Michael Booth 7,364 Posted January 30, 2013 Report Share Posted January 30, 2013 Thank you, mick2me. I always appreciate your help. Quote Link to post Share on other sites
.... 23 Posted January 30, 2013 Report Share Posted January 30, 2013 I am no expert on the subject of night terrors but I understand they can be caused through an over-aroused central nervous system and occur more often in young people who are maturing. There is a tendency for it to be inherited and also a greater prevalence in boys. It tends to pass as the child grows older Taking away the obvious stuff such as new environment (not the case here) and medication effects the cause is often found to be from over-tiredness, stress, illness or fatigue. My literature tells me that whilst there is no actual treatment for the condition, certain preventative actions can be carried out. Loosely speaking these are: To make sure the child gets enough rest Reduce any other stress the child may be experiencing Establish and adhere to a bedtime routine. Keep this simple in nature and make it relaxing. Don't let the child stay up too late and become overtired Beefy, as a good dad I'm certain you do all these things already. Best advice seems to be stick at it. Good luck with it - it can't be nice seeing your laddie struggling like that. Stu Quote Link to post Share on other sites
banjo48 928 Posted January 30, 2013 Report Share Posted January 30, 2013 I am no expert on the subject of night terrors but I understand they can be caused through an over-aroused central nervous system and occur more often in young people who are maturing. There is a tendency for it to be inherited and also a greater prevalence in boys. It tends to pass as the child grows older Taking away the obvious stuff such as new environment (not the case here) and medication effects the cause is often found to be from over-tiredness, stress, illness or fatigue. My literature tells me that whilst there is no actual treatment for the condition, certain preventative actions can be carried out. Loosely speaking these are: To make sure the child gets enough rest Reduce any other stress the child may be experiencing Establish and adhere to a bedtime routine. Keep this simple in nature and make it relaxing. Don't let the child stay up too late and become overtired Beefy, as a good dad I'm certain you do all these things already. Best advice seems to be stick at it. Good luck with it - it can't be nice seeing your laddie struggling like that. Stu I think Stu has pretty much hit the nail on the head ! I am a stressful person and a worrier so maybe thats it. I know it must be difficult for you, but really its just a hiccup in life, as I said I have had it most of my life and It has not really changed my life, I have done most things we all do, and it has no real bad effect, apart from the sleep disturbances, which seem far worse in the young than when you become older. I think the worst effect is on the parents trying to cope with the younger child like in your situation. I know I put my dad through hell and many many sleepless nights. My youngest daughter was the same, she has a degree and is a medical professional, when she was young it was pretty bad and my poor wife was the one to calm her down. My grandson (from a different daughter) is the same and its his mum that calms him, but he also has another scary attribute, he sleep walks ! and has no recollection whatever the next day ! They have found him standing in the kitchen, and he walked out the bedroom and into the rear garden once! They just gently tun him around and walk him back to bed and he is no wiser the next day. Maybe we are all special, and just super intelligent and our minds work 24/7 :-) Quote Link to post Share on other sites
Beefsteak 305 Posted January 31, 2013 Author Report Share Posted January 31, 2013 Well it was a little better last night . He still woke up crying, sweating, yet shivering, and took a bit of calming down , but none of the the real screaming as of the past few nights. Thanks for all the advice folks. Quote Link to post Share on other sites
Pixie 162 Posted February 4, 2013 Report Share Posted February 4, 2013 My daughters only 17 months, but i went through a couple of months of her waking up screaming asif she was scared, She has this certain scream she does when something scares her, she was quite difficalt to calm down enough to get her back to sleep. althouh she cant exactly tell me whats scared or upset her because of how young she is. Anything can cause them, even something on a childrens tv program. What id suggest is putting his favourite film on an hour or two before bed, read him a nice story, basically try and get him to sleep happy and hopefully he will have happy dreams. Im 22, and i STILL wake up from night terrors/nightmares, infact mine are the same dream that keeps coming back - maybe i should see what its meant to mean. Good luck and i hope he over comes it soon! Quote Link to post Share on other sites
Pixie 162 Posted February 4, 2013 Report Share Posted February 4, 2013 Another idea (although im sure youv possibley tried this) is to talk to him during the day and ask him what he dreams of that scares him so much. Write it down and keep an eye on stuff he watches on tv, toys, books etc and see if the dreams link to any of his day time activities, if so cut them out and see if it makes a difference. Quote Link to post Share on other sites
Beefsteak 305 Posted February 4, 2013 Author Report Share Posted February 4, 2013 We've tried the talking and calming route, I even got him telling me what he could see, which is money going too fast ! He hasn't been too bad the last couple of nights, I've heard him and by the time I've got to him he's just crying , I cuddle him and he starts shivering, then drops back off to sleep without a care in the world.I have had a suggestion from a family member that it's a growth spurt thing, and I know he's actually going through one of those at the moment, so hopefully it will calm down completely in the not too distant future Quote Link to post Share on other sites
dgbrit 258 Posted February 6, 2013 Report Share Posted February 6, 2013 My wife Quote Link to post Share on other sites
Pixie 162 Posted February 9, 2013 Report Share Posted February 9, 2013 yeah a lot of people put things like night terrors down to brain development and growth spurts etc. glad to hear he's had a few goos nights and I hope it continues for him Quote Link to post Share on other sites
catfan 14,793 Posted February 9, 2013 Report Share Posted February 9, 2013 Many years ago my son went through a similar thing. Only he awoke saying an old lady was hitting him. Shortly afterwards he told his mam to stand to one side of the stairs to let the "old lady " pass by. Now, 30 odd years later he vividly remembers those episodes & swears blind they were not dreams but real. Quote Link to post Share on other sites
Beefsteak 305 Posted February 9, 2013 Author Report Share Posted February 9, 2013 We had a totally 'quiet night' last night ! He was almost totally quiet the previous night too. Hopefully it was just a growth spurt thing, as he's been eating like a horse for a couple of weeks, a sure sign that he's having a 'spurt' The only downside is that our Charlotte is having 'seconds' of everything now !!!!!! Quote Link to post Share on other sites
mudgie49 401 Posted February 9, 2013 Report Share Posted February 9, 2013 Glad to read that your boy has had a couple of peaceful nights.I am sure the problem was a combination of brain and body growth/development. Something we all experience as kids. Hope this is behind you,and has no lasting effects. Bryan. Quote Link to post Share on other sites
piggy and babs 544 Posted February 9, 2013 Report Share Posted February 9, 2013 glad to hear that beefy Quote Link to post Share on other sites
Beefsteak 305 Posted February 9, 2013 Author Report Share Posted February 9, 2013 Cheers folks, we've just put him to bed with his hotty thing (warm them in the microwave) then we're settling down with a bottle of cider (First we've had for over a fortnight !!) and a bit of Pork Pie. 1 Quote Link to post Share on other sites
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