Question: My 9-year-old daughter has mild Down syndrome and is in regular classes at school. She does have some attention problems and needs help staying on task, but with direction, she does most everyday tasks by herself. Our biggest challenge is her not sleeping through the night. She doesn't have a problem falling asleep, but she wakes up, turns on lights, watches television, eats and tries to get in bed with us. We know she's not getting enough hours of solid sleep and that it's affecting her ability to learn at school.
Answer: Children will be set back from reaching their full learning potential if they aren't getting enough sleep. Start by establishing a consistent bedtime and routine leading up to that time. If you're diligent, the new routine should take about a few weeks. So, when you hear her get out of bed at night, use a standard response like, “The alarm will tell you when it's time to get up.” Conversation and physical contact with her should be avoided. You may notice improvements in her behavior and school work when she begins to sleep through the night. Don't be surprised if her teacher notices the improvement before you do. Old behaviors will likely occur on occasion but will noticeably be less frequent when she is not sleep deprived. If your daughter hasn't been sleeping through the night, your household likely hasn't been getting solid sleep either. So by helping her, you'll be helping the whole family get rest and be at its best, too.
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