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Night Terrors
When Kids Go Bump in the Night
By Teri Cooper Brown
In adults and children older than 6, the train travels very smoothly up and down the hills, moving in and out of deep and light sleep all night. But a preschooler's train is not as experienced, so the trip is not as smooth. It easily rolls downhill into deep sleep, but it has trouble returning to the light sleep area at the top of the next hill. So young children may get stuck halfway up the hill, or halfway between deep and light sleep. This is when night terrors and other sleep disorders occur.
During a night terror, parents may be as frightened as the child because the child's behavior may be bizarre or even spooky. As the terror begins, the child, who is sound asleep, suddenly sits up or stands up out of the bed and begins to scream or call out for help. If Mom or Dad tries to talk, the child will not respond, though she or he may shout one or two words to try to get rid of the thing that is frightening them. The child's eyes are open very wide and the pupils are dilated. The child seems to be looking at the parents, but will not interact with them.
According to Dr. Irdeb, "A child in sleep terror has seen something terrifying in a dream, and uses semi-purposeful movements to deal with their intense fear. Because movements may include kicking, waving arms or punching the air with fists, it is necessary for parents to remove an object that may harm the child or siblings."
