Understanding all about insomnia in toddlers
Insomnia or sleep disturbances in children presents itself as a difficulty in falling sleep, staying awake at night or waking up earlier without adequate quality sleep. Insomnia in toddlers could be a great cause of discomfort not only for toddlers, but their parents also as he/she may cry all night with parents having to tell one stories by holding them all night.
It is significant to note that even toddlers may turn very irritable, lethargic, hyperactive, depressed or even turn aggressive due to lack of quality sleep. It is significant to note that toddlers may also experience mood swings, and decreased memory and attention span, with parents also suffering from the ill-effects of turning desperate, temperamental, forgetful and argumentative.
Complaints of insomnia that are generally associated with impairment in daytime functioning and a feeling of non-restorative sleep, could be short-term insomnia that could arise out of short term medications that toddlers are taking or sickness or long term that could arise due to anxiety, depression, pain and other health problems. Sometimes the reason could be just resistance at bedtime or dependency on parents to fall asleep and also other problems in the behavior.
Methods that have worked to cope with and cure insomnia in toddlers
Setting fixed bedtimes and bedtime routine helps cure insomnia in toddlers, endeavoring to maintain a fixed bedtime should also include a bedtime activity of reading a story or doing some calm activity at bedtime. Bedtime routine includes restricting the time for the toddler to fall asleep once he/she is in bed with maintaining a calm and comfortable bedroom atmosphere. Including a nightlight helps toddlers get over the fear of the dark with avoiding stimulating activities an hour before bedtime helps.
A relaxed and calm toddler falls asleep faster, so giving toddlers a warm bath at bedtime helps, with most toddlers being benefitted with adding a few drops of lavender to bath water. It would further help if mothers also have a warm bath before sleep, with little old toddlers being benefitted with positive mental imagination that is built with telling stories of beach sides, cool mountains and fresh air. Besides dim lights and a relaxing atmosphere with temperature control, a continuous noise that is rhythmic like the hum of a running fan helps mask off outside noise that helps a toddler to sleep.
You would as a parent observe that suddenly changing the place your toddler sleeps could lead to insomnia. This is true of the pillow your toddler uses, his/her blanket and even stuffed toy. All these could account to interfering with the comfort zone of the toddler, so making small and gradual moves would help the toddler get over anxiety and make the transition smooth.
Allowing your toddler to just toss and turn in bed is not advisable, instead engaging him/her in some calm activity for about 15 to 20 minutes helps to again attempt to sleep. Repeating the cycle has also helped many toddlers to again fall asleep. Again if the toddler has not slept well at night and feels drowsy during daytime, it would be best to encourage sleeping and not wait for the toddler to be put to sleep at bedtime.
Modern medicine may prescribe medications, but a specialists opinion is best sort before suing them, as some medications could prove addictive and harmful in the long run. Using of herbal and natural remedies may prove useful in the long run, with behavioral therapy and cognitive therapy also proving effective in extreme cases.