Nightmares in children are frightening dreams that appear to be real. While the precise cause of nightmares is unknown, most nightmares have triggers like scary stories, scenes in TV shows, and stressful situations like pets dying.
The best way to help children overcome nightmares is to reduce the risk of nightmares rather than focusing on tackling a specific terror. It’s also helpful to talk to your child about monsters to know they are not real.
This article explores how you can help children overcome nightmares – we hope it gives you a few ideas to nip things in the bud. Let’s jump in!
Create a calm home environment
Firstly, creating a home environment that doesn’t make your child fearful, anxious, stressed, or embarrassed is crucial.
It’s essential to recognise that adult behaviours like shouting, arguing, and slamming doors can also cause children stress and alarm.
The calmer your home, the happier your child. Make efforts to keep things quiet and don’t do or say something that could make your kid fearful.
Create a bedtime routine
Many nightmares are from poor bedtime routines, with overtiredness and going to bed late increasing the risk of nightmares.
A bedtime routine is a wind-down routine that prepares your child for sleep, lowering their heart rate and helping them settle down.
We recommend starting your bedtime routine an hour before bedtime. Here are some of the activities you can do:
Slip into pyjamas
Have a bath
Turn off the TV/tablet*
Build things
Paint and draw
Read stories and books
*This is a crucial step. Studies show that the blue light from devices decreases the production of the sleep hormone melatonin.
Snuggle with your child until they drift off
Pictured: A parent with daughter snuggling.
Sometimes, nightmares are borne from insecurity. You can make your child feel secure by going to bed with them and staying there until they drift off – every parent has experience with this from putting toddlers to bed. Snuggling with your child also eliminates fears about their bedroom, such as things lurking under the bed.
Help children overcome nightmares by easing your child’s worries
There are several things you can do to ease your child’s worries:
Put a night light in their bedroom
Tell happy stories before bedtime
Reassure your child about monsters and scary things
Give your child a cuddly protective toy
Remove TV shows and apps that cause alarm
Leave their bedroom door open an inch with the landing light on
Help children overcome nightmares by promoting better sleep
Dreams and nightmares occur during REM sleep, which happens about an hour and a half after drifting off. Broken and disrupted sleep can cause a REM imbalance, making dreams and nightmares more vivid and real.
To promote better sleep, we recommend the following:
Buying a mattress that your child finds super-comfortable – check out our range of children’s mattresses for ideas.
Banning chocolate, sweets, and other sources of refined sugar (including yogurt) two hours before bedtime.
Removing electronic devices from your child an hour before bedtime so that blue light does not interrupt melatonin production.
Have a wind-down routine where you manage activities – banish boisterous playing and games that make your children giddy.
Pictured: Child with a bowl of sweets. It’s not advisable for children to eat sugary snacks just before bedtime, as this can lead to a sudden spike in their energy levels. It prevents restful sleep.
Summing up
You can usually link nightmares to fears, anxieties, and other emotions like anger, sadness, and embarrassment. Nightmares are more likely when children are stressed and overtired, which is why a calm bedtime is so important.
While most nightmares are one-offs – leaving you perplexed more than anything else – other times, they can be frequent. You should speak to your GP if your child has nightmares more than twice weekly.
The good news is that most children grow out of nightmares over time, so if you do anything else, the best thing you can do is wait it out.
