If you are the parent of a teenager, then you are probably all too familiar with this scenario. Your teen is great, he really is but there is just one thing you would change; his sleeping habits. He stays up all night and then sleeps all day.So, why is this? Teens need roughly 9 ½ hours of sleep a night. The reality is most teens are getting nowhere near this amount of sleep a night.
Basically during puberty, the cycle of changes the body undergoes during a period of 24 hours changes. This affects when teens want to sleep, when they are more alert and when they are hungry.
In reality, teens have two sleep problems. As a result of puberty and alleviated development rates, teens need a lot of sleep but because their body clocks want them to sleep later at night, they get tired later and so find it harder to get up in the morning. As a result of traditional school schedules, teens often have to get up earlier than everyone else which means they are chronically sleep deprived.
What can you do to help?
Encourage your teen to go to bed at a reasonable hour, even if they can’t sleep. Also, try to get your teen to cut out stimulating activities late at night. Limit caffeinated beverages, TV, video games and mobile phones after nine o’clock as cutting back on these can convince the brain that it’s time for bed. Promote reading, quiet music and other peaceful activities to make the transition to sleep a little easier.
