SLEEP EDUCATION

One of the first steps in improving children’s sleep is to understand typical sleep.

There are developmental changes in sleep patterns over our life span.
There is a gradual reduction in the amount of daily sleep from babies to older adults but considerable variation between individuals.
The sleep-wake pattern is a circadian rhythm that needs to be reset every 24 hours and linked to a neuro-hormone melatonin.
Sleep cycles through the night through the sleep stages of light and deep sleep (Non Rapid Eye Movement) and dreamsleep (Rapid Eye Movement).

Lack of adequate sleep impacts on our emotional wellbeing, learning, behaviour, sensory processing and physical co-ordination.
There are many factors related to the child, family and environment that can impact on sleep.

Providing Sleep Education to parents and carers may help to unravel a child’s sleep pattern and the factors influencing sleep.