To sleep ... why does it cost to go to bed?

It costs to go to bed because it is the moment when he separates from his parents. However, the habit of orderly sleep should be educated in children from small. And even though maybe we have gotten that routine and our son goes to bed on time, he keeps waking up at night. Why? The bad habits, night terrors, nightmares or other childhood sleep disorders are the main causes that prevent you from sleeping all you need.

The dream is a period of day or night of variable duration during which children rest, elaborate themes that concern them, mature physically and psychically, and learn to become independent from the rest of the world (especially from mom and dad) for some hours.


A child who wakes up frequently during the night and also has the presence of his mother or father to make him sleep again, is already having a bad habit. In addition, if this situation is repeated, it can destabilize the family harmony as well as the child, as it grows, will demand new demands.

Sleeping serves to grow

A child who does not rest enough, yields in a considerably smaller proportion to their possibilities, lowers concentration, has irritability and behavioral problems. A significant number of hyperactive children have sleep disorders and between 10-20% of children under six years of age have trouble sleeping, a percentage that increases up to 30% under three years.


In addition, we must not forget that sleeping well serves to:

- Grow (during sleep, the body produces hormones, including growth hormones)

- Memorize (The dream has a restorative function that allows the brain to rest and record the information received during the day)

- Protect the body from possible infections.

Therefore, we have to think about what is the right time for our son to go to bed and sleep the hours he needs. Generally, the most auspicious time in these ages is around 9 o'clock at night.

Phases of the dream

Although there are characteristic sleep patterns for each stage of child development, we must not forget that each child has his or her individuality with respect to sleep. There is the NON REM phase or phase of slow and restful sleep and the REM or fast sleep phase. The latter is characterized because rapid eye movements occur in it. Paradoxically, it is the deepest sleep phase and highest neuronal activity. It is an essential period for brain development and gene activity and repair of molecules.


Necessary hours of infant sleep

The smaller the child is, the more time he sleeps. Between three months and two years, the dream is deeper. Numbing after meals is less frequent and waking depends less on hunger. In this way, children between 6 and 16 months they can sleep through the night.

Between 16 and 25 months transient sleep disturbances occur, especially when the mother is absent or the child is under physical or emotional discomfort. At this stage the child may have difficulty going to sleep or may wake up agitated, screaming and crying as if something terrible had happened. Going to sleep at that age may be associated with the feeling of separation from the mother.

The child from 3 to 6 years can sleep all night and even take a short nap in the afternoon. After two years, the first manifestations of psychic order appear, such as nightmares or "night fears", such as darkness, monsters, noises, ghosts ... the refusal or refusal to go to bed. The child feels fear when it is time to go to bed and uses excuses to delay the moment.

Paloma García Cardenas

Video: Science Explains How Much Sleep You Need Depending on Your Age


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