Night-terrors

[Jasperstone]

The first time they happened to my ds, I called the ambulance, as I didn't know what was happening and I was sooo frightened!

 

Now they happen every now and again. So do they out grow them? If so, what age roughly?

 

How do you stop them when they are in the middle of one? My ds also sleepwalks- is that related to night-terrors?

 

Thanx in advance.

[Jasperstone]

I'm also concerned about the sleep walking as he needs to sleep on a top bunk bed while on holidays next week. I'm worried that he might step out of bed asleep and fall down etc...

 

Not sure what to do with that. Only other real option is putting younger child up there. That could be hairy too!

[Tiramisu]

I have one who had bad night terrors when she was really young. She has only very occasionally walked in her sleep. She is more likely to sit up and talk in her sleep. I have another one who is prone to the same, but not as bad. I have been very, very careful with top bunks for this reason. 

 

I don't know if I ever found a good answer to the night terrors. I've heard that trying to wake the kids prolongs the terrors. So I've tried to just calm them but that also isn't easy.

 

If it helps, mine grew out of the bad terrors by school age. Now that they are older, they are more likely to talk in their sleep or have weird states when they seem awake but are confused. It doesn't happen often, thankfully..

 

Also, when they were young, the terrors did sometimes seem triggered by illness or too much excitement--parties and things like that. I think a very regular sleeping and eating schedule with a predictable bedtime routine could help. I'd also recommend avoiding electronic toys or videos or anything stimulating for a couple of hours before bed. When illness triggers them, there's not much you can do about that, though keeping them well hydrated with something that keeps their blood sugar from falling too low might help.

[jhschool]

I don't know anything about night terrors but you might want to purchase an

inexpensive cot or sleeping bag for your child.  The upper bunk doesn't sound

like a good idea--for that child or for the little ones.  I've seen some simple cots

that fold up and don't take up a lot of room.

 

[*lifeoftheparty*]

My son had them too- from 9 months to about 4 or 5 years old. He just had to grow out of them.

 

HOWEVER, recently, I read something about a magnesium defiency (very common) contributing to night terrors and it made a lot of sense.

 

You can get magnesium in them by putting Epsom salts in their baths, or by taking a product like Natural Calm. Worth investigating.

[Rachel]

My son is 6 and has outgrown them in the last year. They seemed more likely to occur on nights he got to bed late. He has always needed a consistent schedule.

 

I haven't really found anything that helped during the "terror" but we would sit with him and often take him outside (partly to keep him from waking siblings). Once it passed he would go right back to sleep and not remember it in the morning.

[rmtzc2009]

My ds had horrible night terrors for a few years. I believe he outgrew them around age 7. We found that if we could get ds to use the bathroom, the act of him peeing would almost always snap him out of the night terror. It wasn't always easy to get him to the bathroom in the middle of the terror but it was very effective. We also found the connection between him being tired or staying up to late and increased night terrors. We avoided any top bunks during those years, that could be dangerous for your ds.

[Jean in Newcastle]

My dd had night terrors for years.  Sleepwalking is related to night terrors.  Both are due to disruptions in the sleep cycle.  Magnesium helps - either in a drink like Natural Calm (there is one for kids though my kids preferred the flavor of the Natural Calm Original) or in epsom salt baths.  Getting enough sleep helps.  If he's still having night terrors then I would do the sleeping bag as someone else suggested.  

[Momof3littles]

Two of my three kids have or had them.  DS1 is 10 and doesn't seem to get them any longer, but he had them through maybe age 7-8, but less commonly at that point.  DS2 is sick and had one last night.  In both boys, having a fever was a common contributor.  I've also heard in younger kids needing to pee can sometimes contribute.  For my kids, thus far, it seems to almost always be related to getting sick or being sick, particularly with a fever.  I think overheating in general is another known contributor.

 

We usually just sit with them.  My DS1 would alternate sort of being terrified and crying with this weird maniacal laughter he never, ever did any other time.  totally freaked us out.

My nephew is 4 and has had a few as well.  I've read they can run in families.

[unsinkable]

One thing you can try is to wake your son up between one and two hours* after he falls asleep. This breaks up the sleep cycle and your DS won't enter the 'night terror' stage.

 

* or if he has them at the same time, wake him up a half hour to hour before.

[Tiramisu]

My ds had horrible night terrors for a few years. I believe he outgrew them around age 7. We found that if we could get ds to use the bathroom, the act of him peeing would almost always snap him out of the night terror. It wasn't always easy to get him to the bathroom in the middle of the terror but it was very effective. We also found the connection between him being tired or staying up to late and increased night terrors. We avoided any top bunks during those years, that could be dangerous for your ds.

 

Yup, very good point! I agree that the need to urinate can be a trigger for these kids.

 

Perhaps limiting drinks after a certain time could help. Dh used to be able to pick them up when they started showing signs of being uneasy in their sleep and carry them to the potty and put them down on it. I could never manage this past a certain age as they were just too big for me to manage safely on and off the pot without disturbing them. Not all of my kids needed this, but it definitely helped with those prone to night terrors. For some reason, they couldn't completely wake like the other kids when they needed to go. I'm sure this is against mainstream advice regarding toillet training but it sure helped avoid more trouble in the form of night terrors. One might be able to be proactive and wake them up and sit them on the toilet before you go to sleep.

[hmvaughan4]

DS had them when he was younger. They occurred on nights when we had a very busy/active day. On those nights, we would rouse him an hour after he went to bed. That would interrupt his sleep pattern and he didn't get them.

[OneStepAtATime]

My brother had them.  He grew out of them at about 8 or so, for the most part, but would still have them once in a while even as a teenager.  We were told never to touch him, just talk to him.  Occurrences were more prevalent when our schedule was disrupted, whether we were traveling or at home.  And sleep walking IS related, according to bro's pediatrician.  Bro would sleep walk into my room and just sit on the bed.  Or start talking.  Scared me to death on many occasions.  Once he thought he was being crushed by an elevator and was running around the house screaming bloody murder.  He could talk quite rationally to Mom when she finally calmed him down enough to explain what was happening (he was 15?) and he seemed absolutely lucid...except that he could also see an elevator coming down a shaft above his head and was terrified.   She convinced him to take a sip of water then talked him back into bed where he promptly fell into a more normal sleep pattern but I guess she should have tried talking him into going to the restroom, too.  I could see how that might help, as PPs have said.

 

My mom had a really good friend in high school that had night terrors and sleep walked, even as a teenager.  She walked off a balcony in the middle of the night and broke both legs.  Really scary.

 

I agree with others, Jasperstone, a sleeping bag or cot might be much safer.

 

:grouphug:

[Clear Creek]

One thing you can try is to wake your son up between one and two hours* after he falls asleep. This breaks up the sleep cycle and your DS won't enter the 'night terror' stage.

 

* or if he has them at the same time, wake him up a half hour to hour before.

 

:iagree:  This is what we did with my middle child. She would have night terrors two hours after falling asleep at night, so we woke her up one hour and 45 minutes after putting her to bed. We would make her talk, sing, whatever, for a few minutes; enough that we were sure she had woken up fully. We did this every night for two weeks (I think) and it broke the cycle. They returned on the rare occasion that she was extremely overtired, but for the most part they stopped after that. She still sleepwalks, but not as badly as with the night terrors - she would cross the house, open doors, etc. in the minutes before she began the ungodly screaming.

 

[readinmom]

I had them from about ages 6 to 11.  I did grow out of them, but because of them I am now a very light sleeper.  The doctor did try medicine at bedtime, no idea what it was but it was awful tasting!  It never worked, either.  It's impossible to turn off my brain at night.  :huh:

[freesia]

One thing you can try is to wake your son up between one and two hours* after he falls asleep. This breaks up the sleep cycle and your DS won't enter the 'night terror' stage.

 

* or if he has them at the same time, wake him up a half hour to hour before.

Although one of mine would have them "if" she was woken at 1 1/2 hours (by a sibling coming to bed for example).

 

Mine that had them outgrew them by about 5, except that one of them still has them if he runs a very high fever.

[SoCalLynn]

My youngest brother had them from the time he was a baby until about 1st grade I think. That was a long time ago. He also walked and talked in his sleep for several years after that as well. I have a question for those whose children have experienced them in more recent years. Have you noticed if there is any relationship between the night terrors and sleep walking/talking, and hyperactivity/add? Back in the old days we didn't know about add/adhd, so I am wondering if there have been studies that show they are related in any way.

[freesia]

My youngest brother had them from the time he was a baby until about 1st grade I think. That was a long time ago. He also walked and talked in his sleep for several years after that as well. I have a question for those whose children have experienced them in more recent years. Have you noticed if there is any relationship between the night terrors and sleep walking/talking, and hyperactivity/add? Back in the old days we didn't know about add/adhd, so I am wondering if there have been studies that show they are related in any way.

I don't know about studies--but no anecdotal correlation here (ie none of my children have ADD).

[Jasperstone]

Aw, thank you ladies (men?). My son is nine, and we will be holidaying on a cruise, so unfortunately a cot isn't an option, as space and fire access wouldn't allow for that.

 

Awesome, about the advice on magnesium! Will get some down him today. It's morning here. :-D

 

 

Wow, that's horrific walking off a balcony and breaking legs! I didn't know that it could be so dangerous!

 

Thanks again!

[Slartibartfast]

:grouphug:

 

Night terrors and sleepwalking are related. They happen at the same stage of sleep. Dd used to have night terrors and occasionally sleepwalking but only when she was growing. She hasn't done it lately. 

[Slartibartfast]

My mom's family tends to sleep walk. One weekend the boys were all going hunting in the morning so everyone stayed at their mom's house that night so they would be able to leave early.

 

So they get up before even the break of dawn and one of the adult men was sitting at the table with all the guns lined up before him and he was cleaning them. Asleep.

 

:willy_nilly:  :willy_nilly:

[Jasperstone]

My goodness!

[PinkInTheBlue]

My 18 year old had them from about 17 months old until about 24 months old nearly every single night.  He just screamed

and screamed for 1 to 2 hours.  It was horrific.  Nothing affected him.  I'd change him, try to give him something to drink,

turn on lights, sing, sooth, etc  He just screamed.  Also, he did not sleepwalk.

[Word Nerd]

Our pediatrician said they're worse for the parents than the child, who most likely never remembers them and isn't really "there" while they're happening. My older DD stopped having them around 5 or 6 IIRC. She didn't sleepwalk.

[Tiramisu]

I don't know about studies--but no anecdotal correlation here (ie none of my children have ADD).

 

The correlation in my family is that those with hypersensitive-type SPD are the ones more likely to have night terrors. They are also light sleepers in general and took forever to sleep through the night. FWIW, I am a very light sleeper and I had night terrors as a child. I get overstimulated easily so I may have SPD as well, but no typical attention problem. 

 

The one who seems most likely to be ADHD is the one I don't remember ever having a night terror. 

[sbgrace]

I haven't seen a night terror in quite a while here. My son is 10. He does sleep walk/talk/act out. He also has ADHD like symptoms. Finally, he had moderate sleep apnea. I am still seeing the sleep talking/acting out post surgery for the apnea, but we haven't yet had a follow up to see if the surgery worked. There is a family history (husband as a child) of sleep walking.

 

I wouldn't put my sleep walker on a top bunk. I put an alarm in our hallway here because we have stairs. Falls are real dangers.

[Jasperstone]

I haven't seen a night terror in quite a while here. My son is 10. He does sleep walk/talk/act out. He also has ADHD like symptoms. Finally, he had moderate sleep apnea. I am still seeing the sleep talking/acting out post surgery for the apnea, but we haven't yet had a follow up to see if the surgery worked. There is a family history (husband as a child) of sleep walking.

 

I wouldn't put my sleep walker on a top bunk. I put an alarm in our hallway here because we have stairs. Falls are real dangers.

 

My ds also has sleep apnea due to large anaroids (sic) and he also displays hyper behaviour. I have always wondered that if he went to school would he be given a label there.

 

I'm starting to think it's all mainly sleep related! And wonder if removal of them would solve the issue....

[Jasperstone]

 

I bought some magnesium in an oil spray form. Apparently, it absorbs within thirty seconds on the skin. And by putting it behind the neck also eases anxiety.

 

Thank you for all for that recommendation! I hadn't heard of that link before.

[Tiramisu]

My ds also has sleep apnea due to large anaroids (sic) and he also displays hyper behaviour. I have always wondered that if he went to school would he be given a label there.

 

I'm starting to think it's all mainly sleep related! And wonder if removal of them would solve the issue....

 

According to an ENT we saw, who gave us some information on studies that were done, many kids with ADHD-like symptoms show improvement after tonsil removal. He said this is probably the number one reason for tonsil removal these days, not repeated infections but sleep problems due to big tonsils, which lead to behavior difficulties.

[Jasperstone]

According to an ENT we saw, who gave us some information on studies that were done, many kids with ADHD-like symptoms show improvement after tonsil removal. He said this is probably the number one reason for tonsil removal these days, not repeated infections but sleep problems due to big tonsils, which lead to behavior difficulties.

Wow! That's food for thought.

[Tiramisu]

Wow! That's food for thought.

Yes, this is really huge. If you have see signs of sleep apnea, I'd strongly recommend a sleep study. It can affect behavior and all aspects of health and you wouldn't want to let that go.

[Seeking Squirrels]

My almost 6yo hasn't had one since she was 4. So IME they outgrow them pretty young. Hers were pretty bad, usually lasting 30-50 minutes. She wouldn't let us touch her so the hardest part was keeping her safe. We had to line dressers and things with pillows so she wouldn't hit them as she threw herself all over.

 

You can't stop them and they told us it was usually worse if you try. This proved true for us. If we attempted to wake her or snap her out of it or even just calm her, she flipped out worse. They resolved quickest and cleanest if we put up pillows, locked the door, and sat away from her, close enough to intervene if she came to harm but far enough she could flop about without hitting us.

 

It's also hard watching them go through it, but keep in mind the "terror" in the name is for the parents. The child will not remember a thing. The first two dd had were terrifying for sure as we didn't have a clue what was going on. They got easier as we learned best how to deal with them.

 

So far dd2 has not had a full blown one, but she did have a mini-episode that I'm still not certain about.