Sleep Hygiene and Other Tips for a Good Nights Sleep for Children
In the beginning, people must learn their optimum nightly sleep level. This is easier said than done because there are many factors that influence sleep requirements. In general, however, each person should be able to identify a pattern of say 7, 8 or 9 hours per night. A great way to get at that pattern is to retire when you are sleepy and wake when you are refreshed. Of course if you have to go to work or school this is an impossible study so you best undertake it on vacation or summer break. A sleep journal, beside the bed, is helpful in making notes because you won’t remember everything you think you will; especially when you get tired.
Once you know the optimum sleep pattern for your body (at this stage in your life) you can estimate your accumulated sleep debt. According to Dr. William Dement in his book The Promise of Sleep we begin accumulating this sleep debt when we stop sleeping. That doesn’t mean you have to count the minutes you are awake it just means you can consider the energy tank draining once you begin your day. If you don’t get the required sleep each night the sleep debt will build up. And no, you can’t sleep for 49 hours then stay awake for the following five days. Sleep debt calculations are much more complex; just know this, if you don’t average the proper amount of sleep each night you will have to make it up sometime or grow fatigued.
This is where we started with our daughter and her weekly slip slide into unrest and dark circled eyes. Once we learned her pattern we realized she needed nine hours per night – far more than the eight we were planning for. This was the first step in repairing her weekly schedule. The second step was insuring that the hours she spent in bed were actually productive.
Sleep hygiene refers to habits and practices related to your sleeping. For example, do you read or eat in bed? Do you watch TV in your bedroom? Sleep specialists agree that the bedroom is best reserved for sleeping. If you introduce other stimuli you are messing with your bodies natural sleep cues and you won’t fall asleep easily. Dim the lights in your bedroom or develop a routine that relaxes you before bedtime; something like a cup of warm milk or a hot bath. Talk to your doctor or counselor about sleep hygiene or visit www.sleepquest.com to learn more about sleep hygiene.
There are special techniques that can help you fall asleep in addition to proper sleep hygiene. My daughter benefited from self hypnosis or meditation. Under the guidance of a licensed Psychologist she learned to hypnotize herself into a relaxed, worry free sleep state. For most people this state occurs without any aid but for some folks mediation or guided imagery can help. To learn more about mediation visit www.learningmeditation.com or talk to your doctor.
Why all the fuss about sleeping? Sleep is a critical restorative process for your entire body. People with sleep disorders are at risk for sickness resulting from a weak immune system. Of special concern to parents is the brain development credited to sleeping; children’s brains develop while they are sleeping. It is possible that kids who get good sleep do better in school. Intuitively, I would have to believe that kids were healthier, happier and did better in school when they regularly got the proper amounts of sleep. This has certainly been our experience. It doesn’t take much to study sleep in your household – set the alarm for 2:00 am and see who is slumbering soundly.
