Do children suffer from insomnia?

If a child feels irritability or tiredness all the time, it could be an alarming sign of some underlying physical or emotional problem. Among other reasons what parents often forget is that the signs might indicate the lack of sleep in the child. Yes, the children can also suffer from insomnia.

Sleep disturbance or insomnia means having trouble when trying to fall asleep. Usually, adults suffer insomnia due to excessive use of screen like cell phone or computer before bed time. However, in children the reasons might be totally different. Children who have insomnia complain about lack of concentration, problems in functioning of day time activities and memory problems.

It is hard to find out if the young children are insomniac, for this, parents need to closely observe the child or might have to see some physician. The problem could be short term or long term based on the causes. Along with the effects of some medication, most often the underlying causes are emotional like anxiety, depression or pain. Children show insomnia through resistance to sleep or dependency on parents.

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The symptoms may include difficulty to fall asleep, being worried about bedtime, disciplinary problems at school, mood swings, depression and aggression along with hyperactivity and reduced attention span. A child may be stressed out about some problem with friends or at school. To deal this, parents need to talk to the child and win their confidence so that they can express what is stressing them.

For children things like a shift of place or problems with siblings can be more stressing than we think. Children who are fond of sodas or energy drinks may suffer insomnia due to the caffeine in those drinks. Some medicines also cause insomnia, itchy skin or stuffy nose are other causes of the inability to fall asleep among children.