Insomnia is a sleep condition that can cause your child to lose valuable hours of sleep. More than the dreadful effect on you, it can negatively affect your child’s health, growth and development, missing the healing and growth benefits that happen in their sleep.

If your child is being deprived of restful sleep, they may experience moodiness, resulting in behavioral concerns at home and in school. More than their shifting moods, insomnia may also cause some serious effects on their health.

What Can Cause Pediatric Insomnia?

Sleeplessness may happen to anyone, including children, from time to time. When it causes your child to lose sleep most days of the week for a month or more, your child may be experiencing insomnia. Insomnia itself can be problematic, however, it can be even more concerning when it is connected to depression and/or anxiety.

Loss of sleep can also be caused by stress, environmental conditions that aren’t conducive to sleep (excessive noise, cold, heat, or light conditions), stimulating foods (caffeine or too much sugar) or some medications (anticonvulsants, corticosteroids or antidepressants).

What are the Symptoms of Insomnia?

Sleep deprivation may cause your child to exhibit irritability and mood swings. For young children, this can manifest in tantrums and incessant crying. For older, school-aged children, this may be expressed in aggression, defiance and other behavioral problems, resulting in disciplinary action at home and in school.

According to the Children’s National Medical Center director Judith Owens, M.D., persisting insomnia over an extended period may affect their brain, causing a drop in their IQ, memory problems, decreased attention span, and impairment in functioning during the day. If the sleep difficulty persists for years, it can impair your child’s thinking processes, even in their adult life.

How Can You Treat Insomnia?

Pediatric insomnia is not a minor concern. Sleep is a primary brain activity following the sleep-wake cycle or circadian rhythms. Sleep is restorative, it is something that should enhance brain functioning. Yet, 20 to 30 percent of children are estimated to be struggling with insomnia, says behavioral sleep specialist Sarah Honaker, Ph.D, from the University of Louisville, School of Medicine.

To be able to properly help your child, it is important to recognize what is causing their insomnia. Find the help you need from Carolina Counseling Services – Fuquay-Varina, NC. CCS contracts with skilled, licensed therapists and counselors that can get to the bottom of your child’s insomnia and help them to start getting the sleep they need. Call today to schedule your first appointment.

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