Does your child wake up at midnight and start screaming or shouting? And when you go to pacify him/her the child would all the more start shouting loudly pushing you back. This is because the child is in his sleep and is not recognizing that the person he is screaming for is by his side only. This type of phenomena is known as night terror. Here the child becomes uncontrollable and devastated but it is just for few minutes and then the child is fast asleep again. The child won’t be aware of his last night’s terror the very next morning which is distinct from a nightmare.
Reason behind night terror
Night terror generally occurs between an age group of 3-5 years. This is because of the disturbance in sleep. These age group children generally sleep an hour or two in the afternoon and then if suddenly they stop taking a sleep during daytime results in a night terror. When a sleep cycle changes, part of child’s brain is forcing him to sleep while another part wants to remain awake resulting in a night terror.
Reaction to night terrors
The toughest part of a night terror is how to react when your child has suddenly woke up and started shouting. Do not try to console your child by seizing him as he would be more terrified. Talk to him slowly or play a soft subtle music. If your child is fond of books read him his favorite book. Make sure that the child’s sleeping ambience is calm and safe in case he starts walking in sleep. One thing you can note about night terrors is that they are most likely to occur at the same time every night. So you can be there for your child proactively before your child wakes up.
How to avert night terrors
First and foremost do not overburden your child with anything. Note your child’s sleeping graph. If you feel that anything would disturb your child’s sleep avoid that. To avoid disturbance of your child’s sleep make sure that he visits bathroom before going to sleep. And the most important thing is that if your child has got a night terror the previous night; do not discuss that with him the next morning.
