Exploring How Sleep Affects Your Child
Greetings Parents and Families
You know the struggle. You’ve got a grumpy child looking at you and their emotions have been all over the place. They’re not able to focus, and anything that doesn’t go their way turns into a meltdown. Sound familiar?
The Problem Might Be Sleep - You’re Not Alone!
Sleep problems in children are incredibly common, and though they can cause some major challenges there are some simple steps parents can take to help. The good news is that improving sleep can help your child improve at school, in social settings, with emotional regulation - it’s the miracle drug you’ve always wanted, and there’s no negative side effects to this one!
At Camp Southern Ground we have amazing partners across the country who help us create the best environments for our campers. Recently I was able to connect with Dr. Scott Kollins, Professor at Duke University, whose team is currently studying pediatric sleep. If you’re interested in learning more about this topic, I invite you to join us for a virtual conversation about how sleep affects our kids, and how parents can help. But for now, let’s learn some of the basics!
Join The Conversation!
Click below to register for our webinar.
You’re Not Alone!
Many children struggle with sleeping well (and parents too!) and it’s important to understand that you and your child are not alone in the challenge. Sleep struggles have been shown to contribute to problems with academic and social functioning, as well as problems with emotional regulation. While common in all kids, sleep problems occur at higher level in children with a history of trauma and neurodivergence such as Autism Spectrum Disorder or ADHD.
The environment also plays a major role in helping children to sleep well. Lights, and especially lights from screens can make it difficult for children’s brain to prepare for a good night’s sleep. Behaviors throughout the day also play a role. Caffeine intake or unscheduled naps can have a major impact when it’s time to settle down and drift away.
Parents Can Help!
Before I get into a few tips for parents, please know that this is just surface level of helping your child sleep better. Our friends at Duke University will be going much more in depth during our conversation later this week. But for now here’s a few tips that could help.
Our experts from Duke recommend a few basic steps to help any child sleep better:
Good “Sleep” Hygiene - this includes making sure your child’s space is conducive to sleep. Remove screens from the bedroom at night. Keep the room dark, with natural light coming in in the morning if possible.
Consistent Nighttime Routine - A consistent bedtime and wake-up time are vital! Our experts suggest using a nighttime and morning routine checklist to help your child build better habits. CSG made one you can use or edit to fit your needs.
Looking For More?!
Want to learn about how you can manage stimulus for your child, or how to help manage your child’s energy through “bedtime fading”? How about helping your child’s bedtime anxiety that sometimes causes them to want to crawl in bed with you?
Come join us for an in depth conversation and learn how to help your child become a better sleeper!
Sleep well camp family! We’ll see you soon!