10 Yr Old Sleep Issues

You could make a new routine and have a girl's cup of tea in the evening. Just chat girl talk over (for her) a cup of chamomille tea. There are herbal teas out there that are good for falling asleep. Or just give her some of the herbal tea without the talk; whichever works.

If you enjoy a glass of milk, warm it up. Warm milk helps to fall asleep. Or some calcium. That's milk in tablet form pretty much. Does the same trick.

Nighty night!

My daughter had the exact same problems when she was this age. I tried numerous things, too... baths, music, reading, etc. Yes, I do agree that hormones are the reason for this behavior. She often had leg cramps or "growing pains" at this age as well, which interrupted her sleep. The thing that worked the best... just letting her go to bed when she felt tired. I know that may be stressful to get her up in the morning, but after a few days, she will be tired enough at night, to go to bed by 9.

By the way, I am a single mom of a 12 year old who, still goes to bed after I do. :) Good luck

It sounds like the minute she relaxes, her brain starts working. Being really social then maybe she starts thinking about all the "stuff" that went on that day. Maybe you could have some girl talk time with her that you can help her work through some of the social issues she is facing so that she isn't doing it at bedtime. She may just need to be heard and get it out of her mind.

Also, is she in any sports? She may need some extra physical stimulation to counteract all of the social stimulation. It will help tire her out and things like running can work as meditation time (where the thoughts run along with the legs and she can work through all the social events of the day). The social stuff doesn't have to be bad, but just stuff that she is thinking about and remembering. If she isn't interested in anything offered by the school, maybe you can look into a community ed program or join a gym together, and run on the tread mills for some girl time. Just a few thoughts. Good luck.

Hi! I haven't read your other responses, but we have a 9 1/2 daughter, and also had problems falling asleep- sometimes it would take her forever as well. What we have done has been an awesome help: Since she is supposed to read daily for school anyway, we have her go to bed a 1/2 hour early and read in bed. It calms her brain down and helps her focus on only the story, and it makes her tired! She actually loves doing it, too, and literally gets upset if the reading time has to be cut short for some reason. Maybe this can help your daughter, too? Whatever you decide, I hope you can find the right solution for her...don't give up : o )

Got to the health food store (Whole foods or Good Foods) and get Melatonin. It is a natural chemical that our bodies produce to help you fall asleep. Have her take the recommended dose for a few nights. Then take a break to see if her body clock has learned the new cycle. Just give it to her long enough to get her to fall asleep at the appropriate time. Sometimes our body clock get out of wack - coming off of holidays, hormones, sickness, stress etc.

This supplament is only to be taken to get you back on track.

Hope that helps.

L.,
Hello :) Well I can't say from my own experience as I have two boys that are only 3 1/2 and 2... but my first thought after reading your request was that perhaps she is over-tired? Maybe she needs to go to bed earlier? That's really all I've got for you, but if it could potentially help, than I think it's worth trying. Good luck!

K. :)

My ten year old doesn't want to sleep either. So much to do and all that! He wakes up tired to. We have started a dietary supplement regimen for kids though that has made all of the difference in his energy! Not to mention the health benefits! We can't possibly give our kids enough food to meet their dietary needs for vitamins, etc.

If you want to know what we are doing, I'm happy to reply!

S.
____@____.com

Hi L. -

All three of my boys have sleep issues. I went to the health food store and found a suppliment called Melatonin. Our bodies naturally make Melatonin. It is very possible that with your daughters changing hormones that her body may not be making enough. My 7 year old (approx. 50lbs.) gets 2.5mg a night and my 14 year old (approx. 189lbs.) gets 5 mg at night to help them fall asleep. It comes in 1mg, 2.5mg, and 5mg tablets, in orange or peppermint flavors that you let melt under the tounge as you are laying down ready for bed. It works like a charm for my boys. Start with 1mg at a time and up the dose until you find what works for her. I know a neighbor 9 year old that takes 10mg a night, I think he's probably 85-90lbs. Everyone is different. I even occassionaly take it when I have a hard time falling asleep. It will help her calm and relax herself to get a good nights sleep.

I wish you the best - S.

I just wanted to say "who knew?" my 10 year old was having sleep issues and anxiety problems (we figured due to him sneaking in viewing of CSI while at his grandma's house - as he said...and he was worried about our house getting broken into and us all getting murdered (!) BUT perhaps there is more to it.) He is still having problems now though not as many as during the CSI time frame. Perhaps this is an age issue after all. Thank you to everyone for your suggestions. And thanks to you L. for asking a question I probably wouldn't have thought to ask.

Hi L.,

Have you tried just giving her some quite time around bed time? What has helped for us is my son is 9 yrs. old and he goes to bed at 9:30pm. So a half hour before bed, he goes in his bed and reads, draws, does activity books etc.. to help unwind his mind. Also we put a sound machine in his room and turn it on at that time with just a soft light, not the ceiling light. This really has helped, because he never wanted to go to sleep. This seemed to relax him and with the sound machine on thru the night really helped as well. I hope you can use some of this. Please, if any questions don't hesitate to email me.

S. S.
SAHM of the love of my life,son,9 yrs. old, oh and my husband(LOL) of 11 yrs.

What is she doing the 1 to 1/2 hours prior to bedtime? Stimulation such as tv, computer, video games, music, can make her brain stimulated, even if she appears not to be. In some people it takes up to 1 1/2 hours to bring the brain back to a normal activity. We do a quiet time prior to bedtime, where the only stimulation they are allowed is reading. I saw that some of the others have suggested melatonin, but please do your own research. As natural as it may be, there are side effects that you need to be informed of before giving it to her. She may also need more physical activity during the day. With a little trial and error, you will find a sleep routine that will work for all of you.

You could also try getting her to do some relaxation exersizes. Visualizing the "sleep" filling her body from the toes up, breathing deeply and thinking about feeling those parts fall asleep...
Reading is a great way to relax.
Try making it as dark as possible in her room for when she does go to sleep.

I would check with your pediatrician and ask how much melatonin you should start out with. It works like a charm with our hormonal girls (now 14 & 12) but I would refrain from buying it from a dollar store. A reputable health food or supplement store would be a better choice since you never know where the melatonin (or anything else for that matter) was manufactured. At the very least, your local grocery store or pharmacy would even be better choices than a dollar store for supplements. After all, even toothpaste has been recalled from dollar stores due to unhealthy additives found in some made in China.

Hi L.,

My 9 year old daughter is going through the same thing. She can't seem to settle down, relax, and go to sleep. We tried putting her to bed early, but it doesn't work. She can't wake up in the morning either. I do think this is a hormonal thing because she too is changing rapidly.
We try to keep the house activities calm and quiet about an hour before her bedtime. Sometimes she'll take a bath, come back out and we'll read together. I bought her the calming wash and lotion from the baby aisle, and she likes putting that on before bed too. Bath and Body works also has a sleep line now. It gives her some control over her own relaxation process too.
We noticed that she's getting a little more nervous about school too, though she's a good student. Keep communicating with your daughter about anything that could be causing some anxiety at school. 3rd and 4th grades start to get a little tougher this time of year. Your daughter may be fine during the day, but at night maybe all the stress of the day starts to get at her, much like it does for us too.
Say prayers with her before bed, give her something to hold, put a softer blanket near her face, sing to her, rub lotion on her hands and arms, tell her to envision relaxing thoughts in her mind,etc... Those are things we've done and seem to work.
If something works for her, please share it with me!
Thanks and happy snoozing.

When my daughter was that age she did the same thing. The doc said that they start puberty from age 8 to 15. She started having periods at 10

My 9 (almost 10) year old son has had issues falling asleep for years. Sometimes he is awake until midnight. 10 year olds have so much going on in their minds, find out if she has anything going on that may be causing some added anxiety/stress. I wouldn't change her bedtime. Maybe try a different routine leading up to it. My son reads before bed each night to help him wind-down, and usually has a small snack about a half hour before bed.
*We occasionally give him melatonin about an hour before bedtime.
Good luck!

Hi L.,

Our doctor also recommended Melatonin. We have been able to buy it at the dollar store and it has worked wonders for our daughter. Good luck!

what is she doing before bed??? too many exciting activities... watching tv...??

can she take a bath before bed??

how much caffiene does she get during the day?

Have you ever tried Melatonin? It is a natural substance you can get at any store. Our doctor recomended it for our son. Start with 1/2 a pill to see how it goes and go to a full pill if needed. He said to do it for about 2 weeks a 1/2 hour before bed time, then see what happens without it. It really works! There are still occasions when we will give it to our children on nights when they know they will have a hard time sleeping (especially after a time change). They will even ask us for it!

K.

hI L. - my 11-year-old has had trouble falling asleep for years. Sometimes he's okay - other times he's up and down the stairs, getting drinks etc. I have to say that I was exactly the same at her age - I remember laying in bed for hours and hours every night waiting for sleep. I think that the main thing is to reassure her that nothing terrible will happen if she can't sleep - she'll just be a bit tired. Of course warm milk or chamomile tea to take up to bed might help. ALso, is she an avid reader? My son is. Let her read a bit in bed. If she can't sleep, tell her not to stress and just read a bit more. I'm wondering if she's quite a bright kid - I think that affects sleep. Good luck - ALison

Hi, I have an 11 year old boy who had similar problems. He is very social too and I think bottom line that he didn't like to sleep in his room (should have been one of 10 and had to share a bed). Anyway I went to Whole foods and found out that Magnesium helps to relax the body. I know give him a small dose of magnesium about two hours before bed and that seems to help.

There are many good suggestions here. You may also want to try looking closley at her diet. Make sure to eliminate or cut back on foods that may have high estrogen levels such as processed cheese, non-organic milk and chicken. Also, make sure she does't have caffinated soda or chocolate at least 5 hours before bedtime. Instead of melatonin in the pill form, you might want to try natural sources for a bedtime snack. Along with walnuts, cherries are good food sources of melatonin. Melaronin is a bodily potent antioxidant produced in the pineal gland, which regulates the body's circadian rhythms and sleep patterns. Tart cherries contain 13.5 nanograms (ng) of melatonin per gram.
Prominent melatonin researcher Russel J. Reiter, Ph.D. of the University of Texas speculates that eating a handful of tart cherries may help increase melatonin levels in the blood, thereby promoting restful sleep.
If you do try the pill form make sure you start with a very low dose. Too much melatonin will cause nightmares and disturbed sleep patterns. You also may want to try lavender or chamomille essential oil in a diffuser or on her pillow.

I think, when we women get to Heaven, we will discover that hormones were responsible for most of our woes!

I read a alot in bed with a flashlight at this age, since I shared a room with 2 younger brothers. It was good growing-up time for me as I learned to take responsibility for myself a little better.

Hi L.,

I used to have the same issue when I was about that age too! I don't know the reason (if it was hormonal or not), I just remember lying awake for the longest time, then going out to the living room asking if I could watch tv because I just wasn't tired!

Somehow my parents came up with the idea of letting me read in bed. It definitely worked! I don't think they made me go to bed earlier in order for me to fit my reading in, but that can be up to you for your daughter. I wouldn't have to read long at all, maybe 10 minutes or so, and then I'd usually start to nod off to sleep.

To this day, reading still helps me sleep better. I wish you luck!

L.,

Two suggestions:

1 - try changing her evening routine. Watching TV or playing on the computer just before bed can cause the brain to wake up rather than calm down.

2 - you might consider purchasing a daylight alarm clock for her. Here is one option:
http://www.gadgetshack.com/sun-alarm-clock-radio-light-th... These clocks can be purchased for a variety of price options and at a variety of stores, after a bit of research you should be able to find one that works for your family and budget.

The big benefit for your situation - the clock can be set for a night-time option. The light starts out pretty bright and slowly dims over a period of time (20 minutes or so) and gives the body and brain a chance to transition from wakefullness to sleep.

I hope these suggestions help. Good luck!

-C..

i have a son that is 10 years. he has a hard time sleeping for a long time. i let him read for 30 min before lights out. he going in his room at 9. no tv, lays in bed with a book. he like because he thinks he is stay up pass his bed time. Now he has to read a book everynight before bed. and he has able to go to sleep everynight.

It could be the beginning of puberty. My daughter started her periods at 10. Also, make sure she isn't consuming a lot of caffeine or sugar. Those things could be keeping her up. Also, try a warm bath before bed. Good luck! :)

Do you have a routine for bedtime? I suggest gearing her towards bed a little earlier but letting her read for a while, listen to music etc....just something so her body and mind start gearing that it's time for bed. Also, the more relaxed she is the better she will be able to fall asleep. Does she snack before bed? Warm milk, or banana might help, high sugary foods would just give her energy.
Something else to consider, is something going on that is bothering her? She is at an age where girls are very mean to one another.
I was told in H.S. if you can't sleep, you lay on your back, very still don't move and try not to think of anything but laying still. Don't let the mind process wander. I have tried this and do fall asleep. Just a thought....

Dear L. M.,

My 12-year old granddaughter often has a fan going in her room. The sound helps her fall asleep. Her friend who is the same age has an even better idea; she has a little machine that plays the sounds of nature and water falls and my granddaughter told me she fell asleep very quickly even though she wanted to stay awake and talk to her friend when she spent the night on a school night. It won't blow out cold air while it runs like a fan does.

Hope this helps some.

L. C.