{"id":704,"date":"2018-07-26T12:49:14","date_gmt":"2018-07-26T16:49:14","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/www.centerforneurofitness.info\/?p=704"},"modified":"2018-07-26T12:49:14","modified_gmt":"2018-07-26T16:49:14","slug":"tips-for-getting-your-child-to-bed","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"http:\/\/www.centerforneurofitness.info\/?p=704","title":{"rendered":"Tips for Getting Your Child to Bed"},"content":{"rendered":"<p>School is starting soon, and parents will be in the yearly struggle of getting students to bed earlier.\u00a0 This is a little more difficult with ADHD children.\u00a0 Here are some tips from Terry Matlen of ADDConsults:<\/p>\n<p>There are many studies that show<span style=\"font-weight: 400;\"> the difficulties children with ADHD \u2013 and their parents- face at bedtime. Typically, the child\u2019s ADHD medication has worn off, causing his symptoms to reappear, often with a vengeance <\/span><span style=\"font-weight: 400; color: #ff0000;\">[these swings don\u2019t happen with children doing Neurofeedback :-)]<\/span><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\"><span style=\"color: #ff0000;\">.<\/span> As he becomes more hyperactive and impulsive, his body needs just the opposite: rest<\/span><\/p>\n<p><b>What is a parent to do?<\/b><\/p>\n<h2><b>** 10 Tips for Getting Your Child to Bed **<\/b><\/h2>\n<ol>\n<li><b> Insist that all electronics<\/b><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\"> and other stimulating toys and activities stop one hour before bedtime.<\/span><\/li>\n<li><b>Have a schedule<\/b><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\"> and stick to it with rare exceptions. Post the schedule (in more than one place). For younger children, use diagrams or pictures from magazines.<\/span><\/li>\n<\/ol>\n<p><b>Clearly state each step of the bedtime routine:<\/b><\/p>\n<ul>\n<li style=\"font-weight: 400;\"><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">What time the child must stop playing<\/span><\/li>\n<li style=\"font-weight: 400;\"><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Any chores needed to be done (i.e. putting toys away)<\/span><\/li>\n<li style=\"font-weight: 400;\"><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Snack time, if needed<\/span><\/li>\n<li style=\"font-weight: 400;\"><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Wash up, brush teeth, shower<\/span><\/li>\n<li style=\"font-weight: 400;\"><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Change into pajamas<\/span><\/li>\n<li style=\"font-weight: 400;\"><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Lights out<\/span><\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<ol start=\"3\">\n<li><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\"> \u00a0<\/span><b>Warm milk, warm baths<\/b><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">\u2013 they really do work.<\/span><\/li>\n<li><b>Even older children<\/b><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\"> love one on one time with parents, whether it\u2019s reading a book together, or sharing the day\u2019s activities. Even many teenagers find this time together calming and special.<\/span><\/li>\n<li><b>Reward your child<\/b><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\"> for every positive move in the right direction. For younger children, \u00a0keep a jar and add coins to it every time he follows the bedtime schedule.<\/span><\/li>\n<li><b>Remember that children<\/b><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\"> with ADHD get bored with routines quickly and though you want to try and make them the same each night, you\u2019ll need to be creative in making that \u00a0happen. Once, I was so desperate to get my child to bed, I turned it into a Scavenger Hunt. I wrote each bedtime step on an index card and hid them. Each contained a clue where to find the next card, plus instructions on what needed to be done to get ready for bed. Another parent wrote all the bedtime routines on her child\u2019s bathroom mirror using whiteboard markers. Think of other creative, novel ways to keep your child on track.<\/span><\/li>\n<li><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\"> \u00a0<\/span><b>Get help!<\/b><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\"> There was a time when things were so difficult in my home, that I hired a sitter a few nights a week to help me. It truly saved my sanity. Insist that your spouse\/partner also help. Consider trading off bedtime and morning responsibilities with your partner so neither of you becomes burned out.<\/span><\/li>\n<li><b>Sometimes the child<\/b><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\"> seeks out stimulation by engaging parents in bedtime wars. Change YOUR habits- try different tactics that remove you from the scene as much as possible. You might be surprised that your child actually gets sleepy when the conflict with you disappears.<\/span><\/li>\n<li><b>Try sensory products .<\/b><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\"> When my daughter was very young, I purchased a special tent that sat on top of her bed. She loved to curl up with her stuffed animals. The security of the tent encompassing her had a calming effect. You can also purchase a weighted blanket- these, too often have a calming effect on children with ADHD. Or\u2026pile a lot of regular blankets on her.<\/span><\/li>\n<li><b>De-clutter your child\u2019s room<\/b><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\"> so that he isn\u2019t stimulated visually by all the \u201cstuff\u201d in there or tempted to start playing with toys in the middle of the night.<\/span><\/li>\n<\/ol>\n<p><b>Many children with ADHD<\/b><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\"> simply cannot unwind at the end of the day. When their daytime meds wear off, their behaviors often become unmanageable and sleep impossible. Discuss with your child\u2019s doctor whether a bedtime medication might be needed to help ease him into sleep. <span style=\"color: #ff0000;\">[<\/span><\/span><span style=\"font-weight: 400; color: #ff0000;\">Or do Neurofeedback! \u00a0I had one young client do Neurofeedback early one evening. \u00a0Parents reported that he fell asleep in the car, which had never happened before! \u00a0He slept through the night! As the number of sessions increased, the better his sleep became.]<\/span><\/p>\n<p><b>Remember:<\/b><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\"> you can\u2019t force your child to sleep and you should never suggest that. But you can insist he stay IN bed and rest. Then let nature take its course.<\/span><\/p>\n<p>&nbsp;<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>School is starting soon, and parents will be in the yearly struggle of getting students to bed earlier.\u00a0 This is a little more difficult with ADHD children.\u00a0 Here are some tips from Terry Matlen of ADDConsults: There are many studies &hellip; <a href=\"http:\/\/www.centerforneurofitness.info\/?p=704\">Continue reading <span class=\"meta-nav\">&rarr;<\/span><\/a><\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[3,7,10,84],"tags":[8,85,40],"class_list":["post-704","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-adhd","category-children","category-families","category-sleep","tag-adhd-discipline","tag-sleep","tag-students"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"http:\/\/www.centerforneurofitness.info\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/704","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"http:\/\/www.centerforneurofitness.info\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"http:\/\/www.centerforneurofitness.info\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"http:\/\/www.centerforneurofitness.info\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"http:\/\/www.centerforneurofitness.info\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcomments&post=704"}],"version-history":[{"count":1,"href":"http:\/\/www.centerforneurofitness.info\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/704\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":705,"href":"http:\/\/www.centerforneurofitness.info\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/704\/revisions\/705"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"http:\/\/www.centerforneurofitness.info\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fmedia&parent=704"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"http:\/\/www.centerforneurofitness.info\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcategories&post=704"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"http:\/\/www.centerforneurofitness.info\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Ftags&post=704"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}