James Donaldson on Mental Health - How to Help Kids Who Have Trouble Sleeping

Minimize dependence, reward bravery Some kids get into the habit of falling asleep fine on their own but wake up in the middle of the night and go to their parents’ bedroom.

“They like to have these interactions with their parents,” Dr.

“It’s their comfort zone.” She says the best thing when that happens is to bring them back to their own bed as soon as possible.

“We don’t want to reinforce this interaction and make it more likely that the kid is going to want to come in every night,” she says.

“We want to minimize the reward they’re getting from their parents’ bedroom.” A reward system for their bravery can be used here, as well.

Instill good sleep hygiene In addition to behavioral techniques, there are ways to create an environment that’s conducive to sleep.

The idea is to train our bodies to go to bed and wake up at the same time each day.

Some methods to get into that rhythm: A calming, warm bath.

“It can be helpful to have a hot bath one to two hours before bedtime,” Dr.

Loiterstein says, “because it raises your body temperature, causing you to feel sleepy.” Meditation and relaxation techniques.