After consulting with a neuropsychiatrist, we are giving our 9 year old melatonin at night. The doctor we are working with suggested to give it at the exact same time every night and to skip it on nights that we plan to allow our child to stay up later than usual. It seems to be working. Hope this is helpful.

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I have a 7-year-old adhd boy. Bedtime has always been a struggle. He is a very heavy sleeper, so getting him to sleep was my main problem. The later it got, the more he jumped off the bed, ran in circles, bumped into me or the walls (on purpose). It is only 8:00 at night during these episodes and he sleep 10 hours when he does finally fall asleep. So, I know that is really an adequate amount. I have had a sleep study done to test for apnea and had his tonsils and adenoids out. I see a psychiatrist for guidance with alot of his behaviors. He is not medicated right now (maybe down the road). He has had some occupational therapy in the past, for motor skills. She offered a suggestion on calming him down that actually worked. It is a weighted blanket(dreamcatchers.net). They have poly pellets that are sewn in small sections to evenly distribute the weight. He absolutely loves that blanket. I wrap him up tight like a burrito, tucking his arms, legs and feet. The only thing showing is his head. He usually falls asleep within 5 or 10 minutes. I know that the majority of adhd kids have problems staying asleep during the night. We all usually wake up at night and I had to teach him that unless it was an emergency he couldn't come to wake me up. I also offered a reward for staying in his bed every night. Trying soft music, rubbing his back, keeping a routine at bedtime was the most important thing. You know your child best, ask him what would be calming or relaxing and being willing to try different things. No video games or heavy exercise 2 hours before bed because they can really overstimulate a child who is already wired naturally. When mom doesn't get sleep the whole house is off balance. It was extremely important that I hit this one head-on and the earlier the better. Good Luck!

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Hello, First, thanks to "Momof2" for the dreamcatchers info. I ordered a blanket today. I have had lots of challenges getting my son Nicholas (Diagnosed Asperger Syndrome and ADD/HD) to sleep at night. I came across some info that has really worked out well. It focused on helping your child identifiy why they have a hard time going to sleep and staying in bed. As a result we have a small bag on the side of the bed that has a flash light and Nick's small nerf gun in it. We talked about why he might be afraid and why he couldn't fall asleep, I think that alone had some impact - meaning allowing him to verbalize what was bothering him and what he thought we could do to fix it. This is where the flashlight and nerf gun came in. He also has a small Sneaker Speaker that he can plug his MP3 player in to and listen to music quietly while falling asleep. The MP3 player is an old Samsung (Belonged to my daughter) and it has a sleep timer setting built in to it. We also have a small lamp at the farside of the room that has only a 15 watt bulb in it. Having an evening routine is also very helpful. I hope this information is useful. Good Luck. Sincerely, Rosemarie, Ches. Va.

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Hi everyone I have a 6 year old daughter with ADD and she never really been a good sleeper but recently it has been too much to handle because if she isn't sleeping then I can't sleep either. I'm sure some of you can relate. Anyways I found a great solution. While in Kroger the other day I found Pepsom Sports which is an epsom salt product but with a great spearmint scent. I started giving my daughter baths in it right before bedtime and she is much more relaxed and sleeps through the night with no problem. It is the greatest thing I have found and just wanted to share it with people that might be able to use this. Happy soaking and hooray for sleeping kids :)

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My son also has a problem falling asleep at night. Sometimes he is up until 11:30 and has to get up at 7:00 for school. The neurologist my son sees told me about Melatonin. It comes in a liquid form and I get it from the health food store. I give him a very small amount and it works within 15 minutes. It has been the ONLY thing that has worked for my son. I don't give it to him every night. I try to let him fall asleep without it but if it starts to get late and I see he is not falling asleep I give it to him. I mix it in a little bit of orange juice. For my son, this is a god-send!

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Hello All! As I hope everyone here has realized by now, you can't raise your ADHD child like you would a normal child, no matter how much you try. On the norm, we want our children to gain independence through things such as getting to sleep in their own room, lights out, and alone. Kiss goodnight; walk out, and be done for the night. May sound like a dream, huh? Well, IT IS! My 6 yr old boy is ADHD with an anxiety disorder. He has night TERRORS, much more intence than nightMARES. These children's brains are going non stop. When it is time to settle down, the brain is still in overdrive. But at the moment of settling down, it seems to me they think of all sorts of weird things; imagingation goes into overdrive. So we have improvised our lifestyle for our child. My son and I have our own room together, as well as him having his individual room that is all his. I have a matress on my floor just for him. If you can get him to be still, you can get him to sleep. I get him in bed, give him a snack, in bed mind you, and a drink, his toothbrush is right there and ready for after his snack. I get him still with a movie, give him the time we are shutting off the TV (usually 8:30), and warn him 10 minutes before TV off time. I have a bedside lamp dimmly lighting my room. I lay there and read, answer a few questions he will inevitably have. After each question and answer, I remind him, "ok, now go to sleep". This may go on for a bit, but by 9 he is out. As long as I am there to constantly keep supervision over him this works great, and the security of knowing I am right there has virtually eliminated the night terrors. These children take alot of your life in every way, I will do whatever works for him to make his life easier, and mine. It takes a strong marrage, and dedicated parents to get through these things, but it is well worth it. And I myself, am checking into the blanket I am hearing everyone talk about here, as I am getting tired of having to cover him up with 4 blankets. Thanks to you, I now know why he wants them, the weight! Thanks to all.

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After trying a low dose of antihistamine (horrible side effects including daytime nausea and an actual increase in hyperactivity) and melatonin which didn't seem to have any effect, my son's doctor prescribed 0.1 mg Clonidine. It is actually a blood pressure medication. At such a low dose, it helps bring his "motor" down to a level that can help him relax and fall asleep. It's the only thing we have found that has worked for us. (I have not tried "sleeping pills" such as Ambien, etc. I don't know if they even prescribe those to children.) We try night time baths with lavender bubbles, soft music, no TV or computer after a certain time... but without the Clonidine, he bounces and chatters into the wee hours of the morning. I don't know what we would do without it!

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