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Sleep

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Sleep is a universal need. Adults, babies, everyone benefits from a good night’s sleep, and studies show we’re not getting enough quality sleep.

It’s often an area where parents express concern. We were all up last night until after 2. My child just won’t stay in his bed. She just won’t fall asleep.

Children have control over so very little, often just eating, sleeping, and toileting. Sometimes we see a child exerting control in one of these areas “just cause,” flexing that muscle to ensure it’s still there, before remembering how comforting sleep is, how much better they feel after a nutritious meal, that they don’t actually enjoy wearing diapers.

We thought we’d share a few ideas that might help make bedtime just a bit smoother.

Children actually need quite a bit of sleep. For children 3-5, 10-13 hours are recommended, occasionally including a nap, and for children 6-13, 9-11 hours are recommended. This naturally varies child-by-child, but also in different seasons, as a child grows, or is getting or recovering from an illness.

If you don’t wake up your child, such as over vacation or on the weekend, how many hours of sleep will he get? Figure out what time you need to wake your child in order to get out the door on time, and count back from there. Add a little buffer for your evening ritual, and call this, bedtime.

Evening Ritual. We all have one, rigid or fluid, that we’ve stumbled onto or curated over years. Implementing an evening ritual can help your child settle in for the evening. As this ritual becomes habit, it can also cue your child’s body to start getting ready for sleep.

What kind of things do you like to include in your own evening ritual? What might help your child settle down? Reading three books and some back rubs? Lighting a candle and sharing something you’re thankful for? Wondering what tomorrow will bring? A warm bath? Try developing an evening ritual for or with your child.

If your child likes to take trips out of bed, gently but firmly return her to her room. It’s time to rest. I’ll see you in the morning. Those requests for water, or insistence that he needs to use the toilet, or whatever the case may be, might tug at your heart. Make note of whatever is getting your child out of bed, and try making reminders of this the next night. It’s time for bed. Now is the chance to use the toilet or get a drink.

You know your child best — might picking out his own sheets, or helping to make her own bed, or a succinct evening ritual, or a nightlight in the hall, make all the difference in a peaceful transition from wake to sleep?

What works today, might just be the ticket to smooth sailing. What works today, also might not work tomorrow. The good news is, we sleep every evening; we get to try again tomorrow.

For more thoughts on Sleep, listen to this podcast!

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Written by:

Charlotte Snyder

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