{"id":977,"date":"2022-03-22T10:05:50","date_gmt":"2022-03-22T10:05:50","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.dayoutwiththekids.co.uk/hub\/?p=977"},"modified":"2023-02-06T14:29:37","modified_gmt":"2023-02-06T14:29:37","slug":"night-terrors-in-children","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.dayoutwiththekids.co.uk/hub\/parenting\/night-terrors-in-children","title":{"rendered":"Night Terrors in Children"},"content":{"rendered":"
[vc_row][vc_column][vc_column_text]Night terrors in children are common. Many experience them and nightmares too but eventually will grow out of them. According to the<\/span> NHS<\/span><\/a> however, night terrors<\/strong> are different to nightmares. As with night terrors, children may scream, thrash around or may not recognise you if you try to console and comfort them.<\/span><\/p>\n

Night terrors are also known as parasomnias<\/strong>. Parasomnias are abnormal behaviours that occur during sleep. They include night terrors, sleepwalking, confusional arousals, and nightmares. <\/span>Parasomnias are often misdiagnosed as psychiatric disorders such as anxiety disorder, depression, posttraumatic stress disorder, or ADHD. This leads to unnecessary treatment with psychotropic medications.<\/span><\/p>\n

But if your child has been having night terrors<\/strong>, it doesn’t mean they have any psychological problems. If they become frequent, then seeking advice from a GP is advised.<\/span>[\/vc_column_text][vc_empty_space height=”80px”]\t

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What are night terrors?<\/h3>\n[\/vc_column_text][vc_separator align=”align_left” border_width=”2″][vc_empty_space height=”20px”][vc_column_text]Night terrors tend to occur from REM sleep<\/strong> and it’s not technically a dream but more of a sudden reaction of fear. This usually happens when their sleep moves from the deepest stage to a lighter stage of sleep<\/strong>. Night terrors often occur about 2 or 3 hours after a child falls asleep and when they wake abruptly from non-dream sleep.\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

They also tend to be more common in children aged between 3 and 8 years old. During these episodes, their eyes will be open but the child won’t be fully awake, they also won’t have any recollection of the night terror… They can last up to 15 minutes and can actually occur more than once during the night<\/span>[\/vc_column_text][vc_empty_space height=”25px”][\/vc_column][\/vc_row][vc_row][vc_column][vc_empty_space height=”25px”][vc_column_text]\n

What’s the difference between a nightmare and a night terror?<\/h3>\n[\/vc_column_text][vc_separator align=”align_left” border_width=”2″][vc_column_text]Nightmares –<\/b> Those who have had nightmares wake up from their dream and will remember details about their nightmare.<\/span><\/p>\n

Night terrors – <\/b>Those who have experienced night terrors will remain asleep or in a sleep state. They won’t remember their night terrors in the morning and may react physically to their terrors.<\/span>[\/vc_column_text]\t

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What causes night terrors in childeren?<\/h3>\n[\/vc_column_text][vc_separator align=”align_left” border_width=”2″][vc_column_text]Night terrors are more common in children if they have a family history of night terrors or<\/span> sleepwalking<\/span><\/a> behaviour.<\/span><\/p>\n

A common trigger may be:<\/span><\/p>\n