Sleep Problems

When children are very young, sleep can seem to rule parents’ lives – most are exhausted and desperate for their babies and toddlers to sleep through the night. Some children do this from fairly early on, though they may have breakdowns from time to time due to teething, illness or changes to their routine such as starting nursery or getting a new sibling.

However, many children continue to wake in the night or need a lot of help going off to sleep well into the primary school years. This might be due to anxiety or worries – about being alone, about the dark, or about imaginary things such as monsters or ghosts. Many children have trouble with self-soothing – they feel they need someone else there to help them drop off at bedtime or if they wake in the night.

Nightmares (bad dreams) are common in young children - children’s dreams help them to process what is going on in their lives, including fears and worries they may have. They are usually nothing to worry about, but it is worth seeing if your child can talk through their bad dreams, or draw them, just in case they are being caused by bullying or someone hurting them.

Night terrors, where the child seems to be awake and terrified, but are asleep, can be very upsetting for parents but the child does not usually remember them, and the stage generally passes quite quickly.

Bedwetting can cause children to wake up in the night. The cause may be physical, or linked to anxiety.

Sleepwalking is similar to night terrors, but instead of being terrified, the child gets up out of bed and moves around. The main thing you can do to help is to make sure that they don't hurt themselves.

Older children often refuse to go to bed because they want to push the boundaries and prefer to watch TV or go on the computer. Teenagers can get into reversed sleeping patterns, where they are awake at night and very sleepy during the day. This can interfere with school work and family life and cause a lot of stress between young people and their parents.

Sleep problems can also be caused by worries or anxieties, including about

• Friendships or bullying
• Schoolwork
• Family relationships
• Divorce or separation
• Changes in routine such as a new school or moving house.

Severe sleep problems can be a sign of depression. Children with attention deficit hyperactivity disorder (ADHD) may also have problems with sleep. Children who regularly do not get enough sleep can become irritable, aggressive, and over-sensitive. They can find it hard to concentrate, which can affect learning, play and relationships.

How much sleep does my child need?

The amount of sleep needed gradually decreases from infancy to adulthood. Every child is different but as a general rule of thumb:

• Toddlers need about 12-14 hours’ sleep (including daytime naps)
• Preschoolers (aged 3-5) need 11-12 hours’ sleep
• School-age children need 10-11 hours’ sleep
• Teenagers need 9-10 hours’ sleep