Darken The Room and genre sound
Limit Screen Time - core body touch / temerature and breathing
Learning a childs sleep habits and Melatonin
Problems sleeping happen more often if the child has restricted and repetitive behaviors (lining up toys, rocking, hand-flapping), anxiety, or sensory issues. This can lead to having trouble paying attention, feeling restless, getting angry, and throwing tantrums.
Some children/teens have trouble falling and staying asleep or wake up too early and have a hard time getting back to sleep.
Planned quiet time should be part of the nightly ritual. Make sure it’s not stressful. Just because its quiet time doesn’t mean that it can’t derail sleeping habits.
* Some kids find piecing puzzles together relaxing. However, a different person may discover that this activity triggers unwanted stress. Coloring or drawing is another soothing activity. Work with them to seek out something to do that’s relaxing.
* Surround them in their room with the things they love. A soft blanket, a favorite stuffed animal or maybe a Happy Rock, and a glowing nightlight can all help an autistic child fall asleep and stay in bed all night. Other things that may help are a white noise machine and comfortable pajamas.
* Purchase bedding such as a satin or flannel. Sheets that are smooth help reduce the friction between the hair and the pillow and can be skin friendly and help feel cool in the summer and warm in the winter.
* Bedtime stories - Reading a bedtime story is a classic technique to help a little one fall asleep. In the case of autistic children, it may help to read something in the genre of poetry that has strong rhyming and sing-song cadence. Make sure it’s not stressful. Just because its quiet time doesn’t mean that it can’t derail sleeping habits.
We have included bedtime stories at the end of this section for any child, with an educational piece that will teach them a moral to the story.
Learning a childs sleep habits and Melatonin
Limit Screen Time - core body touch / temerature and breathing
Learning a childs sleep habits and Melatonin
Learning a child's sleep habits, and sometimes using the right medicine can help most of them sleep better.
There are several medicines on the market to help promote sleep. Melatonin is a common medicine doctors or healthcare provider may suggest helping improve sleep.
Melatonin is the natural hormone your body secretes that helps to maintain your wake-sleep cycle (also called “biological clock”). Melatonin is also made synthetically and available without a prescription as an over the counter (OTC) dietary supplement. When taken as a supplement, its function is to mimic the effects of the natural sleep hormone. Drowsiness generally occurs within 30 minutes after taking a dose.
*** Ask your doctor if trying melatonin is right for you child.
Read further in this section about healthy bedtime snacks which your body will synthesize into serotonin and melatonin.
According to the CDC sleep required in a 24-hour period -
- toddlers ages 1-2 should have 11-14 hours
- Preschools 3-5 years should have 10-13 hours,
- School age children ages 6-12 should have 9-12 hours
- Teens ages 13-18 should have 8-10 hours
Support Autism Awareness and Education - Our Rockin Happy Rock "Feelings" Sleep My Friend- has magical powers to watch over your child as you sleep.
Limit Screen Time - core body touch / temerature and breathing
Limit Screen Time - core body touch / temerature and breathing
Limit Screen Time - core body touch / temerature and breathing
Not just autistic, but all children and teenagers should be checked for trouble sleeping, by asking specific questions about bedtime, waketime, daytime and nighttime habits and bedtime routines.
Parents can learn ways to help their child sleep better, for instance by cutting back on computer or video game time. The light from the screen disrupts the production of melatonin, a hormone that’s necessary for sleep. Exposure to a screen, whether it’s watching a video or playing a game, will keep their mind active and occupied when instead, it should be winding down for bed. Watching TV, videos, or playing on the computer, especially if the shows or games are scary or violent, can lead to kids with autism having more trouble sleeping. If they are going to watch TV before bed, turn off the lights. Keep bed for sleep not for other activities such as television, games etc. Therefor screen time should be before bath or shower time.
Baths and Showers - can be soothing for some children. Raising then lowering the core body temperature can help to induce drowsiness.
Some children with autism do not enjoy bathing and this could be upsetting enough to delay sleep. For these kids, bathing or showering earlier in the day may be preferable.
Pressure Touch - is known to be calming, especially for those with autism. It is recommending a gentle massage or rub-down, using downward strokes. Moving your hands against the body in the direction of hair growth is especially soothing.
Many kids ask for snacks before bed, but keeping little tummies full can often mean the difference between waking up at 5 am and actually getting a full night's sleep yourself.
You have good reason to be wary about food at bedtime: Many of typical nighttime delights can actually inhibit sleep by either increasing alertness or causing indigestion. However, when chosen with care, a bedtime snack can not only keep your little ones from waking early but also help them fall asleep faster and sleep more deeply. Here are some good choices for bedtime snacks for toddlers:
We’ve included a list of a few of our favorite combinations to get you started.
- Nut butter on whole-grain toast or crackers.
- An apple with a slice of cheese.
- Plain yogurt with fresh fruit (optionally sweetened with honey)
- Banana with peanut butter
- Warm glass of milk with whole-grain toast.
- Honey on toast.
- Cherry smoothie with milk and honey.
Dairy Products
Yogurt, milk and cheeses are a great source of calcium which contains the amino acid tryptophan. While not sleep-inducing itself, our bodies use tryptophan to make the neurotransmitter serotonin, which promotes feelings of calmness and sleep, as well as the sleep hormone melatonin.
There is merit to the old wives’ tale: A glass of warm milk before bed sports these benefits, as well as the additional soothing effect of a warm tummy.
Whole Grain
Complex carbohydrates such as those found in 100% whole grain breads and crackers. This type of carb processes more slowly than its simple counterpart (found in sweets and white breads), which avoids sharp increases and dips in blood sugar to avoid nighttime awakenings.
Nut Butters
Look to all-natural nut butters for a healthy source of protein at bedtime. While all nuts boast a high concentration of tryptophan, choosing certain varieties will pack extra benefit. For example, walnuts have an additional source of the sleep hormone melatonin; while almonds contain magnesium which helps muscles relax.
However, it’s important to avoid sweetened nut butters which can cause spikes and dips in blood sugar throughout the night.
Fruits
Fruits make a great addition to any snack but choose the right ones before bed for an extra sleepy boost. Apples and bananas are rich in magnesium and potassium which promote muscle relaxation; but picking the banana will provide you with an extra source of tryptophan which your body will synthesize into serotonin and melatonin.
Cherries – especially the tart variety – have been proven to increase melatonin levels and promote sleep. In fact, drinking a glass of tart cherry juice can even help lessen insomnia.
Honey
If you fix a snack and it needs a sweet touch, try honey! This all-natural sugar will cause insulin to be released which makes it easier for tryptophan to enter the brain where it will be used to create serotonin and melatonin – promoting sleep.
As you can see, many of the foods your kids love to make the cut; and these fan favorites can easily be combined in a myriad of ways to please even the pickiest of appetites. Simply keep in mind that the best snacks include both a source of protein and complex carbohydrates!
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