Keeping a calm, safe environment can help children sleep better.
However, sometimes children have more difficulty sleeping and wake up often at night due to problems such as snoring, fear of the dark or because they are sleepwalks. So, by not getting enough rest, the child may not like going to school, taking low grades in tests and exams, and may become restless and irritable, requiring more attention from parents and teachers.
Most of the time it is enough to create a sleep routine so that the child gets to sleep faster but sometimes when the child shows difficulty sleeping or wakes up every night you need to inform the pediatrician because the causes need to be investigated.
How to Create a Sleep Routine
This sleep routine should be followed every day for the child to get used to and get to sleep faster and sleep better at night:
- Dinner, but without exaggeration not to stay with the tummy too full;
- Brush your teeth to prevent cavities;
- Put on comfortable pajamas, suitable for room temperature;
- Listening to a children's story or a lullaby;
- Say goodbye to your parents and say goodnight;
- Turn off the light, leaving at most a soft light in the room.
This routine should preferably be followed every day, including holidays and weekends, and even when the child goes to sleep at the home of his uncles or grandparents.
Bedtime is also important and so it is good to set the right time and put the cell phone to wake up at that time, which is when the child should prepare to sleep.
If even following this routine for more than 1 month the child can not catch fast sleep or keep waking up many times during the night, it is good to investigate if she has any sleep disorder.
How to treat the main causes of sleep disorders in the child
The treatment of the main causes of childhood insomnia, which leads to a decrease in the quality of the child's sleep, can be:
1. Snoring
When your child makes a noise while sleeping, your pediatrician or otolaryngologist will be able to advise you on the appropriate treatment, depending on the age of the child and the cause of the snoring, which may include only medication intake, weight loss, or surgery to remove adenoids and tonsils, for example.
Snoring may be harmless when your child has a cold or a stuffy nose, and in these cases, treatment to treat flu or a stuffy nose is enough.
Understand better why the child may snore in: Baby snoring is normal.
2. Sleep Apnea
When the child stops breathing momentarily while sleeping, breathes through the mouth and wakes up sweaty, this can be sleep apnea and therefore it is important to consult the pediatrician to guide the treatment that can be done with medicines, surgery or the use of CPAP, which is a machine that provides a flow of compressed air through a nasal mask for the child to sleep better.
Sleep apnea, if untreated, can impair a child's growth and development, make learning difficult, cause daytime sleepiness, or hyperactivity.
Learn how apnea treatment can be done in: Baby sleep apnea and nasal CPAP.
3. Night Terrors
When your child suddenly wakes up at night, scared, screaming or crying and with wide eyes, they may be night terrors. In these cases, parents should create a regular sleep regimen and try to manage the child's stress so that they do not become anxious at bedtime. In some cases, consulting with a psychologist can also help parents and the child cope with night terrors.
Night terrors can begin after 2 years of age and usually disappear before age 8 and are not harmful to the child because she does not remember what happened the next day.
Learn what to do in case of Night Terror.
4. Sleepwalking
When the child sits on the bed or lifts while sleeping, they may be sleepwalking and this usually happens about one to two hours after the child falls asleep. In these cases, parents should create a sleep routine, protect the child's room to prevent it from getting hurt and avoid very hectic play before bed, for example.
See other tips that can help lessen the child's somnambulism episodes in: Childhood sleepwalking.
5. Bruxism
When your child grinds and clenches their teeth at night, called infant bruxism, it is important to consult your pediatrician and dentist, because depending on the cause, treatment may involve medications, tooth protectors or plaques from bites made by the dentist or treatments dental procedures.
In addition, it may also be necessary to consult a psychologist for the child to do relaxation techniques, and parents can also help to reduce the anxiety and stress of the child by adopting some strategies, such as giving a warm bath to the child before sleep or put a few drops of lavender essential oil on the pillow.
Learn other tips that can help you treat childhood bruxism in: How to Treat Childhood Bruxism.
6. Enuresis nocturna
When the child pees in bed, she may have nocturnal enuresis or nocturnal urinary incontinence, which is the involuntary and repeated loss of urine at night, usually from 5 years of age. In these cases, it is important to consult the pediatrician to evaluate the child and prescribe medications, according to the cause of nocturnal enuresis.
A great solution is the urinary alarms, which touch when the child starts to pee, encouraging her to go in the bathroom. In addition, physical therapy may help in the treatment of nocturnal enuresis, so it is also important to consult a physical therapist.
Understand better how the nocturnal enuresis treatment is done in: Treatment for childhood urinary incontinence.
Lack of sleep with long-term quality can not only hinder children's growth and learning, but also their relationship with parents and friends because, most of the time, they are more agitated and irritable children. Therefore, it is important to find out why the child sleeps poorly and to seek help to adopt the appropriate treatment.
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