Night Terrors - What is going on?

Night terrors can be scary for both toddler and parent. These sleep episodes are fairly rare and affect only a small percentage of children and are characterized by crying, flailing, whimpering, screaming or even bolting out of the bed. Even when their eyes are open, they are not awake. Night terrors usually start at the age of about four, however, they can start as early as 9 months and go into early adolescence.


It’s hard to know what to do when this is happening to your child. Your first instinct will be to comfort them however, they won’t respond since they are asleep. It’s best to just stay with them and make sure they don’t hurt themselves. The episode should pass fairly quickly; most last between 15 to 20 minutes, and your child should go back to sleep. The good news is, they won’t remember it in the morning.

There are a few things you can try to head off these night terrors. Make sure they are getting enough sleep. Overtired children are more likely to experience sleep disturbances. Also, watch the pattern; most kid’s night terrors start in the first part of the night, about 90 minutes after falling asleep. Try waking up your toddler gently about 15 minutes before an episode usually starts to interrupt the cycle.

An occasional sleep episode is not cause for alarm. See your pediatrician if it becomes a frequent thing. For more information on night terrors, there’s a great article on the Mayo Clinic’s site at:  http://tinyurl.com/3lya4uz