Night Terrors

I would like to talk about something that is totally off the subject of child psychology. I am going to take a few minutes out of your time and talk about night terrors. I am going to talk about night terrors because this past month I have had to deal with them with my oldest daughter. She had them 3 nights in a row and there is nothing you can really do, they just have to wake them selves out of it. Read on for more information about night terrors from Complete Children's Health.


Night Terrors:

Night terrors

Night terrors occur most often in toddlers and preschoolers and take place during the deepest stages of sleep. During a night terror, your child might

 Cry uncontrollably.

 Sweat, shake, or breathe fast.

 Have a terrified, confused, or glassy-eyed look.

 Thrash around, scream, kick, or stare.

 Not recognize you or realize you are there.

 Try to push you away, especially if you try to hold him.

While night terrors can last as long as 45 minutes, most are much shorter. Most children fall right back to sleep after a night terror because they actually have not been awake. Unlike a nightmare, a child will not remember a night terror.

What you can do

 Stay calm. Night terrors are often more frightening for the parent than the child.

 Do not try to wake your child.

 Make sure your child cannot hurt himself. If he tries to get out of bed, gently restrain him.

Remember, after a short time, your child will probably relax and sleep quietly again. If your child has night terrors, be sure to tell babysitters what they are and what to do. If night terrors persist, talk with your pediatrician.  

Night terror source: Complete Children's Health, American Academy of Pediatrics


Night terrors can be alarming if you are the one getting up with your child, but are not usually a cause or concern for a deeper medical issue. It is probably more scary for you than the child because the child usually does not even know what is going on and will not remember it in the morning (amnesia) because they were in deep sleep (non REM). As a person who has studied a lot of psychology, I know that night terrors are not psychological, they just happen because the child is overly tired or worn out.


Most dreaming occurs during the REM or rapid eye movement stage of sleep, which is where night mares happen. During deep non-REM or non rapid eye movement stage is when the night terrors happen. A night terror is a sudden reaction of fear that happens from one sleep phase, which is deeper sleep from non-REM to another stage, which is lighter REM during the transition. Usually the transition is smooth, but when it is not smooth that's when the child becomes agitated  and frightened and that fear reaction becomes the night terrors.

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