It is very common for children aged between three and ten to wake up in the middle of the night after having a nightmare. Nightmares are a part of every child’s growth and development and usually not a reason for worry.
Nightmares are bad dreams that frighten children and cause them to wake up in fear in the wee hours of the night. Nightmares could be about imaginary scary things or about real-life dangers that the child has learnt about. Young children who wake up in distress may not be able to separate reality from their dreams and may actually think that something bad has happened. As they get older, they realise that dreams are unreal. It is usual for children to have nightmares about imaginary things like scary dolls or monsters. Older children may have nightmares about real-life dangers. Examples of these include auto accidents, death, violence, aggressive animals, etc.
Nightmares can be confused with night terrors. Children experience night terrors early in the night when they are asleep. Although a child experiencing a night terror does not fully wake up, he can seem to be agitated or distressed in his sleep and may have a rapid heart rate. Children usually do not recall the episodes of night terror. Nightmares have a tendency to occur in the second half of the night, during the time which is called the Rapid Eye Movement (REM) sleep. Children dream in their REM sleep. After a nightmare, children wake up in fear and have to be calmed down. But, they have complete awareness and can recall their nightmare clearly after they wake up.
Bad dreams can occur in children as a reaction to some real-life fear or trauma. They can also occur in response to imaginary fears that take over when a child reads a scary book or watches a frightening show just before bedtime. The subject of nightmares is usually a reflection of what the child is experiencing in real life. Examples could be struggling with aggression, fear of separation, etc. Nightmares can be about various things like animals, imaginary creatures, monsters, bad guys, familiar places, people, and memorable events.
The exact cause of nightmares in children are not known. They may originate from what a child experiences in the daytime, something that is upsetting. NIghtmares are often a result of a traumatic experience. The type of nightmare is related to the developmental stage of the child’s life. For example, a toddler could have nightmares about being lost and separated from his parents. Older children may have nightmares about death. So, the intensity of nightmares differs in children of different age groups.
Here are some tips to help your child calm down and return to bed after having a nightmare:
After a nightmare obviously, it will be hard for your child to go back to sleep. But, if it happens every day, even you won’t get enough sleep. So, why not encourage sweet and happy dreams in children. Follow these tips to prevent nightmares and encourage sweet dreams:
NIghtmares are common in children, especially if they see a scary movie or read a book filled with fear. But, if your child is doing neither of the two and is still having bad dreams night after night, you need to take him to a doctor. Below are some cases when you should consult a doctor:
Nightmares in children are very common and nothing to worry about. They usually get resolved on their own as the child grows out of his fears. You only need to worry if the nightmares are persistent and worsen over time. Follow the tips in this article to deal effectively with nightmares in children.