Night Terrors

Does your child waking up crying occasionally at night and you can't comfort them?  They may be having night terrors.  Night terrors normally occur within 2 hours of falling asleep and the child is not actually awake.  They may sit up, open their eyes and call for you, but may also kick and hit you and not seem to recognize you.  My daughter has these occasionally and the first time she did I had no idea what was going on!  If your child is having a night terror - do not touch them, this may actually prolong the terror.  You can tell them you are there and everything is okay.  You can stay with them until it's over to reassure yourself they won't get hurt.  Do not discuss this with them the next day - if it is a night terror, they will not remember it.  The number one cause of night terrors is being over tired, so if your child begins to have them, make sure you take a look at their schedule and be sure they are getting the recommended amount of sleep for their age.

Next time I'll talk about nightmares.

That Dreaded Second Wind

Ever wonder why your child gets a second wind when they miss their bedtime? If your child missed their sleep window (the natural time when they are ready for bed) instead of producing calming melatonin, their bodies' produce the stress hormone cortisol. This causes your child to have trouble falling and staying asleep. To avoid this - Make sure your child goes to sleep at around the same time everyday. Watch the clock and their sleepy cues to be sure their bedtime is when it should be.

New Blog

This is my first ever blog post!  I'm not sure how it's going to work, but I'm going to try it out.  This blog will be about my company, SleepWell Sleep Solutions.  I'll include tips to get your children to sleep and stay asleep.  And maybe I'll include information about my trials with getting my children (mostly me son) to sleep as well. 

A little about me:  I am certified as a Gentle Sleep Coach.  I've trained with Kim West, aka The Sleep Lady to be able to assist parents with nighttime and daytime sleep.  I have 2 children of my own, an almost 6 year old and an almost 4 year old.   I had major issues with my 4 year old and that's how I found Kim! 

I hope you enjoy the blog, and stay tuned for more information!