Contents:
- Medical Video: Sleep Hypnosis for Calming An Overactive Mind
- Why do children have nightmares?
- Soothe a nightmare child
- 1. Accompany the child
- 2. Understand his fear
- 3. Ask the child to tell about his nightmare
- 4. Ward off nightmares
- 5. Creating a safe and calm atmosphere
- 6. Divert children's fears
- 7. Promising pleasant things in the morning
Medical Video: Sleep Hypnosis for Calming An Overactive Mind
Nightmares can happen to anyone. In children, nightmares usually begin to appear at the age of 3 years. When children have nightmares, usually they will find it difficult to sleep again. Either because they don't want the dream to happen again or because they are too scared and tense to fall asleep. If this happens, you and your partner need to apply a special method so that the baby can calm down. Please check the following smart tricks.
Why do children have nightmares?
There are various reasons why children have nightmares. For example that day the child just heard a scary story, experienced a scary event such as missing a shopping mall, being sick, or if a child was worried about something.
Nightmares experienced by children are also usually very influenced by the stage of their development at that time. For example, children under the age of five (toddlers) often dream of separating from their parents. While school-age children often dream about death, dangerous situations, or horror movie scenes he has ever watched.
READ ALSO: Nightmares During High Fever? This is the cause
Nightmares arise when the child is in the deepest stage of sleep, that is rapid eye movement or REM. A truly creepy dream will cause him to wake up suddenly. If your child is still very small, he will have difficulty distinguishing dreams and reality. This is what makes children become hysterical or overly anxious. However, even in 10-year-olds who have been able to distinguish dreams and reality even fear that appears is not playful.
READ ALSO: From Wet Dreams to Dreams Falling to a Chasm: Why Do We Dream?
Soothe a nightmare child
If a child has a nightmare until he wakes up and is frightened, don't be taken for granted. You need to accompany and help your child calm down. Pay attention to the various tricks below.
1. Accompany the child
Whatever the age of your baby, immediately accompany if the child dreams until he wakes up. If you do not sleep in a room or room with a child, approach and sit next to him. You can hug or rub the child gently until he is calm enough. Make sure that the child knows he has been awakened and the things that happen in his dream are not real.
Be careful if the child asks to sleep in your room or bed. Once left alone, the child will repeat this habit. It's best to keep your child in bed until he is asleep or sleepy on his own bed. That way, you give him the opportunity to learn to be a brave person while showing him that nightmares are a common thing.
READ ALSO: 8 Tricks Getting Children to Sleep in Their Own Room
2. Understand his fear
However, that does not mean you can underestimate the fear felt by children. Show that you understand his feelings by saying, "Father / Mother know you are very scared. Bro, you sweat so much. Now change clothes first, let's go. "You also need to convince the child that his dream is not real by saying," Wow, how scary your dream is, son. But you know that in reality Father and Mother can't possibly leave you alone in the forest? "
3. Ask the child to tell about his nightmare
Sometimes, expressing nightmares that have been experienced can help children feel better. No need to tell at length, just an outline. After that, you and your child can discuss their nightmares further in the morning. So that children feel more confident, you can invite children to concoct themselves the end of the scary story. For example, children will get a magic sword that can defeat monsters that chase children in their dreams.
4. Ward off nightmares
Create spells or tricks to ward off nightmares with children. For example, if a child has a nightmare and wakes up, teach the child to turn over his pillow so that the nightmare that has appeared can be buried under his pillow. Another way is to ask for help with puppets, toys, or children's pets just in case he sleeps. Tell the child, "Look, Father / Mother have asked the bear for help to drive away your nightmare. If you have a nightmare, then the bear will still accompany you. So you don't need to be afraid anymore. "
5. Creating a safe and calm atmosphere
Children may have trouble sleeping again after having a bad dream. For that, make sure the child feels safe and calm in his bed. If the child asks for the lights to turn on, you can turn on the light that is soft. You can also open the door a little and convince the child that you will return to the child's room to check the situation in a few moments.
6. Divert children's fears
Sometimes, nightmares can frighten him to death. So, divert children's attention by discussing pleasant things. For example funny stories when you and your family vacation or fun events that have just been experienced by children. If it doesn't work, you can tell short, entertaining stories.
READ ALSO: 'Poorness' When Sleeping? This is the Medical Explanation
7. Promising pleasant things in the morning
When a child dreams badly, he may be afraid to sleep again even though he is tired and sleepy. So that children want to sleep quickly, you can promise interesting things in the morning. For example watching his favorite movie or preparing the breakfast menu he likes the most. It can also help children focus on positive things in the morning, not on their nightmares. When the morning arrives, don't forget to praise the courage of the child who made it through his nightmare.
