While many adults look forward to and know the beauty of sleep, some kids are not as enthralled with it. Some go out of their way to avoid the bed as if it held a plague, while others are so wound up it seems they will never get some shuteye. Unlike adults, kids who lack sleep are not sluggish and fatigued but often become hyperactive, MayoClinic.com notes, making a relaxing bedtime even more difficult.
Routine
Establishing a bedtime routine helps prime children for sleep, KidsHealth from Nemours and MayoClinic.com say. The routine can include anything you and your child both enjoy that also serves to help you both relax. Choices include a bedtime story or two, evening prayers or mantras or a selection of sleepy time music, anything that helps to soothe. A review of the day, highlighting your kid's favorite activity or accomplishment, also works. A favorite memory also leaves your child with a fond memory with which to fall asleep.
Fear and Stress
Fear and stress are two major reasons kids cannot relax enough to sleep, KidsHealh from Nemours says. With kids of all ages, talking it out helps quell them. Younger children can also benefit from what KidsHealth calls a "nighttime kit." Stock this small box with a favorite CD, flashlight, small stuffed animal for protection and other goodies that serve to keep the nocturnal monsters in the closet at bay. Older kids often benefit from writing down their fears or stresses, a cathartic way to get them out of their heads.
Consistency
Kids can have trouble relaxing for sleep if their bedtime is always at a different time, KidsHealth from Nemours warns. Just as your child has consistent times to wake up, eat meals and work or play, a consistent bedtime is equally as important. Your child's body clock will therefore be set to expect a bedtime and getting to sleep. Keep the bedtime as consistent as possible, even on weekends, and warn your kid the time is coming up to 30 minutes in advance.
Food and Drink
When bedtime is around the bend, say goodbye to soda, chocolate and other food and drink that contain caffeine or other stimulants, KidsHealth from Nemours says. Also refrain from letting your child eat a large meal, lots of sugary foods or drink large quantities of any type of liquid. Stomachaches and sugar highs don't work well as bedtime relaxation, nor does getting up in the middle of the night to use the bathroom lead to a restful, peaceful sleep. If your child is still breastfeeding and you find feeding helps relax her for sleep, that's still okay, Healthy Children, a website from the American Academy of Pediatrics, says, as long as you make sure to rinse her mouth or brush her teeth to prevent tooth decay during slumber.
Considerations
Other bedtime habits also work for relaxation, although not all are beneficial. Don't lie next to your kid until he falls asleep, even if it soothes him right into slumber, MayoClinic.com warns. This sets up a routine that will be even harder to break any time you are unable to lie down next to him. Winding down time, for the child as well as the household, helps prime everyone for sleep, KidsHealth from Nemours says. Turn off the computer, at least turn down the TV and take other measures to transform a bustling household full of activity into a quiet sanctuary ready for rest. This works not only to help your kid unwind, but to reinforce he won't be missing anything when he goes off to bed.
