how do i get my child on a schedule if he refuses to sleep?
my son was diagnosed with adhd. he needs a routine, i know. he doesnt seem to need much sleep, he can go all day on just a few hours asleep. now i have trouble getting him to sleep, as well as waking him up in the mornings. so he must be tired. he is often whiney and irritable on those days, and on days when he gets plenty of sleep(which is not too often). he is not taking any medication for the disorder or anything, he took meds when he was younger and none of it helped anything. what do i do, how do i get him to go to bed and go to sleep at a reasonable hour so i can get him into a routine? please help!!
A routine doesn't necessarily mean going to sleep when put to bed. He can lay in bed and "rest" or read or color, some down activity that doesn't require getting out of bed. Not sure how old but maybe even 1/2 hour of TV in bed can wind a child down. It is also very important to get him up plenty early in the morning and not let him sleep in until he/she establishes a good sleep routine, even on weekends.
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You might try to give your son a time or two during the day (depending on how
old he is) of just some down time, quiet reading, calm movie, music or just quietly
laying. Keep it brief just 10 - 15 minutes. As far as night time I would figure out
the bed time that would fit him and would be appropriate and then I would put in
your routine some rigorous physical play/exercise anything. Then have time to
clean up, have a healthy/sugar free snack and wind down. Give 10 min, then 5 min,
warning for bedtime and depending again on how old he is, he could have some
time in bed himself to read quietly. If he doesn't read yet, or if it would be more
appropriate, spend 15-20 minutes in his room, with him in bed, reading to him.
I have 4 children and all 4 are different. But pretty much this type of routine
has worked well for all of them.
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My daughter was dx'd with ADD/ADHD and really never slept more than 2-3 hours a night... Once she started med tx she was able to sleep normally. She has been on Focalin, Ritalin, Adderall and Concerta. Ritalin didnot work at all....but the others did. She had to be rotated occassionaly, but has been on concerta for the past 2-3 years and does fairly well on it. the only problem is she needs 18 hour coverage in freshman year of highschool due to the long days....
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