Please enjoy the following guest post by Julia Merrill with useful tips on dealing with summer sleep routines with our children.
Julia Merrill is on a mission. She wants to use information to close the gap between medical providers and their patients. She started BefriendYourDoc.org to do just that.
Julia Merrill is on a mission. She wants to use information to close the gap between medical providers and their patients. She started BefriendYourDoc.org to do just that.
Many children eagerly anticipate the summer holidays. With their time off from school, more free schedules, and warmer weather, their days are often full of fun, exciting adventures. This typically extends toward the night, as well -- children frequently break their standard sleep routine in the summer. Children and teens still require a certain amount of high-quality sleep in the summer, even though it can be difficult to get them to follow a summertime sleep schedule. Here are some ways you can create a summer sleep schedule for your children and improve their sleep in general.
The Need for Sleep
While they may disagree, children thrive on regularity. Erratic sleep schedules over an extended period often lead to irritable moods, acting out, and a generally unpleasant time for all concerned. At the same time, there is no one-size-fits-all approach to creating a summer schedule. Take a few days to discover how your family’s habits change after summer hits; notice what time you wake up, what time you eat dinner, and how other regularly scheduled activities are altered, then adjust accordingly. The most important thing when you are creating a new sleep schedule for your children is that they continue to get an adequate amount of sleep -- don’t wake them up at the same, autumn time in the morning if they went to bed several hours later.
Adjust Their Sleep Schedules According to Their Age
Many younger children will naturally wake up early, even if they’ve gotten less sleep after going to bed later in the night. By adjusting the timing of your larger meals and play times throughout the day, you can help nudge their natural rhythms deeper in the morning. Teenagers experience slightly different natural rhythms than younger children; going to bed and waking up later is normal for them to get the best possible night’s rest. However, they may still need to get up at a certain time for work or scheduled activities, so explain to them the need for a slightly earlier bedtime to compensate. In general, regardless of the age of your children, the important thing is that they understand the need for a healthy amount of sleep each night.
Establish How Much Sleep Your Child Needs
There is a significant amount of variability in the amount of sleep required by each person, even taking the generally accepted scientific averages into account. One way to help get your kids to sleep is to individualize their bedtimes. Even though school-aged children require between nine and 11 hours of sleep each night (teenagers generally need eight to 10), night owls will toss and turn for a while if they try to force themselves to sleep before their body is ready, and morning larks will still wake up when they’re ready. Setting a wakeup time can help keep everything organized -- just add the number of hours your child needs to the time they tend to fall asleep. A child’s room should be a comforting, relaxing, sleep-inducing place. A stuffed animal or two can help, as can soft sheets, a comfortable pillow, and dark curtains.
Remove technology from the bedroom
If your child is still staying up too late, it may be time to remove technology from the bedroom. Clutter and the blue light emitted from screens can cause distractions and inhibit good sleep. Both are good reasons to make your child’s bedroom a screen-free zone. Blue light also affects adults’ ability to sleep, but the effect is twice as drastic with children. Cell phones can be powerfully addictive thanks to how social media taps into the reward centers in our brains. There are apps available that can tint your teen’s phone with a more reddish light, but the best approach is for them to keep their phone out of reach when they’re in bed. As a general rule for all ages, try to turn off technology two hours before bedtime.
Establishing a summertime sleep schedule requires persistence and perseverance. However, over time, your child will be able to see the better disposition and calmer emotional state fostered by an adequate amount of sleep. This can help to create good sleeping habits into adulthood.
Establishing a summertime sleep schedule requires persistence and perseverance. However, over time, your child will be able to see the better disposition and calmer emotional state fostered by an adequate amount of sleep. This can help to create good sleeping habits into adulthood.
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If you haven’t already read the book, it’s a great place to start - Relationship Reboot: Break free from the bad habits in your relationship.
David B. Younger, Ph.D. is the creator of Love After Kids, for couples that have grown apart since having children. He is a clinical psychologist and couples therapist with a web-based private practice and lives in Austin, Texas with his wife, 13-year-old son, 4-year-old daughter and 6-year-old toy poodle.
If you haven’t already read the book, it’s a great place to start - Relationship Reboot: Break free from the bad habits in your relationship.
David B. Younger, Ph.D. is the creator of Love After Kids, for couples that have grown apart since having children. He is a clinical psychologist and couples therapist with a web-based private practice and lives in Austin, Texas with his wife, 13-year-old son, 4-year-old daughter and 6-year-old toy poodle.
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