I just wanted to leave a note to parents who might be dealing with children having "Night Terrors."
As a child of five or six, I would wake up screaming my lungs out, and babbling absolute nonsense... and I couldn't snap out of the dream even when sitting upright in bed next to my parents. I of course had no memory of this the next day, and my parents were upset. Honestly, did I live such a terrifying life at age 5 that I had to constantly worry about something "getting me" at night? After reading up on the subject, they were relieved to find that Night Terrors are actually really common in children (especially boys) of that age. There's some good info here:
http://www.healthcentral.com/sleep-disorders/sleep-problems-2354-108.html
Although Night Terrors are almost certainly a temporary phase, we did find something that seemed to be triggering them: The Ghostbusters animated cartoon show. True, it was a show designed for kids, and looking back, it wasn't very scary at all. Still, there seemed to almost be a direct link between not allowing me to watch the show, and my Night Terrors disappearing.
So take heart, parents of Night Terror kids--a little work on adjusting the movies, TV, and video games your child consumes (along with some patience), and your child will pass through the phase none the worse for wear.
As a child of five or six, I would wake up screaming my lungs out, and babbling absolute nonsense... and I couldn't snap out of the dream even when sitting upright in bed next to my parents. I of course had no memory of this the next day, and my parents were upset. Honestly, did I live such a terrifying life at age 5 that I had to constantly worry about something "getting me" at night? After reading up on the subject, they were relieved to find that Night Terrors are actually really common in children (especially boys) of that age. There's some good info here:
http://www.healthcentral.com/sleep-disorders/sleep-problems-2354-108.html
Although Night Terrors are almost certainly a temporary phase, we did find something that seemed to be triggering them: The Ghostbusters animated cartoon show. True, it was a show designed for kids, and looking back, it wasn't very scary at all. Still, there seemed to almost be a direct link between not allowing me to watch the show, and my Night Terrors disappearing.
So take heart, parents of Night Terror kids--a little work on adjusting the movies, TV, and video games your child consumes (along with some patience), and your child will pass through the phase none the worse for wear.
