How much sleep does a teenager really need?

[Brilliant]

My 13yo sleeps about 9 hours a night and usually gets up on his own after about that amount of time.

 

My 16yo sleeps closer to 10 hours...we usually have to wake her up to get her day started.

 

I occasionally hear parents say that teens "need" 12 hours of sleep a night. Someone said this to me yesterday. Really? Some days we MUST get up at 6:30; my kids would have a 6:30PM bedtime to get 12 hours of sleep! I don't think it's possible in our house...am I doing my kids a disservice?

[ncmomo3]

My 14yr old functions well on 8-9 hrs. I certainly don't know what is normal though.

[Cindy in WA]

I've heard it said that teens need as much sleep as toddlers. At our house, that seems to be pretty accurate.

 

I let them sleep on their body schedule as much as possible, but life requires some type of schedule, too. Our rule of thumb during the school year is you should start schoolwork by 8:30. If there is illness going around the house though, we let them sleep later to heal or prevent future illness.

HTH

Cindy

[jibaker103]

I've read teens need between 10-12 hours sleep per night. Also their sleep cycle is off during this time. An adult or small child will start to wind down and there body prepares for sleep early evening. Unfortunately teens don't start until late evening. That is why they get in bed and stare at the walls until as late as 1 am complaing of not being able to sleep! The report I read said you should cut down on the amount of tv, computer, and video usage before bed because it acts as a stimulus to the brain.

 

I'm trying to turn my son around by cutting off all electronics at 8 pm, in bed at 9:30, and lights out at 10:30 pm. I've been trying to start school at 9 am but it has been more like 10 am, lol!!!

 

Jennifer

Mother to Noah Age 13

[jayfromcleveland]

I've heard for years that the "experts" have decreed that teen sleeping habits, including staying up late and sleeping past noon, are all a normal part of the hormonal world of a healthy adolescent. It was sure the case when I was a teen in the 70s, I remember sleeping as late as 3PM. But that doesn't mean that these kids don't still need a swift kick in the pants to get their butts out of bed!

 

http://www.medicalnewstoday.com/articles/15185.php

[Big Buckin' Longhorn]

When we have school/appointments, I make sure dear son is in bed by 10 PM.

 

We start studies at 9 AM, so he wakes up at 8 AM on study days. I sometimes have to wake him up earlier if he is working on that day, accompanying me on errands, etc. . . he usually gets up without complaint. He's such a good boy.

 

When left to his own devices, like today, he usually goes to bed around 11:30 PM or midnight and sleeps forever. It's almost 2:00 PM and he hasn't risen yet. I go in every couple of hours to make sure he's breathing, LOL.

[Moni]

If you have to wake them up, they need more sleep.

 

Some nights 9 or 10, some nights 12 or 13 hours.

 

Just depends.

 

:seeya:

[AnitaMcC]

My 13yo sleeps about 9 hours a night and usually gets up on his own after about that amount of time.

 

My 16yo sleeps closer to 10 hours...we usually have to wake her up to get her day started.

 

I occasionally hear parents say that teens "need" 12 hours of sleep a night. Someone said this to me yesterday. Really? Some days we MUST get up at 6:30; my kids would have a 6:30PM bedtime to get 12 hours of sleep! I don't think it's possible in our house...am I doing my kids a disservice?

 

Each teen is different.

 

Ds gets about 6-8 hours sleep. He just can't sleep longer... his body won't do it, he also has a bit of trouble going to sleep some times. For him, the lower amount of sleep is just how he is. He has always been one who would go to sleep around 9pm and be awake by 5am. Now days he tries to go to sleep by midnight and still gets up by 6am. He is trying to get so he sleeps a bit later in the morning but it isn't working as he just can't sleep past 6am most days.

 

Dd gets 10-12 non-restful sleep hours and she has to be woken up by alarm or us. She has major troubles with going/staying asleep and so she takes melatonin to help (I am seriously thinking of asking pediatrician about prescription sleep aids for her). I think with her, once we can find a way to get her to have a good healthy sleep then she will need less sleep length.

[Therese]

I agree with Anita: sleep needs are individual. You need to know your child and his/her particular needs. My oldest functioned well on 8 hours at age 13, while my next oldest needed at least 10 hours at the same age.

[TravelingChris]

I have a daughter who is attending a summer program for fine arts. For this she has to wake up at 6:30 am to catch the bus before 7:30 am about a 1/2 mile from our home. She gets home around 2:15pm. While she has had a good experience learning some new things (mostly singing solo in front of people), her sleep has been completely disrupted. She is so tired and is ending up going to bed around 10 or earlier each night and still needing a nap in the afternoon. When she wasn't attending that program, she would normally go to bed at 11 and wake up around 7:30 with school starting soon afterwards. For her, almost 16, starting around 7:30 is no issue although some days she prefers 8. On the other hand, her younger sister who is still growing, needs more sleep and needs to sleep in later. The schools around both here and in FLorida where I lived noticed the sleep problems and adjsted to some degree their schedules. I know in Fl where we lived, the latest start time was for the middle schoolers and was around 9 am. THat seems about right.

[tajott]

hey Jay,

nice to meet you here, although we've never met in person, I've "known of" you a long time from the yahoo list and your fabulous bok and a mutual "friend" in WI.

 

teresa

[momof2boys]

Well for the summer my boys(16 and 17) stay up anywhere from 12-3AM and usually sleep unitl 11 each morning. during the school year they have to be in bed by 10:30 and I get them up between 7 and 8 AM and we start school around 9AM.

Gloria

[Robin in DFW]

my dd16 sleeps about that much every night. She is heavily into soccer, though, and gets tons of physical activity. My ds12 has been having sleep troubles...not able to get to sleep for hours. Once he's asleep, though, he's out for good. His sleep times are very erratic...one night he might sleep 8-9 hours, the next he might sleep 12...who knows!!!

 

I have always let mine sleep until they wake on their own unless we have something to do. For example, dd16 had soccer camp last week...had to be up at 6 AM and didn't get to bed until 11 PM or later for the whole week. She was tired, but was able to do it AND perform wonderfully for the coaches. So, they CAN survive on less sleep, but I do think their bodies and minds just need a lot of rest during the teen years.

 

And, I've also read the studies about the teen internal clock being off...just the way it is. They will adjust to a regular schedule when necessary!

 

Robin

[Big Buckin' Longhorn]

My son seems to be the only one sleeping 16 or 17 hours at a time. I'm not talking about lounging, I'm talking about SLEEPING. I wonder if something is wrong with him?

 

He's not really lazy. He does all of his chores without being reminded (most of the time) and on work days he does do physical labor (custodial, painting, concrete mixing) and he's active in martial arts and ultimate frisbee . . . so I guess he just has to sleep from all of that physical activity.

 

My Mom thinks I let him sleep in too late, but he's very well behaved and takes care of what I ask him to, so I leave him alone. Plus, whenever I need him to run errands with me or get up early for anything, he always sets his alarm clock and beats me getting ready . . . so I don't complain.

 

Teens . . . who knows.

[justamouse]

Sounds about right. My Dd (14) is going to have to get up at 5 this fall to attend share time at the county Tech school and I am dreading it. She looses all focus when she doesn't sleep well.

 

My 19 yo could sleep 14 -16 hours a day if allowed. But he also has a very physically active day (weight lifting, walking, biking). He's taking summer courses and is up at 6:30, lifting by 7, home by 12 and asleep two hours later for a nap. Some days he'll fall asleep at 9 and sleep till 6am.

Edited July 23, 2009 by justamouse

[Storm Bay]

The average sleep needs for a teen are about 9.5 hours, or so I read in a book by an expert :). It was in the book Why do they Act That Way? I got it from the library and I think he said 9.5. If not, it was 9. Of course there will be variations. It is normal for their circadian rhythm to change, too, with late nights & sleeping in. Our dd, however, has to get to bed by 10:30 and most days I'm standing there telling her to get out of bed NOW at 8:30, when I've had music on to wake her up for about half an hour. She just doesn't fall asleep quickly, but dh and I need a quiet house and time without dc. She shares a room, so can't go in there and read, because my 11 yo is usually asleep by then, or should be.