Toddler Night Terrors/ Nightmares

My toddler had night terrors for months. I thought it would never end. It was from about 18 months till 21 or 22 months old. Now it happens only every now and then when she's been over stimulated during the day ie:birthday parties,zoo etc. I thought I was going to lose my mind getting up every night to shreaks but there is really not much you can do about it. They just work themselves out. I know "tot lights" are supposed in some cases and having a steady routine is really helpful.
Good luck

I have noticed that if my 2 year old does not get enough sleep or is off schedule he too wakes during the night too. When we had our 2nd baby he was 19 months and the best thing we did was try our best to keep his schedule the same. He now is 2 1/2 and is talking about "monsters" in his room. I have no idea where that is coming from, but I guess if it is not one thing it is another! I would just keep an eye on the things that go on during the day before he has the nightmares. We also altered what we watched on TV. I think as they get older we forget how much they are actually seeing on TV and other things.

Hi K.,
My son in 5 years old and he is having night terrors also. Except that just going in isn't enough. I have to rub his back for about 20-30 minutes for him to stop screaming. Then he will go back to sleep. I feel awful because there isn't much else we can do. Our ped. said that this is common and will go away on its own. I was very interested to read Gina's post about not getting enough sleep. Our ped never mentioned that. And my son was used to a 2 hour nap AND 9 hours of sleep at night. We are trying to transition him away from his nap because he is starting kindergarten - - And the night terrors started aroung the time we dropped the nap! So we are going to try her suggestion about an earlier bedtime and see if that helps.
Good luck - I feel your pain!
A.

I know this is going to sound silly, but it may be that your son is not getting enough sleep. My daughter did the same thing and I felt horrible just seeing how frightened and upset she was. I would go in and stay with her (bad habit, but I didn't care). I mentioned it at her next well visit and the dr. told me that it is common at that age, but it sometimes an indicator that the child is not getting enough hours of sleep. I didn't buy it, but figured, what the heck, I'll try it. I moved her bed time up 10 minutes each night until we had a solid extra hour tacked on and I have noticed that the nightmares lessened with each additional 1/2 hour and have all but stopped now. The only time it still happens is when she's skipped her daytime nap or has gone to bed later than usual. It could just be coincidence, but I would give it a try. Good luck!

My son started having night terrors when he was about 18mos. He had 2 or 3 almost every night for close to 12 weeks. I took him to our Dr. and researched night terrors on-line. If they are happening regularly, pay attention to what time he starts crying. What you can do is, distrupt his sleep 20 to 30 mins prior to him having a night terror. This should change the pattern of his sleep cycle and hopefully avoid the night terror from occuring. If you are getting up anyway to console him, it isn't that much different to set your alarm and go in to prevent it from happening. To disrupt his sleep would be to rub his back or roll him over. Don't wake him up. Just stir him enough that it changes his sleep pattern. Do this for 4 to 5 nights and, hopefully, you will have caused a new pattern of sleep without the night terrors. I did this for my son, and they were the only 5 nights he didn't have night terrors. Unfortunately it didn't work for me in setting a new pattern, but it may work for you. My Dr. said in 6 to 12 weeks a new pattern occurs anyway.

On-line I found 3 other tips... Some kids are stimulated by a night time bath. So, I now bathe my son in the morning. A cool room is better than a warm room in preventing night terros. Lastly, what others have mentioned, it is very important for these kids to get all the sleep they need. My son is almost 3 now and still has them occasionally. If he hasn't had enough sleep, I can pretty much plan on him being up in the night. Hope this helps!

My daughter gets these if she doesn't nap or get to bed in time. Her night terrors last about 30 min and she is impossible to wake up.

I recently started giving her Calm Forte 4 Kids if I think she might have a rough night. It's supposed to help them calm down so they can get to sleep by themselves. It's natural and sold at Wholefoods.

a friend of mine noticed if she fed her child later in the evening she would have night terrors

K., really pay attention to your childs schedule on the days before the terrors happen. My daughter started having intermittant night terrors as a toddler and they have finally tapered off to a few wimpers in her sleep and she's now 11. It took us a long time to figure out that it was usually caused by being overtired. If she missed a nap, stayed up late, traveled and changed her schedule for several days in a row she would start having night terrors several times a night, until her body got back on schedule and caught up on the rest she needed. Try to keep him on a schedule as much as possible.

I hope that this suggestion might be helpful for you...

http://www.askdrsears.com/faq/ci8.asp

Best wishes,
J.

Hi K. My grandson use to have night terrors. It started when he was just over a year old. His pediatrician told my daughter to try not to let him get over tried or stimulated during the day because this cause bring them on. He's three and a half and hasn't had one in over a year. So try to be patient because there is really nothing too much you can do unless he's having them everynight. This may cause for some concern. My grandson would have them maybe once a month.