Myth: Kids don’t sleep. Wrong. Myth: Poor sleep is normal. Wrong. Myth: You’re a bad parent because your kid isn’t sleeping. Wrong.
So what is normal and good when it comes to kids and sleep?
Here’s the DownLow…
Occasional sleep issues in kids is good. Even healthy. It’s a signal to us that their life is stressful and we need to help their life chill out so their bodies can relax and allow their brain to calm down.
That being said – trouble falling asleep or trouble staying asleep that persists over a long period of time – is not normal.
It shows us that a child’s brain is not able to relax and calm down enough to allow them to rest and rejuvenate to grow and develop in a healthy way.
Do you feel like you’ve tried everything you know to help your child sleep and still?
You’ve changed their diets. You’ve tried different bedtimes. No screens before bedtime. Lavender oil in the diffuser. Long walks before bed…and evening still ends up with a lot of yelling.
Your child still has trouble falling asleep, or once they’re asleep, they have trouble staying asleep… Which means you’re not getting sleep either.
You’ve probably seen behavior outbursts as well. (Totally not fun!)
So what is actually happening?
The human brain only responds by information coming into it. The systems in the body give information to the brain. The brain then uses that information to send instructions to the body.
Your child’s sensory system could be irritated from their nervous system being ‘out of whack’ so to speak.
If that’s the case, then the information the sensory system is feeding their brain – is irritated.
If the information coming in is irritated, your child is not going to sleep well.
The #1 thing you need to do is get their sensory system checked.
How do you know if your child’s sensory system is irritated?
Good news – we have the technology in our office to test your child’s sensory system. It’s simple, painless, and empowering.
The science behind what could be going on in your child’s sensory system…
Many children that we see in our office come in for reasons such as ADHD, trouble focusing, ear infections, developmental delays, etc. Then low and behold, mom and dad reveal that yes, the child has trouble falling asleep and staying asleep.
Once scanned, we find almost all of them are in a sympathetic dominant mode of their Autonomic Nervous System which is feeding their brain high-alert-irritated information.
When the body is in a sympathetic dominant state, it’s in survival mode – on high alert – so it’s not possible to fall asleep. Not your child’s fault, just the state their body is in – and it’s out of their (and your) control without professional guidance.
A little known remedy for sleep for children is pediatric chiropractic.
Pediatric chiropractic care isn’t about bad backs or headaches. It’s about the function of the autonomic nervous system.
The Parasympathetic Nervous System is where rest, healing, growth, and development takes place…and first we have to get it functioning properly.
Pediatric Chiropractic care calms the Sympathetic Nervous System (the sympathetic/gas pedal/protective/fight/flight mode) and stimulates the Parasympathetic Nervous System (the brake pedal/calming/safety/relax and grow mode).
Nine times out of ten your child will begin to sleep like a charm.
Schedule a nervous system evaluation for your child today by calling our office at 402-915-0846 or request an appointment by clicking here.