It is normal for your child to wake up multiple times throughout the night.  Infants and children of all ages will experience waking up in the middle of the night.  On average most children will wake up between 4 to 6 times every night.  Most children will go right back to sleep sometimes not even remembering that they have woken up at all during the night.  On the other hand you may have a child who every time they come out of a sleep cycle and wake up, may have to holler for their parents. 

These children who holler out after waking up can develop a sleep condition called inappropriate sleep onset associations.  This condition causes the child to have trouble to self soothe back to sleep on their own.  This is a type of insomnia in children. Most parents when this condition first starts occurring focus on the wakeups, which are not usually the problem.  The problem is the child lacks the inability to fall back asleep on their own.

 

Inappropriate Sleep Onset Associations

Inappropriate sleep onset associations can be caused by feeding your child to get them to go to sleep, rocking your child to sleep, turning on a light, watching TV, music, taking them to your own bed, or laying down with them.  Usually this condition will resolve on its own with age.

Most children who experience inappropriate sleep onset associations can only fall asleep with the conditions they want.  Whether that is moving to your bed, having you rub their back, or singing them to sleep.  This can cause the parents to be up constantly through the night to help the child fall back asleep.  Children who develop this condition tend to be children who woke up frequently as infants.

Symptoms of this condition are your child having an opposition to bedtime, trouble falling asleep, lengthy nighttime wakings.  Inappropriate sleep onset associations can also cause poor sleep, sleepiness during the day, having trouble focusing, defiant behavior, and irritability.

 

Tips To Make Nighttime Sleep Successful

There are some things you can do to help ease your child out of this condition without waiting for them to grow up. 

The first thing to do is to put your child down when they are drowsy, not asleep, and not when they are overly tired.  Overly tired children do not sleep well.  It is also important to make sure your child has a proper sleep schedule. 

Depending on their age will depend how many hours in a 24 hour period they need to sleep for.  Children at the age of 3 need 10-13 hours of sleep.  Don’t forget to add the nap time into this sleep. 

Napping strategically may fall into how your child sleeps at night.  If their nap is too long or too close to bedtime their nighttime sleep may be shorter than you desire.  You can start weaning your child away from a nap if they seem like they are ready for it. 

It is also important to stick to a normal bedtime each night.  Having a schedule where your child’s body will learn when to start being sleepy will also help them transition to bed easier. 

A nighttime routine can also be beneficial.  Whether this starts with a bath, pajamas, a book, and one song, then you leave.  Whatever works best for your family and your child. 

Having your child pick out a security item can also be helpful when they wake up at night, if they are worried they can have a special item they always sleep with. 

When your child does wake up, make your checks brief, less than a minute and get out of the room.  Don’t linger too long, but if you feel like you need to go in and check then do so, but don’t engage in helping them get comfortable in falling back asleep.  Be consistent in your plan and stay with it. 

It can get exhausting especially when you aren’t getting a full night’s rest yourself. 

 

Other Causes Of Nightwakings

Inappropriate sleep onset associations are not the only cause for night wakings in children. 

Your child may be going through a sleep regression.  Sleep regressions occur when your child is going through a big change developmentally. 

Your child may be growing which can cause them to wake up at night hungry.  If your child wakes up hungry, maybe try a big snack before bed to help keep their little bellies fuller for longer. 

Environmental changes can also change the sleep pattern.  This could be a new baby at home, a new bed, a different parent putting them down at bedtime, or room sharing with another sibling. 

Medical conditions like colds, asthma, acid reflux, or any kind of sickness can also cause sleep disturbances. 

People in the house being too noisy, or the TV turned up too loud can also cause a child to wake up in the middle of the night. 

Knowing how many hours your child needs to sleep can also help you make sure your child isn’t in bed for too long.  This occurs when the child gets a good nap during the day, sleeps for only a short period at night before they are awake for a long period of time in the night, and in some cases they will fall back asleep and have another small nap before they start their day.  Children who have this usually will wake up rested in the morning, their sleep pattern is just off.  

 

Conclusion

Knowing why your child is waking up in the middle of the night can be a mystery.  When you finally think you have it figured out your child may have already outgrown the stage they were in that was causing them to wake up.  If you think your child has an inappropriate sleep onset association, or some type of child insomnia speaking with your pediatrician can help you get some coping tools.  Your pediatrician may want you to keep a sleep diary for your child, of when they sleep and for how long in case adjustments to their sleep schedule can help alleviate the night awakenings.

 

READ MORE:  Toddler Night Terrors: Healthy Sleep


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