Üsküdar University NPİSTANBUL Brain Hospital Child Adolescent Specialist Clinical Psychologist Elvin Akı Konuk talked about the mistakes made in creating sleep patterns in babies and children, and gave important advice to parents.
It is very important to ensure a healthy sleep pattern in babies and children. Stating that it is normal to have frequent interruptions in sleep, especially during infancy and early childhood, experts state that the physical characteristics of the room, night fears and night terrors can also disrupt sleep in later ages. Experts warn that forcing the child to sleep alone or statements such as 'nothing to be afraid of' develop nighttime fear in the child, and recommend reassuring conversations such as 'I am here' and establishing a pre-bedtime routine.
Night terrors interrupt their sleep
Child-Adolescent Psychologist Elvin Akı Konuk stated that the need for sleep in children varies according to age, and said, “The average sleep time for children up to 2 years old is 14 hours, 3-6 hours for children aged 11-13, and 6-13 hours for children aged 9-11. hour is enough to meet the need for sleep. It is normal to have frequent interruptions in sleep, especially during infancy and early childhood. Uninterrupted sleep in children from birth is not expected until the age of 2-2,5. However, the reason for sleep interruptions seen in later ages can often be caused by physical conditions such as sound, light, temperature, night fears or night terrors. said.
The child can be reassured by saying 'I am here'
Child-Adolescent Psychologist Elvin Akı Konuk stated that some children do not prefer to sleep alone or that they want to wake up at night and sleep next to their parents and continued as follows:
“In such situations, trying to force them to sleep alone and statements such as 'nothing to be afraid of' can cause children to develop more night terrors. Parents need to provide reassurance, especially in order to emotionally persuade younger children to sleep alone. It is useful to comfort children with sentences such as 'I am here', 'You can come to me whenever you want, I can hear you when you call'. In addition, it is very important for a child to love his room so that he can sleep alone, to be able to spend time in his room outside of sleep, to feel safe in his room, and also the relationship of the child with the parent. In this relationship, if the child has difficulties in staying away from the parent other than sleeping and does not want to do anything without the parent, it will be useful to get expert support.”
Physical conditions of the room are important for healthy sleep.
Stating that the physical conditions of the room must be arranged correctly in order to create a healthy sleep pattern for children, Konuk said, “The room where the child will sleep should be quiet, dark or dim and at a suitable temperature for sleep. In addition, the child must have spent the necessary physical energy during the day in order to fall asleep soundly. However, excessive energy-consuming activities such as running and dancing before sleep will make it difficult for children to fall asleep. he said.
A pre-sleep routine should be established
NPİSTANBUL Brain Hospital Child – Adolescent Psychologist Elvin Akı Konuk emphasized that for a healthy sleep pattern, the sleeping and waking hours should be arranged to be the same every day and concluded his words as follows:
“The time the child wakes up is just as important as the time they go to sleep. Sleeping hours should be average according to the age period, but the child should be woken up at the time he should wake up in the morning, no matter what time he sleeps. However, for the transition to a healthy sleep, a sleep routine should be established with the child. Routines such as brushing teeth, putting on pajamas, going to bed, reading a book, and going to sleep mean doing a consistent order of things to do each day before falling asleep. After a while, when the routine starts, the child will remember that it is time to sleep. As in every subject, it is of great importance for parents to act decisively, patiently and consistently, while instilling certain habits in children.
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