Stimulating activities should be avoided, such as watching TV, using social media, playing video games or doing vigorous physical activity. It could include taking a warm bath or reading a book. This is especially important for children. They should also develop a consistent bedtime routine of around 30 to 60 minutes to prepare for sleep each night. On the bright side, setting rules around sleep can help both children and adults overcome their sleep issues.Ĭhildren and adults should both go to bed and wake up around the same time daily. While children usually have someone to tell them when they need to go to bed, adults must set their own (often poor) sleep routines. Having an irregular sleep schedule and not prioritising sleep are symptoms of behavioural sleep issues in adults. It’s when you promise yourself you’ll only watch one more episode of a show, or only scroll through your feed for ten more minutes - and then fail to cut yourself off. In adults, behavioural sleep problems are often described as poor sleep hygiene or poor sleep habits. Our ‘fear of missing out’ - the same reason so many of us are tempted to stay glued to our screens - may also help explain why children protest early bedtimes. Children can also develop behavioural sleep problems due to FOMO (fear of missing out), or not understanding why the grownups are allowed to stay awake. Such behaviours may start at a young age without a trigger, or may follow significant life events such as moving houses, family upsets or starting school. Refusing to get into (or stay) in bed, not settling into sleep, waking up during the night, getting up very early - all of these are examples of sleep behaviour problems in children. Fear of missing outĭifficult behaviour around bedtime is the most common sleep issue among children. These changes can happen so gradually we don’t always notice them, but they’re probably why many adults are desperate to get more sleep. This increases sleepiness and can worsen the impact of further sleep loss. Meanwhile, adults are usually aware of their own lack of sleep and can report increased sleepiness, trouble staying awake, difficulty concentrating, poorer memory and slower reaction times.Īn accumulation of sleep loss over many years can even lead to “ sleep debt” in adults. There are telltale signs when children are suffering from insufficient or poor sleep, including poorer behaviour, overactivity, poorer performance at school and poorer physical growth. Children are unlikely to know how much sleep they should be getting, so they look to their parents as a guide. They may not be able to communicate when they are sleepy, or may not even recognise sleep deprivation in themselves. Insufficient sleep in kids isn’t always easy to identify. Adults 18 years and older should aim to sleep between 7 and 9 hours. Children aged 3-5 years should get 10 to 13 hours of sleep daily, including naps - while those aged 6-12 years should get 9 to 11 hours. Research has shown sleep is essential for a child’s development, but the amount needed varies with age. We don’t know exactly what this number is for children, but one Swedish study showed it could be about the same for them. Reports from the Sleep Health Foundation indicate four in ten Australian adults don’t get enough sleep.
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