My son is 18 months and night terrors have started. They are 'bad' enough that he needs to be fully woken up and thrashes against us--not recognizing who we are. It can take up to an hour to get him relaxed enough to fall back asleep. The pede said to not have him eat heavy before bedtime and to not have him have a ton of liquid either. Provide soft music and a nightlite (which we already do). Any other tips you can provide? My DD was four when her night terrors started, but she just crawled in with us and hers were over. Help!
2007-03-15 06:48:41 · 8 answers · asked by Jen-Jen 6 in Pregnancy & Parenting ➔ Toddler & Preschooler
The only thing that worked for my daughter was for her to have her "safe" toy..a stuffed teddy bear with her..and when she started with the thrashing and screaming, I went in and sat on her bed. I would touch her arms and gently tell her she was alright, that mom was there, and she was safe. I would tell her it was ok to relax..and she usually did fairly quickly. We had very few nights that things got really bad. We did watch what she ate and drank and just made bedtime very calm and soothing. I have 3 children.
2007-03-15 06:57:54 · answer #1 · answered by Melanie A 4 · 1⤊ 0⤋
Terrors are often triggered in children who are overtired, so try to make sure he's getting enough rest to help prevent them.
Night terrors usually occur in the early part of the night, about 1 to 4 hours after going to sleep. Since he's getting them frequently, it might help to wake him up BEFORE the time he usually gets a terror. This is thought to interrupt or alter the sleep cycle and prevent terrors from occurring (it also works for sleepwalking). We did this with our youngest and the terrors have GREATLY reduced. He was just over 1 yr when they started and he is now 2.
Our pediatrician advised us to be calm, reassure him and to gently wake him up. With our son we rub his back and calmly call his name. As soon as he is ‘awake’ the terror stops and he is ready to go back to bed.
If your son is still thrashing and not recognizing you, then he is still in the terror. It is perfectly safe to wake someone who is having a night terror. You just need to be calm and gentle!
We do not provide additional stimulation like music or a light, so I do not know if this has any bearing on terrors.
Below is a link to a good resource site. It’s tough, but you’ll do great.
Night Terrors Resource Center
http://www.nightterrors.org/
2007-03-15 07:30:24 · answer #2 · answered by g-lady 3 · 0⤊ 0⤋
Those are hard. We've had a few of them, too. It's so hard to wake up a toddler in the middle of a night terror. We've had luck rocking and singing to him. Sometimes I'll just talk nonstop - reciting verses, song lyrics - anything for him to hear the sound of my voice. That helps. We always tried to get him to take a sippy cup, but it was usually difficult. Good luck. I know how frustrating it is to see them so upset and totally unable to do anything about it.
2007-03-15 06:59:48 · answer #3 · answered by Amanda M 4 · 0⤊ 0⤋
i've got not had an journey in a protracted time. yet back interior the day every time i could pass to sleep in a definite room, its like i could get caught on the mattress and identity be attempting to go yet some thing could be keeping me. i could attempt to scream yet i could no longer get the words out. finally I had to realize that it wasn't genuine and it grow to be a dream and that i grow to be on top of issues... I start up calling on Jesus in the process the nightmares. My words nevertheless weren't sparkling yet I knew in my heart that i grow to be calling on Jesus and asserting that Jesus is stronger than the devil and something! i eventually stopped having the reviews... So pray.. call on Jesus whilst it happens.
2016-09-30 23:23:41 · answer #4 · answered by ? 4 · 0⤊ 0⤋
I think you should take him to a specialist. Have you tried giving him a bath in lavender soap? There's this bath salt made by Ahava, at high end bath shops and spas, it has a green label called stress melt, it helped my daughter sleep better but she didn't do what he's doing, she just got up and wondered about.
2007-03-15 07:02:56 · answer #5 · answered by brandyswilkes 3 · 0⤊ 2⤋
I know this is not the conventional wisdom, but if you are religious or spiritual, you may want to have your home "blessed". Many ancient/native cultures have been doing this for centuries and I'm not one to doubt the power of prayer.
2007-03-15 07:11:01 · answer #6 · answered by Sonia 2 · 0⤊ 1⤋
my brother had them and would get them when he was too hot
2007-03-15 07:53:10 · answer #7 · answered by Lindy O 2 · 0⤊ 0⤋
maybe you could see a sleep therapist.
2007-03-15 07:02:33 · answer #8 · answered by rebekah u 5 · 0⤊ 1⤋