Sleep Needs For Every Member Of The Family

Sleep is important for everyone. Whether you’re a parent or a child, getting enough sleep is vital to function normally throughout the day. When sleep needs aren’t met, we run the risk of health problems, low energy, irritability, and much more.  This post about sleep needs for teens, kids, babies and parents is a sponsored guest post. 

Given how precious proper rest is, most people should be getting more of it, but that isn’t always the case. You and your whole family might be suffering from sleep deficiency, unaware to yourselves.

 

 

Sleep Needs For Every Member Of The Family

The problem starts with basic sleep needs. Each member of your household, you, your spouse, and your children, all most likely have different sleep habits and thus need different types of rest. Hours can vary depending on age, with some groups, such as teens, being more susceptible to exhaustion than others.

 

The culprit of bad sleep can also lurk outside of the body, being things like not having a proper mattress to sleep on or quiet environment at night. These will vary considerably, but knowing all of the factors that lead to poor sleep can go a long way in getting each member of your family a good night’s rest.

 

 

 

Parents and sleep

 

As a parent, it can be quite difficult to get sleep when you have restless children in the house. A recent study shows that parents experience sleep deprivation for years after having kids, but it doesn’t have to be this way. There are some tips that you can follow to have a more pleasant night.

 

Generally, adults need about 7-9 hours of full rest each night, though this will depend on the individual.  Your children’s needs will differ from yours, but we’ll go over this in another section.

 

As children are a hassle to deal with, you’ll generally need more energy to keep them satiated. There are a few ways you can accomplish this, as we’ll outline here.

 

Getting better rest with children

 

For starters, you should always attempt to synchronize your sleep schedule with your child’s. It’s important to do this, especially with infants, as your rest may become disrupted when your children are wide awake. Putting away all devices connected to the internet before bed can also help tremendously, as social media can make your mind less restful before sleep.

 

If this doesn’t work well for you, you can try to take turns between you and your bed partner watching or comforting your children throughout the night. It would be best for both of you to get full rest, but through this method, you both and your child will still get a good amount of sleep.

 

Ambient noise, such as from white noise machines, can also help create a more peaceful environment for you and your partner to calm your mind in at night. Be careful that you’re not completely soundproofing yourself, as you’ll still want to be aware of your children if they’re in danger, or any potential baby monitors you may have in your room.

 

Sleep needs for children and teens

 

Children and teens are notoriously difficult to deal with when they are both sleep deprived. But rest for them is just as important as it is for you, which is something to keep in mind when keeping your whole family rested.

 

Infants can be particularly troublesome to deal with, as, depending on their age, they may need 10-17 hours of sleep. One of the best ways to achieve this is to create a sleep routine for you and your baby. By going to sleep when your baby sleeps, you can help condition regular sleep patterns for both of you.

 

Teens have many anxieties to deal with nowadays, such as school, growing up, and so on, which can interfere greatly with their sleep cycles. Knowing how to help your teens get more rest is key to better health

 

The American Academy of Pediatrics says that adolescents on average are sleep deprived. This means that it’s vital that you help your teen stay energized throughout the day.

 

You can help accomplish this by designing a consistent sleep schedule with your teen’s life in mind. An erratic schedule that’s all over the place will be detrimental to their long term health and affect their ability to sleep. Getting them to not snack or use their phone/computer right before bed can aid rest.

 

Organization is key, and outlining/preparing their morning the night before can save valuable time that can be devoted to getting more rest.

 

Conclusion

 

It can be hard for your family to stave off exhaustion, especially if your sleep schedules conflict with each other, but it can be done. Following helpful advice on getting better rest goes a long way in making sure your family is healthy and happy.