My son who is 8 is still awake as usual, it's 11:10 pm for Pete's sake !!! We go through this every night.

Question

My husband gets up at 3:00 am to go to work. If he gets woken he YELLs loud enough to wake the other child who does sleep normal hours. He says he can't help it when he's in daze, he's otherwise normal in the daytime. It puts me in a position as to limited actions. I am getting pretty tired of staying up till my son passes out around midnight every night trying to be quiet and not wake my husband, YAWN I get tired of it. I fear to fall asleep before my son because he has been known to sneak up and cook or make toast. I feel this is a danger to us all in the household, especially since he started a fire putting a paper bowl in the toaster oven last month. It was a good thing I was awake and smelled it before it got out of control. My son has ADHD and has trouble calming down and going to sleep, he is disciplined for his actions but keeps repeating them despite the punishments. Any suggestions?

I'm really drained and I wanna go to sleep!

Answer 1

Try warm milk with milo or something in it .I believe it has a calming effect. In respect of your worry about toaster etc. Try placing them in a child proof cupboard so he is unable to reach or touch them.The stove may be a problem perhaps a metal cover over this with a padlock.I appreciate your worry as it cant be easy. Are you able to sleep during the day when he is at school ,if not how about sleeping with him for a while and see if this works. Good Luck

Answer 2

Your son has a disorder that he can't control...his late nights are not his fault.  You need to get this through your husband's obviously thick head.  If you can't tell your husband to pack a bag and move to a motel.

Answer 3

they say warm milk can cause a person to become sleepy?  getting the child to like it or drink it is another story.

maybe you could start an "exercise" program with your son every day before supper?  if you have a pet dog, perhaps you and your son could take the dog (or yourselves if you have no dog) for a 20 minute walk every afternoon or early evening? im not sure if this would help, but it's a suggestion.

what does the doctor say?  just curious.

my sons didn't have adhd, but my younger son did not go to sleep before 10 or 10:30 even when he was eight or nine years old... he got up and went to school, didn't fall to sleep in school, either.  He just didn't need that much sleep?  I still made him go to bed at 9 or 9:30, but he'd be awake, nonetheless.

as for your son going into the kitchen late to fix food, maybe you could put a baby monitor in the kitchen?  that way, if someone is in the kitchen, you can hear what's going on.

i wish i had a miracle answer!  i hope you get some good help here.

Answer 4

I feel for your husband because my husband also has to get up at 3 am every day. I have a 10 yr old who I have had bedtime problems with in the past. He has also had hyperactivity problems when he was smaller and we had thankfully refused to take him to a doctor at that time and found that his behavior problems were easily controlled with a low sugar diet and a strict routine. Does your son have a regular bedtime routine and bedtime? A warm relaxing bath is usually helpful and maybe chamomile tea if he will drink it. Also items like tv, video games, and the computer can be overstimulating if too close to bedtime.We like to play Uno or we read a book aloud to have some family time before bed. I have noticed sometimes that my son acts up simply because he wants attention. Those are really important and so is physical activity. A walk after dinner could be good for the whole family as someone else mentioned. Another idea is waking him up an hour or two earlier than normal so that he will hopefully p**p out earlier. Good luck and don't give in!

Answer 5

try natural remedy called melatonin. This is something our body makes to help us sleep.

I give 3mg to my daughter. She is 9 and can't sleep well either.

She goes to bed at 9:30 and if she doesn't take the med she will be up at 12am.

I give it to her 30 before bedtime, she is ready to go to sleep.

Answer 6

a glass of milk before bedtime might help him fall asleep. Let him read in bed for a little while, it will calm him down and before he knows it he will be tired and fall asleep. will music calm him down? put on some slow calming songs, not anything fun and energetic because that might make him excited!

Answer 7

If he has ADHD there's not much you can do for now except

continue to punish and explain to him why he's being punished and the reasons he's not supposed to use the cooking utilities. Over time it will sink in as he gets older,but

for now all you can do is hang in there.

Answer 8

Have you looked into melatonin.  It's a natural hormone which many kids with ASD or ADHD are lacking.

Or valarian which is a herb that acts in a similar way to sleeping tablets.

Answer 9

Does your child take meds?  Some of them cause a rebound effect that make it hard for a child to sleep.  This is a common side effect.  If he is on meds could you try pulling him from the meds during the summer?  It make take a few weeks for the meds to clear his system and you could see what schedule works for him.  

Is there any way hubby could sleep with a white noise machine (a radio that plays a sound like a waterfall, etc) so he would be less sensitive to noise?  

Also, you can't control when someone falls asleep but you can set limits on what they do when awake.  Sonny cannot make so much noise that he wakes hubby.  He cannot leave his room.  

Is there any way you can put a lock on the kitchen door (even if you have to drill a hole in it.  At least you can sleep.) You lock it and keep the key when you go to bed.  Locking his room, is, of course, unsafe.  ADHD children may not be able to control their energy enough to fall asleep but they can follow rules.  I have taught many of them over the years, usually not on meds and I don't like having children on meds, and they can learn rules and follow them when the stakes for breaking them are high enough.  

You need to get some sleep.  I know during the school year between preparing everything for the next day etc I don't get enough sleep and sometimes I just can't take it.  You need to find a way to get some sleep.  

Also, make sure you wake kiddo up EARLY every morning even though that is going to be hard for you as you are sleep deprived.  Is there anyway, it being summer, that you could hire a sitter for a couple hours  a few days a week to get some shut eye?  Then you would be rested enough to get sonny up early and hopefully set a better schedule for him.  

Make sure, too, that he gets lots of outdoor time.  Even if your housework goes to pot and you eat quick dinners for week, get out to the park, hikes, bike rides etc, for a good few hours per day.  Make them play in the yard.  Fresh air often tires them out.

Answer 10

If he has Adhd then punishing is not really going to work. They just cant control it. My daughter has adhd and also has been a horrible sleeper. She takes a pill at bedtime called clonidine and she is usually asleep in 20 min. I suffered through this same problem for 6 years. I did not want to medicate my child but in the long run this is what is best for her. she would be awake until 12 or 1 in the morning sometimes later then have to get up at 7 for school. she slept during class because she was so tired. If you dont want to try anything like that then i dont know what to tell you

Answer 11

I know a lot of people will disagree but my 8 yr old does not always fall to sleep easily either but I found if he lays in his room with the TV on he falls a sleep faster, I told him if he ever got up after bed time he would not be able to watch TV at night any more.I think getting up to fix something to eat is out of boredom so maybe the TV will prevent that.I know TV is not good all the time but for your sake and your piece of mind i would try it.you need to take care of yourself also.

Answer 12

Try to give him some sleeping tablets after he has dinner.

When you send him to bed he will dose of.