Sleeping problems of children

Sleeping problems of children and babies often occur and are completely normal. Nevertheless, after a certain amount of time it is becoming a burden for the parents. Every night, the child is sleeping in the parental bed because it won’t fall asleep otherwise, a slept through night nearly never happens, and sometimes the nights only consist of crying. That not only wears out the parent’s nerves but a lot of them are not sure, how much sleep their offspring actually would need.

Sleep- and children-psychologists have calculated a recommendation:
– Newborns need about 16 to 18 hours of sleep.
– A one-year old between 12 and 15 hours.
– From four years on about 12 hours.

But, this is only a calculation of the average. Like with grown-ups, the sleep-need of babies and small children is very individual. There is absolutely no reason for being insecure should the amount of sleep of the own children be below these.

The question, why the little ones are not sleeping through often arises. This is because they simply just have not learned yet to soothe themselves when waking up at night and to fall asleep again. Almost all small children and babies are suffering under this sleeping through problems from time to time.

In some few cases, health aspects might play a role. A respiratory disease might be the reason if a child breathes very loud during the night. Often, digestion problems are also keeping the baby awake at night. Should the sleep disturbances be prolonged it is advisable to seek medical advice.

So, what can you do to support your child in getting the amount of sleep it needs?
Same rituals every evening like brushing the teeth together, a bedtime story or a cup of warm milk signalize the brain of the little ones that it is time to become tired. It is also important that the time to go to bed stays within a fixed frame. This helps the sleep-wake-cycle to get to the right rhythm. A lot of activity during the day is making tired. And, what might sound unbelievable but still is true: already small children are beginning to brood in bed and therefore are not able to fall asleep. Out of this reason, it is important to never send children to bed after a fight, but that going to bed is harmonious.

Should this not help, a psychological strain might be the reason. Especially when the sleep disturbances last longer than early childhood, you should consult a child psychologist. But is very important, that you don’t panic and to take a quiet approach, because this in turn soothes your child. Sleeping problems are something very normal. But this also applies to children: not the symptoms but the causes have to be treated.

This post is also available in / Diesen Beitrag gibt es auch in: German