ADHD and Sleep
Tips For Establishing Healthy Routines
Last year (I think) I wrote a blog about what I refer to as your “Core Four.” These are the four things that I find to be especially important to functioning properly when you have ADHD. Those are movement, rest, hydration, and nourishment. You can check out that blog HERE.
Today I’m going to talk about the importance of a healthy sleep routine for our kids with ADHD, and give you a few practical tips on how to get your kid to buy-in to healthy sleep times.
Why Does It Matter
Our kids with ADHD struggle often with regulation. Regulating attention, regulating energy, regulating sleep regulating emotions, and regulating sleep schedules can all prove to be challenges for children with ADHD and their caregivers.
The way that ADHD impacts brain functioning often creeps over into sleep routines, making it harder for kids to wind down, get to sleep, or stay asleep. Lack of adequate sleep can lead to:
- Increased Restlessness
- Higher levels of hyperactivity
- Extra difficulty with transitions
- Increased difficulty with working memory
- Added emotional disregulation
- Overstimulation
- and much more.
Common Sleep Issues With ADHD
There are a variety of ways kids (and adults) with ADHD have sleep struggles show up. Here are just a few of the more common ones.
- Insomnia – trouble falling asleep at night, lay awake for long periods, may have restless feelings or racing thoughts
- Restless Sleep – these kids are the classic tossers and turners. They wake up often through the night and are often still tired in the morning.
- Trouble winding down – these kids struggle to “unwind”, feeling anxious at bedtime.
- Bedtime Resistance – because of impulsivity, emotional disregulation, and sometimes resistance to authority – kids with ADHD will often resist bedtime routines. They may argue, disappear, ask for a hundred things, etc.
- Nightmares and Night Terrors – sometimes anxiety and other emotional regulation challanges can lead to more frequent nightmares or night terrors. This not only interrupts sleep, but leads to anxiety around going to bed in the future as well.
Practical Tips
Establish A Consistent Bedtime – this helps kids with ADHD with structure and predictability. It helps to regulate their internal clock when they are consistent. Stick to is as much as possible.
Create A Calming Bed Time Routine – Reading, taking a bath, spending quiet time together will alert the brain that it’s time to rest.
But Also – Release Energy As Needed – While it is important to have a calming routine leading up to actual sleep time – some kids need to get out some energy first. Some families find success with having a tickle match, or jumping on an indoor trampoline for a few minutes – just to release energy before beginning that calming routine.
Create The Best Sleeping Environment – When possible, create a place your child finds sleep-friendly. It shoudl be cool, dark, and quiet. Consider white noise. Consider bedding (age appropriate and sensory friendly). Keep distractions to a minimum.
Address anxiety and bedtime fears – Talk to your child about their fears and anxieties and make sure to address them. Provide comfortign words, items, or security object to help them to feel safe.
Seek Professional Help As Needed
As always, if this issue continues to be a struggle for you and your family, seek out professional help from your child’s physician, or other medical provider. Help is always available.
If you’d like to talk more about how an I can help your family create strategies that work for everyone, send me a message or book a free, no obligation 20 minute call with me today!
Don’t Delay Joy
Kat Sweeney, MCLC