WINNING Breathing, Bladders & the Sleep Connection

Sleep is absolutely essential for every individual. Whether you’re a working adult or a five-year-old child, you cannot do without sleep. Speaking of the former, pediatric sleep disorders are an actual phenomenon.

Children need a little more sleep than adults do. When they do not get the requisite rest and rehabilitation, it can create issues for the child and their parents too. It may affect the child’s performance in school and may induce temperamental issues as well.

Pediatric Sleep Disorders

Up to fifty percent of children experience a sleeping problem. Even grave concerns like sleep apnea transpires in 1 to 5% children. Therefore, it is important for parents to observe the sleeping patterns of their children so they are able to gauge if any issues arises.

In case they observe any concerning behavior, then a pediatrician must be consulted immediately. Generally, the signs of sleep disorders in children are the same. For example, if your child snores excessively, it may be an indication that they are suffering from a sleep disorder.

Furthermore, if you are close to your asleep child and notice them having elongated breathing pauses during their sleep, it is potentially a sign that they are suffering from a sleep disorder. Also, if your child is awake for hours unable to sleep, it may be another sign as well.

Moreover, other indications include being unable to sleep for a few hours at a stretch. Your child may have issues sleeping through the night. Naturally, this means that they will also face difficulty in staying awake during the day because the sleep disorder will have put them in a vicious cycle.

Last, if a child faces unexpected falls in their daytime performance like in school or social activities, it could be yet another symptom of a sleep disorder. Sleepwalking or experiencing nightmares are also signs of sleep disorders in some cases.

Parents must consult a pediatrician at the earliest instance if they feel that any of these symptoms are present in their children.

Bedwetting

Another concern that many children experience is bedwetting. They may find themselves awake in the middle of the night and their beds may be drenched in their own urine. This is a problem that affects around 1% of children.

The usual causes of pediatric bedwetting may be a combination of any of the reasons we will specify as follows. For example, a child may have been unable to hold his urine for the whole night. He/she may not even have woken up when their bladder was full.

In addition, another cause may be the fact that the child produces excessive urine during the evening and nightly hours. Even the fact that the child does not visit the toilet enough during the day may induce bedwetting at night.

If your child has sleep disorders or wets their bed at night, you may want to get in touch with Koala® Center For Sleep & TMJ Disorders.