Night Terrors

I was a nanny a few years ago and one of the boys had night terrors. The first time it happened it was really scary. I know you're not supposed to wake them up. Try to move objects out of the way so they don't hurt themselves. I do remember that if the child noticed I was there I would just pretend that he got up to use the bathroom or something normal like that. The child is usually still asleep during the whole incident. I only remember one time where he was aware of my presence and responded to my voice. He may have woken himself up.

To ease your mind some, she will grow out of them. My daughter had night terrors starting when she was 1 1/2 or so and up until she was around 3-4. Her terrors were very extreme, running through the house, screaming and trying to get away from something. She would look right at me and scream for mommy. If I tried to hold her she would kick me and hit me and pull away as though she thought I was the monster. It was awful. I can tell you that I would just make sure she was in her bed room, I would shut the door and just sit on the floor. I would start by touching her then rubbing her back and slowly I could feel her body loosen up as she came out of it. They usually lasted about 20 minutes, which seemed like forever It is impossible to wake them up, I would just let her run through it and know that she really does not remember them in the morning. I thought she was truly possessed (even though I never believed in that before witnessing the night terror) I did take her to her pediatrician whom I adore and trust and he assured me she was normal in every other way so she would grow out of it. If she is normal in every other way, do not worry about it. IT is not a sign of something seriously wrong. It seems like it when you are watching her but it is not. She will grow out of it. It is terrifying I know but it is really not a seriouse condition. If your pediatricial tells you she is fine, I would not submit her to further tests at hospitals etc. You will find as you talk about it that it is quite common so try to get some sleep and do not worry

You probably want to talk to his doctor. If they are actually night terrors there could be several causes, including they have hypothesized that in young children they may be caused by the child stopping breathing in the middle of the night and their body over reacting. There also could be a psychological reason, remember his brain is a lot less mature than yours so you and I may think there was nothing that could really disturb him but there actually be something that his mind has exaggerated. It is best to talk to the Pediatrician on any concern like this.

Yes, my now 7 yr old has them. What I found works, is that I pray over my kids each night before they go to bed. I don't know if you're a Christian, but I noticed that if I forget to pray that night, then he has a nightmare, or sleepwalks thru the house. The nights I pray, he doesn't. I've found this to be true for all of my kids. I have 3 boys, 1 girl and one on the way.

My daughter experienced night terrors when she was 3 1/2. My husband and I took her to the Dr. thinking something terrible had happened to her. When we explained the uncontrolable crying/ tantruming,the Dr. told us it was night terrors and told us it was from lack of sleep. We started putting her to bed earlier, and had a Very mellow/ quiet bedtime routine. No T.V. for at Least an hour before bed. We read books, gave her a bath, and kept things really mellow. Good luck!

Try some St. John's Wart tincture, or Bach Flower Rescue Remedy. The latter has alcohol in it, but what I did with my son is put a couple drops on the inside of his wrist and have him rub them together. My son doesn't have night terrors but I have read that these two things do help. Also, if you prefer to use a single solution with Bach Flower, you can go to the Coop and read the info to get the right kind. Hope this helps.

My daughter now 12, started right before her 5th b-day, and grew out of them. I remember reading Dr. Ferber in the back of the book is a night terror section. Was really hard to get up for school on time, when she had one or many night terrors.

She would sit bolt upright, we had: crying screaming, drenched in sweat, occassional bed weting. I use to 'wake her up', make her look at me while saying I am right here you are safe I am holding you. Repeat a few times while holding her, sooth her back to sleep and stay for a bit in the room. She also had a bought of sleep walking, and now can have issues of unable to fall asleep/sleep.

I was going to try the Stanford Sleep Clinic on Quarry Road, still may. If your not in North CA try an online search of your local hospitals and University medical centers for sleep clinics with a pediatric unit.

I also had my daughter evaluated at Children's Health Council in Palo Alto, a multi team evaluation helped a lot. She has Sensory Processing Disorder, helped by occupational therapy, and helped her sleep issues.

We still battle to be in school on time, but have not had terrors in a very long time. Good luck, T. S.

We went thru this too. Facts: It will pass. It is frightening. Your child is fine and for the most part unaware of it all. Knowledge: Don't try to wake the child. Terrors can last up to 45 minutes. Gently rub their back and softly affirm your presence. Hang in there mama. As my mom always says, "This too shall pass."

This is what I have used with my son when he's woken from a bad dream - or maybe not a bad dream but just woken up in terror which has been very effective for handling it.
L.Ron Hubbard has a booklet on Children and in there he covers what to do when a child is in fear.
There is a Church on the corner of I & 15th that sells the booklet for $5.37

The other thing that's helped is "Kid's Calm" I get this from Peter Gillham's Natural vitality - it's natural drink for kids that has done wonders for me and my kids - calms nerves naturally.

I think you can read all about it on his web site.
www.petergillham.com

The other thing is having a night light so he;s not in complete darkness.

My child also experienced night terrors. Luckily, I think he has finally outgrown them. What I learned is not to try to wake them up. Just comfort them until they go back to sleep. Mine was also a walker when he was in the middle of these terrors, so I just had to follow him around and make sure that he didn't get into any trouble, then gently lead him back to his bedroom. I also found, that if I could lead him to the bathroom and sit him on the potty to go, that once he urinated, he would come out of the terror. Strange, I know, but I have talked to other parents who have said the same thing worked for their kids. For my child they did seem to be induced by being extremely tired or in stressful, new situations. One other thing I notice, might just be a fluke, but I noticed that if I refrained from giving him anything sugary before bed (apple juice, popsicle, milk) and resorted to only letting him have a little bit of water, it seemed to cut down on the terrors as well. I hope some of this is helpeful! I know from experience how scary and frustrating they can be!