Child Behavior Problems: My Son Has Night Terrors
Dr. Noel Swanson
Q. "Sometimes, in the middle of the night, my seven-year-old sits bolt upright, stares straight ahead, and screams at the top of his voice. It sounds like he is being attacked by an axe murderer! We try to comfort him, but he doesn't even know we are there. This goes on for many minutes. Then he goes back to sleep. If we wake him, he seems confused and cannot remember what he was dreaming about."
A. He can't remember his dream because it wasn't a dream. He was having a night terror.
Scientists have studied brain wave (EEG) patterns, and concluded that we go through a series of four stages while falling asleep. We start at stage one and progress through the third and fourth stages. Within about 90 minutes we go into our deepest sleep.
Surprisingly, we do not dream during any of these four stages of sleep. Indeed, if you wake someone up at this point, they will remember either nothing, or they might say they were "thinking".
After stage four we then suddenly shift into a completely different mode of sleep called "rapid eye movement" (REM) sleep. This is when all the dreaming occurs. If you watch someone in this stage, you will see their eyes darting from side to side. We dream for about 45 minutes, and then we go back into non-REM sleep for another hour or so. This pattern continues through the night, with the non-REM stages becoming increasingly lighter. Hence the saying "an hour before midnight is worth two after".
If we have nightmares, they occur while we are dreaming. They can be full blown horror movie experiences and very frightening.
Night terrors, on the other hand, occur in stage four sleep. This is also the stage in which sleepwalking and talking occur. The reason they occur is unknown, and most children grow out of them. They may be worse at times of stress.
Although very alarming, and most distressing to the rest of the family, night terrors cause no harm to the child himself. Indeed, if you can possibly bear it, the best tactic is to not wake him. As you have said, after a while, he just goes back to sleep by himself. The same also applies to sleepwalking, when the goal is simply to make sure the child is safe in his wanderings, and. that he cannot fall down the stairs or out of a window.
Night terrors usually occur in children from 3 to 6 years of age, but sometimes go a little later. They are not an indication of any problem. You would actually be better to get your own rest during these occurrences, difficult as it sounds.
More expert advice on http://www.good-child-guide.com/child-behavior-problems-2) children's behavioral problems is available from Dr. Noel Swanson's website, packed with tips and help on correcting http://www.good-child-guide.com/ Child Behavior Problems. Make sure you get his FREE newsletter and 1 hour audio too.
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