When Sleep Gets Scary: Understanding Nightmares and Night Terrors
For some children, fear begins before sleep even arrives. Darkness, shadows, imagined monsters at the window or under the bed can become powerful distractions.
It’s a nightmare! Says Dr Will... Nightmares can happen at any age, but they are most common in children between three and eight years old . After a nightmare, a child may wake fully and be able to describe the dream in vivid detail. These dreams usually occur during a lighter stage of sleep , often called dream sleep , which is associated with rapid eye movement (REM). Some children experience frequent or recurring nightmares. Gentle, unhurried conversations can sometimes reveal an underlying worry, something real, imagined, or only half-understood, that is finding its way into their dreams.