Anonymous wrote:OP, please get him screened for POTS. You are describing many symptoms and including the ADHD like behavior. If he has POTS he NEEDS treatment.

NP here. I’d never heard of POTS so I just googled it. And I’m baffled. How on earth do you get POTS from how OP described her son?

OP, please get him screened for POTS. You are describing many symptoms and including the ADHD like behavior. If he has POTS he NEEDS treatment.

A couple of comments:

1) your son can take a booster dose of adhd medicine so he can do after school activities and then get his homework done with the booster. I feel that this is something that came up in another thread so I’m not sure if you’re the same poster. The person in the other thread said that the booster has historically kept their kid up at night, but kids change and it may be worth trying again.

2) my child also sleeps like you’re saying your son does. We have not done a sleep study yet but her doctors are trying to encourage her to cut back on the mega naps. She’s been trying to cut back gradually on the length of her naps. It’s has been mildly effective. Contrary to what people have said here, her doctors do not think these mega naps are a good idea.

My 13 year old boy who is growing a lot sleeps 9:45-7:15 every school night. Weekends are 10-8 or 9.

OP, stop comparing him to other kids and what you think these other teens are doing. Listen to the responses here.

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:I used to come home and sleep everyday after school when I was in Highschool. Let him take a nap!

+1
Same here. High school is exhausting. Add to that a growing body, and it’s perfectly normal to need sleep. My kids have always been big sleepers. It’s good for them.

+1 his sleep sounds normal for a high school student. If you're concerned, though, take him to the doctor to discuss and run some tests to rule out any health issues.

Anonymous wrote:One summer as a teen I slept 13-15 hours almost every day. I know this because my mom still talks about it - I also grew 2" that summer.

Anyway, yes, teens need a lot of sleep and almost no teenager in America is getting enough sleep these days. Just because other teenagers are overloaded with extracurriculars and homework - our society is so ridiculous - doesn't mean your kid shouldn't get to sleep as much as he wants and needs to, and can. It's ok, OP. Just let him sleep!

This is spot on. My sister is a sleep doctor and our sleep habits in this country are at a crisis level. Her practice is so packed with kids and adults who get such poor sleep it is severely affecting thrjt mental health, happiness, weight, job performance, interpersonal relationships, and cardiovascular health. Anything parents can do to help their kids get as much sleep as possible is a gift.

Normal.

Lots of ignorant responses on here. Look up circadian rhythm of teenagers. Hormones dramatically influence the circadian rhythm which is why teens become alert at night and would prefer to sleep all day and stay up all night.

I used to nap everyday after school. I

I don’t see a problem here....

Many teens need 9-10 ish hours of sleep a night. He sounds sleep deprived (for him) not addicted

Anonymous wrote:I used to come home and sleep everyday after school when I was in Highschool. Let him take a nap!

+1
Same here. High school is exhausting. Add to that a growing body, and it’s perfectly normal to need sleep. My kids have always been big sleepers. It’s good for them.

If he's not falling asleep during school you should be happy. If he's getting his homework done and still getting his nap in you should be happy. You should allow him to regulate his own body, he's old enough.

Anonymous wrote:My 14 year old sleeps 8-6!

I wish he would come home and not take a nap and just go to bed early. Every once in a while he will do this.

My 14 year old sleeps 8-6!

One summer as a teen I slept 13-15 hours almost every day. I know this because my mom still talks about it - I also grew 2" that summer.

Anyway, yes, teens need a lot of sleep and almost no teenager in America is getting enough sleep these days. Just because other teenagers are overloaded with extracurriculars and homework - our society is so ridiculous - doesn't mean your kid shouldn't get to sleep as much as he wants and needs to, and can. It's ok, OP. Just let him sleep!