Your Preschooler This Month

Thursday, November 30, 2023
52 Months Edit Child's Info Growing Up: The Preschool Years
Nightmares and Night Terrors Children from preschool age up to the preteen years may be prone to sleep disturbances such as nightmares (scary dreams that they remember) and night terrors (scary outbursts that parents remember). Nightmares (and other dreams) occur during REM sleep, which usually is during the latter part of the night. Children wake up crying and can be calmed down with some comforting. In contrast, night terrors predictably happen about an hour or two after a child falls asleep. The child may sleepwalk and talk or cry but does not seem aware of her surroundings and will not have any memory of the event the next day. Night terrors in particular can be scary for parents because it may be several minutes (sometimes up to 30 minutes) before the child calms down and goes back to sleep. All a parent can do until the episode is over is make sure the child does not hurt herself. Although nightmares and night terrors can happen for no apparent reason, there are some common techniques to try to decrease how often they happen. Maximize sleep. Sleep disturbances are frequently brought on by being overly tired. Preschoolers need about 11 to 13 hours of sleep over the course of 24 hours, and some children may need more. Enforce nap time if needed, or try getting the child to bed earlier. Maintain regular sleep routines. Try to keep before-bed routines calm and consistent with a bath, brushing teeth, and reading a book. Encourage children to go to bed around the same time every day, even on weekends. Create a safe sleep environment. Remove anything in the room that the child could trip over or fall onto if she wakes up in the middle of the night. Block stairways and doors so a sleepwalker will not get hurt or, even worse, get out of the house. Relieve stress. Try to reduce any causes of anxiety in a child's life that may be triggering sleep problems. Talk about stressful feelings during the day, and consider having the child see a mental health professional if she is depressed or generally very fearful or nervous. Avoid sleep-stealers. Limit caffeine and other medications that may affect sleep, and keep televisions, video games, and computers out of the bedroom. Next Month: The Battle of the Picky Eater About Dr. Jennifer Shu Parenting Tips •  How Social Is Your Preschooler? •  Day to Night Healthy Family Habits •  MRSA/Staph Infections in Preschoolers: Know the Risks •  Are You Spending Too Much Time With Your Kids? Connect •  WebMD Parenting Community •  Children's Health Center •  Parenting: 4 & 5-Year-Olds Community •  Raising Fit Kids Home  |  Conditions A to Z  |  Community  |   Parenting Don't miss an issue of this newsletter. Add WebMD to your email's safe sender list -- get instructions here. You are subscribed as asaislam93.parent@blogger.com. To unsubscribe from this email, or manage your individual email/newsletter preferences, click here. Please note that you may be asked to sign in to your account. To unsubscribe from all emails from WebMD, click here. WebMD Privacy Policy WebMD Office of Privacy 1201 Peachtree Street, NE 400 Colony Square, Suite 2100, Atlanta, GA 30361 © 2023 WebMD, LLC. All rights reserved.