Your Childs Bedtime Struggles Series

How can we help preschoolers and elementary aged children feel safe and secure at night? Sleep is vital and it is common for parents to feel anxious about their child getting enough sleep. My first note is to trust your children. Their bodies are wired for healing and will get the sleep they need. Trust their systems that they will get sleep when they need it. There are ways we can help set children up for successful sleep, but it is ultimately their body’s job to fall asleep and get rest to grow. On occasion, sleep struggles get in the way of development and impact functioning during the day. In these cases, it's really difficult for their brains to learn new coping skills. Keep a log of sleep patterns and expressed worries to your doctor or therapist. Consider if medication sleep aids or a sleep study is necessary until anxiety coping skills are developed.