Insomnia?

My daughter is 11 and is the same way about sleep. Same thing too, ever since she was a toddler. She is not LD (my younger one is). I was concerned and talked to the pediatrician. He says that pre-teens and teens body clocks are starting to change. They are actually wired to be up late and sleep in late. My daughter will up until 1 a.m. sometimes (school nights) walking around, laying in bed, reading etc. She says she just isn’t tired; but boy does she pay for it in the morning. She’s a zombie (of course). We’ve done the no caffeine, no late snacks, etc. No difference. Coincidentally, while in a dentist’s waiting room I was looking through Seventeen magazine and there was a short article on the same thing and they gave the same info as my pediatrician their clocks are set to stay up till early a.m. (like 1-2 a.m.) to then wake up about 11 a.m. -noon. So maybe it’s just his body clock, but I wouldn’t hestitate to have it medically evaluated just to be sure. I believe sometimes that’s just the way they are it’s just unfortunate that they don’t feel well in the morning. Please post again if you find out anything interesting on the subject. I’d love to know if there is an answer out there.

Thanks, I will post if I hear anything. Will be visiting the physician in the next couple of weeks too. Glad I’m not alone. People don’t understand. Lots of negative comments & blaming over the years, I guess they think I should just tie him down!

ADHD and sleep problems sometimes go hand in hand. Slow processing can also be a sign of ADHD. Neither of these things alone is sufficient to warrant a diagnosis, though. You should definitely check with someone who specializes in ADHD. That is crucial in the more subtle cases of the disorder.

Andrea

Sleep disorders can cause symptoms similar to ADHD. Shari is an MD who used to post here frequently, she had some good info. on sleep disorders in children and said that they were often misdiagnosed as ADHD. Does he fall asleep quickly in the car during the day?

Greetings Bren,

My 14yo dd has ADD, anxiety and allergies - ALL of which can contribute to insomnia. She was a wonderful sleeper as a baby and toddler up until 2nd grade or so. Insomnia has been such a part of her for so long now that it’s hard to remember that she used to sleep well! Her pediatrician recommended taking melatonin so this month I had her start taking 2mg of melatonin and it really works! She used to take 2-3hrs to fall asleep and now she’s asleep within about 30mn. You might want to have your son give it a try.

Blessings, momo

I have teenagers too and while I know their body clocks are different-this is not typical behavior. To me it sounds like a sleep disorder and I would try to find out what you and he could do about it- as well as what might be causing it. Sleep disorders are treatable and it makes sense to me to try and deal with it rather than allow it to complicate his life anymore. Good luck!

Robin

Thank you all for your input. It helps to know I’m not the only one dealing with this. Advice over the years has been negative - “What are you doing wrong?” type questions. After many years, I realized this was not something he was doing on purpose & it just turned into a “norm” for our house too. Being a teenager now, he needs more sleep & its affecting him negatively at school. I will look into all the options. Answer to question: He does not fall asleep during car rides although he could first thing in the morning - can’t wake up & when we think hes getting ready, we find him asleep on the couch, back in bed etc. Its obvious he needs more sleep. He just failed science for the semester (2nd period) - (now hes depressed & ready to give up.) I believe it is partially due to his “tiredness” making his ablility to focus even harder. He was also a good sleeper as an infant, didn’t start until he was about 2 years. Thank you all.

What do you see on weekends at home? Is he ‘out of it’ on Saturday mornings? Sunday mornings? How hard is it for him to wake up on any given morning?

And does he get better in school as the day goes on? If he has ADD he should be fairly consistently ‘out of it’ all day. If instead he improves as the day goes on, it would suggest to me he’s tired in the morning?

Some people certainly do require less sleep than others but a sign of that is that they are not tired as they wake up in the morning and go through their day. If your son is tired in the morning after a few hours of sleep sounds to me like he might need more sleep than he gets.

but too high a dosage over time causes vivid dreams, followed by vivid nightmares. We learned this the hard way. My daughter now uses only 1/2 mg, and not more than 3 nights in a row. I use 1 mg and also don’t use it more than 3 nights in a row.

Mary

Thanks for the heads up Mary. We started my dd with 1/2mg and worked up to 2mg before she was able to fall asleep within 1/2hr. The melatonin has helped to restore a more normal sleep cycle so she doesn’t need to take it every night - only when she’s anxious about something. I’ll be sure and monitor the no more than 3 nights in a row, though. I rarely have trouble sleeping but took it just a couple of times to see what it was like. Within 20mn, I absolutely can not stay awake. The urge to sleep is so strong that I feel nauseous if I try to fight it!

Blessings, momo

I can’t believe there may actually be a reason for this…. been going on sooo looong, learned to accept it. May I ask, is this detected through a blood test or is it a trial & error situation? THANK YOU ALL SO MUCH!

It’s a good idea to start with 1/2 mg and see what happens. Much of the melatonin sold is in 3 mg caplets, but this is way too much for a lot of people. I was very happy when I found 1 mg tablets, because now I only have to cut them once. (I use a pill cutter purchased from the drugstore.)

Melatonin is a naturally occurring substance in the body, but I’m not aware of any tests for it.

Mary

in stores that sell vitamins. It’s an over-the-counter supplement.

There isn’t any data that it’s unsafe. I have seen quite a few posts from parents who commented that their physicians said it was perfectly safe to use with a child. Still, I’d exercise reasonable caution.

Mary

My son, who is now 13, didn’t sleep through the night until he was 4 and went to sleep @11:00, getting up by 6:00 when he was a baby. I homeschooled him for a while, so the lack of sleep wasn’t as much of a problem, although he always napped in the afternoon. When he started school, he still had difficulty falling asleep. His pediatrician suggested that he take clonidine before bed. It worked. He used it for about 2 years. Now he can fall asleep on his own. He is ADD - inattentive type - and sleep disorders are a symtom, but I wouldn’t jump to that conclusion. He might just be tired!

I don’t know how you feel about using meds, but I can say it was a lifesaver for my son (and me!)

Your night owl is just like me. Unless I am exhausted, I can’t get to sleep before midnight, and I can’t function until after mid-morning or afternoon. Then I am a tornado in the evening. People like us are supposed to try not to sleep til noon on the weekend. Try to keep an early morning ( or fairly early) wakeup time on the weekends, so as to not get further into the late night schedule. And if he sleeps well, it is not really insomnia!!!
Also remember that ADD, ADHD is a medical condition. The school cannot say he has that if it isn’t proven - they cannot diagnose!!!
As a nurse and someone who works with people who take all kinds of medicines, both prescription and over the counter and herbal, I just have to stress that even if it is natural, doesn’t mean it is safe!!! If your child is taking other medicines, be sure to check with the pharmacist if there might be any interactions. Connie