 | Childhood Insomnia |
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Question: Anyone have experience with childhood insomnia?My nine year old is bipolar. He has never slept normally. In first grade he was open to using a sleep cd. It worked until he decided he was against it. In second I got I-Max dvds. He likes animals and was boring enough to work. Now he tries warm milk and lavender baths. It is all I've came up with that he is willing to try. I'd do the lights out thing I do with my youngest, but he's afraid of the dark. It goes back to a tramatic experience with a bad babysitter. I have encouraged meditation, however am not experienced with it. I've told him to try what I've read online (concerning meditation). He is on a mood stabilizer and I'm afraid to try some of the herbal remedies I've read about. Anyone with more knowledge with these, other remedies, ar presciption meds would be appreciated. I do have him on a loose schedule at night. He has to come in at 9 and lay down by 10. I know this is late, but he isn't tired even then. I think his mind is too active when he lays down.
Answer: I've never slept normally either and it continues to be an issue. I take medication in order to fall and stay asleep now, but my natural body schedule is that of a hard core night owl and I still have to constantly try to get to sleep by a semi-reasonable hour (2 AM). I remember as a kid reading under the blanket for hours because I could not go to sleep at a reasonable time. My son hasn't shown as much difficulty with sleep, but some. His doctor recommended using Melatonin (1 mg) about 2 hours before bed. My friend has a son with Asperger's and her doctor suggested the same thing...we both have found it to work quite well.Our bodies naturally produce melatonin and it is involved with regulating our sleep/wake cycle. As far as I know, it is safe to take with just about all medications. I've used it myself as well, in addition to what I take for sleep (small amount of ativan and 100 mg Seroquel). The doctors have said it was perfectly safe to take with all meds I (or my son) had experience with in the past few years (Wellbutrin, Zoloft, Celexa, Lexapro, Lamictal, Abilify, Adderall, Risperdal....are the ones that come to mind), but I would just double check with the doctor to make sure there isn't any new info out there on the contrary (if you should come across that, please let me know!) It's unlikely to completely remedy the situation, but you may notice a significant improvement.I recently did a report on the neurobiology of bipolar disorder and found an abundance of information indicating that profound sleep disturbances are very often a symptom of BP. Interestingly, serotonin is also involved in the sleep/wake cycle...although in what way these bits of info fit together is not yet understood.Also, you could try chamomile tea (I like a mixed herbal tea called Tension Tamer). It might help a little. Lavender baths are a really good idea....do they seem to help?There is also valerian root, which I do not know as much about but it would be worth looking into. I don't think it's as effective as melatonin though.I guess some of it depends on what happens when he can't sleep. Is his mind racing? Is there a lot of anxiety? Or is he just awake and not tired?Meditation works so well for some people...never did for me tthough. I'm just not good at it. I do better with slow controlled movement things like Pilates and Chi Kung (I always spell that one wrong). They help me relax but not sleep.Maybe you could find some guided meditation tapes...where a soothing gentle voice guides you through tensing and then relaxing each part of the body. I must admit, I have found that helpful when I could get myself (and my mind) to sit still long enough to try it. Or maybe that's what you meant by sleep tapes that now he won't use.One last thought...you want to lights to be dim and the space to be quiet...
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