last between 5-15 mins. As hard as it would be not to physically intervene, it is the best thing to do. Once it’s over, the child usually just goes right back to sleep having no recollection of what just happened.

If the parent was successful at awakening the child as the event nears the end, their own anxious questions may make him fearful. Telling him about his bizarre behavior may do the same, since until it’s described to him, he’ll be unaware that anything unusual had ever happened.

Overtiredness is the #1 cause for these events! Enabling our children to get more sleep at night is often the only treatment needed. Night terrors appear more often when a child has a fever or when sleep patterns are disrupted. Recurring night terrors are also often associated with chronically abnormal sleep schedules.

Children need to be given the chance to get 10-12 hrs of night time sleep. An ideal bedtime is between 7-8pm.☺

Enjoy your weekend!⚘