How to prevent night terrors in young children?

[OccamzRazer]

A 4 year old child in my family is experiencing frequent night terrors.

I'm thinking the following things will help:

- Ample activity during the day
- Magnesium before bed
- CBD oil before bed
- Yoga/movement routine before bed
- Blue blocking lenses/no videos before bed
- Ample sugar before bed (for glycogen stores)


What else can I do to help?? Anything else work for you guys, specifically when it comes to children?

 

[Rinse & rePeat]

My list would be ample sunshine, raw honey before bed, no video games, and no heavy meals 4+ hours before bed time. I always have fitful sleep with heavy food in my stomach when I sleep. Maybe play some soothing music at bedtime. They have tapes available for children just for that. My kids grew up on them.

 

[Rasaari]

reducing serotonin/intestinal irritation

 

[InChristAlone]

Don't sleep on back, keep mouth shut.

 

[Nebula]

Spicey food gave me nightmares as a kid. I think I’ve become more sensitive to it since Peating for years avoiding gut irritants and something hot and spicey gives me nightmarish dreams again. I bet kids respond really well to magnesium with their high T3 and ATP. I wish I knew about it growing up. Maybe right before bed might not be the best time as it can induce vivid dreams.

Since little kids have trouble swallowing pills maybe magnesium bicarbonate water would be a good choice.

 

[puckett33]

My daughter went through night terrors as well. I started noticing that she actually didn't have them anymore on the nights that I gave her ice cream before bed, and so I kept that up and she basically stopped having them.
I am reasonably certain that the ice cream played a big factor in stopping her night terrors, because she would continue to have night terrors and sleepwalk at her Mom's house (her parents are separated so she has two homes) on nights when she didn't have ice cream.
There's really something to Ray Peat's suggestion to have something like ice cream to sleep better.

 

[OccamzRazer]

My list would be ample sunshine, raw honey before bed, no video games, and no heavy meals 4+ hours before bed time. I always have fitful sleep with heavy food in my stomach when I sleep. Maybe play some soothing music at bedtime. They have tapes available for children just for that. My kids grew up on them.

Thank you Rinse! Good idea with the music too.

 

[OccamzRazer]

reducing serotonin/intestinal irritation

I'm familiar with this concept...any specific pointers on how to go about it?

 

[TobyBjorn]

Hammock sleeping works wonders for many; something about the rocking can help a lot, and of course having the head, torso, and feet raised slightly is beneficial in the long run. In young children nightmares can often be induced by unresolvable social conflict with adults; that can be much harder to solve. But a campfire with friends and the sound of a whippoorwill at night has cured many.
Some of these factors from my healing journey in my youth have been able to stick with me into adulthood in the city.
Hammocks, red light / fire, plants and birdsong.

 

[redsun]

A 4 year old child in my family is experiencing frequent night terrors.

I'm thinking the following things will help:

- Ample activity during the day
- Magnesium before bed
- CBD oil before bed
- Yoga/movement routine before bed
- Blue blocking lenses/no videos before bed
- Ample sugar before bed (for glycogen stores)


What else can I do to help?? Anything else work for you guys, specifically when it comes to children?

Probably doesnt need anything fancy, just a good meal with enough carbs before bed. This is more likely to happen if the child is quite active or doesnt eat much before bed. Liver glycogen is already low before bed but they are tired and sleep easily. Then you get a spike in adrenaline and other stress hormones triggering night terrors.

Adults can get them if they are super active (mentally or physically or both) right before bed for hours and go to bed without replenishing glycogen.

 

[Peachy]

Sorry, that’s tough. Sometimes that can be a sensory issue. Skin brushing helped my 4-yr old start sleeping through the night. You can read up on Wilbager Therapy. I attached a link to brushes.

Wilbarger Therapy Brush, 2 Pack – Therapressure Brush for Occupational Therapy for Sensory Brushing – Designed by Patricia Wilbarger – Use as Part of the Wilbarger Brushing Protocol Amazon product ASIN B0041MWDMGView: https://www.amazon.com/dp/B0041MWDMG/ref=cm_sw_r_cp_api_glt_fabc_48F4SQ0AV80X3S79PT99

 

[StephanF]

I posted this before regarding ‘earth energies’ and bad bed locations:


Post in thread 'Please Help My Poor Suffering Little Sister! So Sadddd!'
Please Help My Poor Suffering Little Sister! So Sadddd!

 

[Risingfire]

Reduce adrenaline.

 

[youngsinatra]

Endotoxins usually wake me up with pounding heart and nightmares.

 

[Peatness]

I would keep a food diary and find out what might be irritating the gut. Carrot salad during the day and plenty of sugar before bed (By sugar I mean the usual hotmilk/honey/sugar/orange juice).

 

[YourUniverse]

LOTS of carbs

 

[onesunnydaize]

A 4 year old child in my family is experiencing frequent night terrors.

I'm thinking the following things will help:

- Ample activity during the day
- Magnesium before bed
- CBD oil before bed
- Yoga/movement routine before bed
- Blue blocking lenses/no videos before bed
- Ample sugar before bed (for glycogen stores)


What else can I do to help?? Anything else work for you guys, specifically when it comes to children?

My daughter had night terrors until she was almost 13. It was almost a nightly event. She slept with me every single night until she was over them. It was heartbreaking.

I tried many things to help her, magnesium, CBD, yoga every night before bed, blue blockers, red light, raising the head of the bed, acupuncture, lots of daily activity. We also eliminated gluten and dairy (which worked for other things) food diary with elimination diet, many other dietary interventions. I could list many, many more things that have been mentioned already and that have not. Some did help a bit in frequency of them, or worked temporarily.

The only thing that reversed them completely was a heavy metal detox. She started on it and by the end of the week they were not happening anymore. I stopped the detox temporarily after two months and she had terrors again I kept it on her a total of a year. I gave her a higher dose than recommended. She has been off for almost 3 years now and no more terrors and so many of her issues were removed.

 

[ursidae]

My daughter had night terrors until she was almost 13. It was almost a nightly event. She slept with me every single night until she was over them. It was heartbreaking.

I tried many things to help her, magnesium, CBD, yoga every night before bed, blue blockers, red light, raising the head of the bed, acupuncture, lots of daily activity. We also eliminated gluten and dairy (which worked for other things) food diary with elimination diet, many other dietary interventions. I could list many, many more things that have been mentioned already and that have not. Some did help a bit in frequency of them, or worked temporarily.

The only thing that reversed them completely was a heavy metal detox. She started on it and by the end of the week they were not happening anymore. I stopped the detox temporarily after two months and she had terrors again I kept it on her a total of a year. I gave her a higher dose than recommended. She has been off for almost 3 years now and no more terrors and so many of her issues were removed.

What was the protocol?

 

[InChristAlone]

My daughter had night terrors until she was almost 13. It was almost a nightly event. She slept with me every single night until she was over them. It was heartbreaking.

I tried many things to help her, magnesium, CBD, yoga every night before bed, blue blockers, red light, raising the head of the bed, acupuncture, lots of daily activity. We also eliminated gluten and dairy (which worked for other things) food diary with elimination diet, many other dietary interventions. I could list many, many more things that have been mentioned already and that have not. Some did help a bit in frequency of them, or worked temporarily.

The only thing that reversed them completely was a heavy metal detox. She started on it and by the end of the week they were not happening anymore. I stopped the detox temporarily after two months and she had terrors again I kept it on her a total of a year. I gave her a higher dose than recommended. She has been off for almost 3 years now and no more terrors and so many of her issues were removed.

What did she take for the detox?

 

[Beastmode]

A 4 year old child in my family is experiencing frequent night terrors.

I'm thinking the following things will help:

- Ample activity during the day
- Magnesium before bed
- CBD oil before bed
- Yoga/movement routine before bed
- Blue blocking lenses/no videos before bed
- Ample sugar before bed (for glycogen stores)


What else can I do to help?? Anything else work for you guys, specifically when it comes to children?

Possibly the most important, in our experience, is salt.

I don't think toddlers have much a problem storing glucose at night. However, salty foods/snacks before bed can keep the stress hormones down quite predictably.

Our 4 year old has salty gelatinous broth every night for dinner made from chicken feet. Sometimes oxtail soup, but chicken feet is her favorite taste wise.

I've suggested this for many parents and all have said giving them salty foods/snacks at night was the biggest help for their little ones.