Schoolgirl: how to sleep to sleep?

Often a child can learn worse and feel worse when elementary ... Does not get enough sleep. Even if you put your student to bed at exactly 22.00, he still can not sleep well. The reasons for a schoolchild's bad sleep can be different - an incorrectly placed pillow, an insufficiently ventilated room, the apartment is too hot or too cold ... There are many other reasons that prevent a schoolboy from getting enough sleep to be healthy. Our tips will help you to optimize the night rest of the schoolboy so that he is full of energy throughout the day.

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The secret of a good night's sleep every night

What works for some children may not work for others. It is important to find strategies for a healthy schoolchild's sleep, which will be good for him. The first step to improving the quality of the student's rest is to find out how many hours he needs to sleep. Junior students must sleep up to 10 hours every night, middle-aged students - up to 9 hours, and teenagers - at least 8 hours. Then they will have time to recover after a day of study.

Tip # 1: Observe a regular sleep schedule

A constant sleep regime is one of the most important strategies for achieving a good rest. If a child follows a regular sleep schedule, goes to bed every day and gets up at the same time, he will feel much fresher than if he sleeps for as many hours, but at different times. This works even if you change the sleep schedule only for an hour or two.

How to go to bed on time? Let the child go to bed every night at the same time. Try not to break this procedure on weekends, when it is so tempting to stay up late and get up late. If you need to change the sleep schedule of the child, help the body to adjust these habits by making changes to daily changes, for example, every day, put the child 15 minutes earlier.

Let the schoolboy wake up at the same time every day. If the child sleeps enough, he will wake up without an alarm. If a child needs an alarm clock to wake up on time, maybe he needs to go to bed earlier than before. Try to maintain this tradition even on weekends.

How to make up for a lost dream. Completely lost sleep can not be restored, but rest to the child does not hurt. To do this, you need to put him to sleep after class, but not late, but for a maximum of half an hour-hour. This strategy allows you to extinguish the "duty" of sleep, without violating the natural rhythm of the student's life.

How to deal with drowsiness after lunch? If the child says that he wants to sleep, you need to gently stimulate him to avoid falling asleep. Instruct him to wash dishes, prepare clothes for the next day, or let him just run outside. If a child succumbs to drowsiness during the day and sleeps 3-4 hours after school, he may not sleep at night.

Optimal mode of sleep for the student

You need to choose a time period (a week or two, for example, during the holidays), when you can freely experiment with various modes of sleep and wakefulness of your child-schoolboy. Let him go to bed at the same time every night, and sleep until he wakes up on his own. At this time, turn off the alarm. If a child sleeps badly, recovery may take several weeks. But, if the child goes to bed and wakes up at the same time, eventually he will adjust to the natural sleep mode.

Council number 2. It is necessary to regulate naturally the sleep-wake cycle

Melatonin is a natural hormone that helps regulate a schoolchild's sleep-wake cycle. The production of melatonin largely depends on the lighting. The brain should give out more melatonin in the evening, when it gets dark, so that the schoolboy sleeps, and less during the day when the schoolboy perceives a bright light, then he is awake. Nevertheless, many aspects of modern life can disrupt the natural perception of melatonin by the body and with it the sleep-wake cycle.

A long day in a classroom with natural light, for example, can affect the daytime awake of a schoolboy and his brain turns to sleep. A bright light at night, especially in front of a television or computer screen, can suppress the production of melatonin by the body, and sleep also does not want. However, there are ways to naturally regulate the sleep-wake cycle, increase the production of melatonin and follow a healthy schedule.

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Increase in illumination during the day

Let the schoolchild spend more time outdoors during the daytime. Let him be on the street, when there is sunlight, let him do physical exercises in the street, walk around the dog during the day, and not at night.

Let as much light into your house. Keep the curtains and blinds open during the day, move the table closer to the window.

If necessary, use light therapy. Fluorescent lamps can simulate sunlight and will be especially useful during short winter days when daylight is limited.

Increase the production of melatonin at night

Turn off the TV and computer before going to bed. Many parents include a child with a TV so that they can fall asleep or relax at the end of the day. But this is a mistake: not only does light suppress the production of melatonin, but television also stimulates the student's brain, and does not relax it. Try to let the child listen to music or audiobooks instead of watching television before going to bed, or practicing relaxation exercises.

Do not allow the child to read at night with a backlight (for example, with an Ipad). If you allow a student to use a portable electronic device for reading, let it be a better book that requires an additional light source, for example, a bedside lamp.

Check the light bulbs. Avoid bright light before the child goes to bed. Instead of bright lamps, use low power lamps.

When it's time to sleep, make sure the baby's room is dark. The darker in the bedroom, the better the baby will sleep. Use heavy curtains to block the light from the window or try to offer the baby a mask for the eyes.

Put a flashlight at the child's pillow so that he can go to the bathroom at night. And before that reduce the light in all rooms to a minimum - so the baby will be easier to fall asleep.

Tip # 3: Create a relaxed environment before bedtime

If you constantly care that the child rests and relaxes before going to sleep, he will fall asleep more quickly and sleep calmer. The peaceful atmosphere before going to sleep sends a powerful signal to the child's brain that it's time to calm down and let go of the stresses of the day.

Make the child's bedroom suitable for sleeping

As much as possible, eliminate noise in the house. If you can not avoid noise (barking dogs, loud screams of neighbors, city traffic), or other people in your family make noise, try to mask it with a fan, let the child listen to records of soothing sounds, for example, the sound of the sea. Ear plugs in the child's ears can also help him get rid of unnecessary noise before going to bed.

Keep the temperature in the room cool. The temperature in the child's bedroom also affects their sleep. Most people sleep better in a slightly cool room (about 18 ° C) with good ventilation. A bedroom that is too hot or too cold can interfere with the quality of the student's sleep.

Make sure the baby's bed is comfortable. He should have enough room to stretch out and sleep well. If a schoolboy often wakes up with pain in the back or neck, parents will be better off to spend on a new mattress or try another pillow. Experiment with different levels of mattress hardness, a pillow, which will provide extra comfort to the child.

You can not use a bed for food or games

If a child connects his bed to other events other than sleep - for example, with games or food, it will be more difficult for him to fall asleep. Thus, when a child goes to bed, his body receives a powerful impulse: it's time to fall asleep.

Relaxing rituals for sleeping

1. Read a book or magazine in a soft light
2. Take a warm bath before going to bed
3. Listen to pleasant music
4. Make some simple relaxing exercises
5. Doing your favorite hobby
6. Listen to audiobooks

Tip # 4. Let the schoolboy eat properly and do regular exercise

Healthy diet and exercise play an important role in how well the schoolchild sleeps. It is especially important that the child eats for several hours before bedtime.

A schoolboy can not eat at night. Let him eat at the beginning of the evening, this will help him avoid heavy foods for two hours before sleeping. Oily foods overuse the schoolchild's digestive system. Also be careful when it comes to acute or acidic foods in the evening, as they can cause stomach problems in the schoolboy and heartburn.

Let the child not drink a lot of fluids before going to bed. A large amount of fluid reduces the quality of the student's sleep, as it overflows his bladder. To avoid this effect, it is better not to drink more than 1 glass of milk for several hours before bedtime.

Let the child reduce caffeine consumption. You may be surprised to learn that caffeine can cause sleep problems if you drink it after 11.50! A schoolboy should not drink caffeine in the afternoon.

If the student wants to eat before bedtime

For some children, a light snack before bedtime can help to fall asleep. Then the child eats vegetables or fruits with carbohydrates, it can help calm the brain and sleep better. When other children eat before going to bed, it can lead to poor digestion and make it difficult to sleep. You need to experiment with the child's eating habits to determine the optimal menu for dinner. If a child needs a snack before bedtime, for a couple of hours before going to bed, try to give him:

1. A small piece of white meat
2. A small plate of whole-grain cereal with low sugar content
3. A glass of low-fat milk or yogurt
4. Banana

A child sleeps more deeply if he regularly plays sports. It's not necessary to be a sports star to sleep well, only twenty to thirty minutes of everyday sports can help you sleep well. Let the child go for a walk, ride a bicycle along the street or work out on an exercise bike.

Some parents prefer to do exercises with the child in the morning or in the afternoon, this can stimulate the schoolchild's organism, increasing its energy. Relaxing exercises, such as yoga or a little stretching, can improve a child's sleep.

Tip # 5: Reduce the level of child stress

Some children are unable to sleep or wake up every night. Stress, restlessness before going to sleep can make the process of falling asleep very difficult. When a child wakes up at night and can not fall asleep, perhaps he will need the help of a psychologist.

Relaxation techniques for restful sleep

Relaxation is a very good method for those who want to sleep peacefully. Practice of relaxation before going to bed is a great way to calm the mind and prepare the body for sleep. Some simple relaxation methods include

Deep breathing. Let the child close his eyes and take a deep, slow breath, making each next breath deeper than the previous one.

Muscle relaxation. Do your child a massage, starting with the toes, this will help him to completely relax.

Let the child present before the sleep a peaceful, peaceful place. Let the child close his eyes before going to sleep and imagine the places or activities that soothe him. Let the child concentrate on how to get to this place. So he will fall asleep more quickly.

Tip # 6. Find the most favorable opportunities to fall asleep.

If a child wakes up during the night and has trouble falling asleep, the following tips can help.

Teach your child to use visualization. If you find that it is difficult for a child to fall asleep, teach him to use relaxation techniques, visualization, deep breathing, or meditation without even getting out of bed. This is not a replacement for sleep, but it helps to prepare for it.

Let the child avoid anxious thoughts before going to sleep and difficult tasks. If the child is worried about something in the evening, ask him to postpone it the next day in the morning, but for now let them write down these tasks briefly and put them on the nightstand. Tomorrow he will be able to solve them more productively.

It is worth worrying about the correct dream of the schoolboy and contacting the doctor for help if you observe at least one of the following symptoms.

• Persistent daytime sleepiness or fatigue
• Loud snoring, which is accompanied by pauses in breathing
• Difficulty falling asleep or sleeping
• A dream, after which the schoolboy wakes up tired and broken
• Frequent headaches in the morning
• Feeling numbness in hands or feet at night
• Inability to move while falling asleep or waking up
• Difficulties with falling asleep

All these tips will help your student to sleep so that they can get enough sleep and be a healthy, energetic child.