8-year old, trouble sleeping

[Anonymous]

My daughter has a lot of trouble sleeping -- typically either with waking in the night and not being able to get to sleep, or waking early in the morning. Last night she went to bed at 8:30, was up at 10 for a while, up again at 1:30 for two hours, then up at 5 for good. It is definitely affecting her social, academic and family life. We already use room darkening curtains; she doesn't get any caffeine, and she typically does not have screen time at night. Any suggestions? Help!

[Anonymous]

Wow, that is rough. The amount of sleep needed is a bell curve, so some children and adults function perfectly fine with less sleep. However, if you say it is affecting her school and social life, it is likely that she really does need more restful sleep. I know that there are pediatric sleep specialists -- I don't know of any locally (but I haven't looked into myself). I worked with one in Chicago that was fabulous.

I think this is a really important issue and if you can find out how to address this now, it could save her years of misery. Good luck. And, quite honestly, it may save you years of misery as well…lol.

[Anonymous]

Later bedtime?

[Anonymous]

My daughter is like this, although not typically on days that she's had a lot of physical activity. How about taking a walk outside after dinner?

Also, have you asked her why she thinks she can't fall back asleep? My daughter can't always pinpoint it, but sometimes she's told me that she has "anxious" thoughts, so we've worked on meditation techniques to use with her (and hopefully eventually on her own.)

[Anonymous]

I have tried working with her on calming techniques, but she says nothing works (she gets frustrated easily...). I wouldn't be surprised if there is some anxiety, or just some "mind racing" type problems, but she can't really identify it. Sometimes she says she's had a nightmare, but not always.
Later bedtime doesn't seem to help, as she always seems to get up early. We let her stay up late for Halloween, and she woke up just as early Saturday.
If anyone has a suggestion for a good pediatric sleep specialist, I'd love to hear it.

[Anonymous]

my daughter was like this for a while. Everyone wakes in the night, but most of us go right back to sleep without ever being aware that we woke up. I just explained this to my daughter, and talked to her about ways that she could relax herself back to sleep when she wakes. It should be the same thing she uses to get herself to sleep in the first place. (I talked to her about visualizing favorite places, and relaxing her body)

[Anonymous]

Does she have sleep apnea? That can be a cause for her waking up..

[Anonymous]

Could be anxiety. We are working on this with 7 year old DS by trying things like soothing music he can listen too when he wakes up or a low-key book on tape. We see a child pschy for the anxiety.

[Anonymous]

Was also going to say anxiety. My DD had trouble starting at age 8. We also go to a psychologist now which is helping.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:Later bedtime?

[Anonymous]

Must have something psychological. Anxiety, ADHD...

[Anonymous]

Make sure she has no chocolate as that has caffeine. Even chocolate icecream and choc cereal keep me awake. Try for more exercise. My DS also has racing thoughts. You might try some nice bedtime visualizations like Rays of Calm or this one--really nice! http://www.amazon.com/Good-Night-Enchanting-Visualization-Sleepytime-Cassette/dp/1882513010

Also, is she sensitive to light? You might try dimming lights before bedtime.

[Anonymous]

My DD is similar. We have to get some outdoor running time in every day or we pay for it at night.

[Anonymous]

Try melatonin

[Anonymous]

Turn the wireless router off at night. If you have a cordless phone unplug it at night. That helped us all improve our sleep.