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SLEEP: Helping Everyone Get A Good Night's Rest

Sleep--or lack of it--is often a frequent topic of conversation in families with young children.  It begins with the through-the-night demands of a hungry newborn, but  it sometimes continues well into the preschool and elementary school years.  Everyone--both parents and children--functions better after a good night's rest.  So what are some effective ways to encourage healthy sleep habits?  Below are some tried-and-true suggestions from parents and grandparents:

·          Make sure that your child is tired at bedtime.  If he has spent the day "vegging" in front of the TV or has taken a lengthy daytime nap, he truly may not be tired.  Try shortening or eliminating his nap or adding more active and/or outdoor activities.

·          Begin to wind down an hour or more before bedtime.  Avoid roughhousing, scary TV shows, eating sugary snacks, or discussing unsettling subjects. Try soothing activities instead, such as baths, stories, singing, or quiet games. 

·          Set a consistent bedtime for your children and stick with it.  Most children thrive on routines, when they know what to expect. 

·          Give your child a warning that bedtime is coming up.  For some families, using an inanimate object such as a kitchen timer or alarm clock to announce that it's bedtime works best.

·          Make the child's room be a safe refuge--a place associated with relaxation and sleep.  To accomplish this, don't send your child to her room as a punishment.

·          Establish a bedtime routine that is comfortable for you and soothing for your child.  Include activities that you both enjoy (i.e., if you hate to sing, skip the nightly lullaby!). 

·          Be prepared to follow that same routine night after night (for months or years to come). Children usually insist that all parts of the nightly routine--which might include a bath, stories, singing, talking about the day's activities, and/or prayers-- be followed in the same order each night. One family posted a schedule of their daughter's bedtime routine, as a reminder for family members and sitters. 

·          Try a massage with lotion as part of the bedtime routine.

·          When should the lights be turned out? One family allowed their four elementary-age children to read in bed, for as long as they liked..  This gave the kids a sense of  control about when they felt sleepy, yet provided the parents with some time alone, when all the kids were in bed.

·          Once a child has been put to bed, establish firm rules about what happens if he comes out of his room.

·          Some children are disturbed by household noises as they fall asleep.  Consider the "white noise" of a fan or machine that plays soothing sounds such as gentle rain or a babbling brook. Or play a tape of lullabies or classical music.

·          Experiment with the use of a night light.  Some children are comforted by a small light in the room, while others are kept awake by one.

·          Each family needs to decide whether to allow children into the parents' bed--when the children are sick, frightened, or just on a routine basis.   One option is to allow children to sleep in sleeping bags on the floor of their parents' bedroom when they are in need of special comfort.

Getting a good night's sleep is important for all members of the family--from newborn to parent.