Does anyone have any tips or techniques to help my 6yo son settle at night to go to sleep?
Our doc said we could try melatonin, but we haven't gotten there yet. I've backed his bedtime ritual up an hour, read him books, sang him songs, cut off electronics earlier ....
Has anyone had any luck with weighted blankets? I've been looking into them, but was wondering if anyone has 1st person experience with them. Is it worth the money?
Thanks!
Tired mom
HI there. My sister swears by the melatonin for her kiddos. She buys the gummies - like vitamins - and her kids take them 30 minutes to 45 minutes before bedtime. She has repeatedly told me how well it works. I have taken melatonin as an adult and find it helpful as well as well as my husband. I am actually going to start to try the gummies on one of my kids who is not the greatest sleeper.
As for the weighted blanket - some are pretty expensive. I suggest just ADDING an additional blanket on top for weight to see if that is even the slightest bit helpful. Sometimes that does help.
Hi,
Melatonin helps a lot. We do
3 mg about 45 minutes before my son’s bed time. He enjoys lavender baths and I also use some Dr. Teal’s lavender lotion and rub his arms and hands.
Hope this helps.
My Dr. Told me to use melatonin. I did and it works beautifully. Yry 1/2 a pill.
Following up on my post... we got some melatonin gummies today and OMG bedtime was a dream tonight! 8 pm my sweet, calm, cuddly boy went right to sleep! Fingers crossed it continues. Thanks all!
I’ve never tried the weighted blanket but the melatonin does help. Warm baths also relax my son. When he was younger he would ask me to gently rub his arms and palms of his hands with my fingertips. This seemed to help settle him down.
Melatonin has been a dream come true for us. Even a half a dose 1.5mg) has him saying “I’m tired, can you be quiet and let me go to sleep now?” We bought a weighted blanket but he threw it off himself constantly. I think it made him claustrophobic.
I also use Melatonin but am making a weighted blanket.
I'm so jealous of those of you who are finding melatonin works like a charm. We started it at the beginning of December with my 4 y.o. with just a .5 mg dose. IT did get her to fall asleep more quickly, but after three weeks of taking it she started having ALL the side effects plus others that are super rare - including everything from dizziness, to blurry vision, dilated pupils, tiredness, fits of aggression, hallucinations and delusional behavior. We had to stop it entirely and it took over a week for us to return to some kind of normal behavior for her. What a nightmare for us. We're looking into weighted vests and blankets now as a possible help for bedtime. We also use lavender essential oils which help calm her down as well.
If she can swallow pills, I would look into trying Valerian Root. Magnesium can be very benefical as well. My son loves to soak in an Epsom salt bath and it is very calming for him when he is coming off his meds. You could also use a Magnesium oil or a oral supplement if you feel she may need a daily dose of Magnesium.
We use Melatonin for my 9 year old ADHD son. Due to being on an extended release stimulant he has trouble falling asleep without it. The first brand we tried was OZzzz'z Sleep Aid for kids. It is a very low dose of Melatonin along with Chammomile. I buy them off of Amazon. It easily dissolves and is fruit flavored which is great for kiddos who don't swallow pills very well. We have also started using Olly Restful Sleep which is a gummy. They have other things in them as well as Melatonin to help you wind down. The dose suggested is for an adult so I just cut one gummy in half and it does the trick for my guy. We have tried the weighted blanket and my son didn't like using it for bedtime because he gets way too hot. He does like to use it during the day though during downtime. If your kiddo can swallow pills I have heard that Valerian Root is really helpful and a good place to start if you are hesitant to use Melatonin. I can't speak from experience of the effectiveness because my kid can't swallow pills so for now we stick with Melatonin.
I've wanted a weighted blanket for my nephew for so long but they are very expensive, around $150-$200. I do try and give him either an extra blanket or find one that is heavier to help him. Also we just recently introduced him to melatonin 5mg and it has helped him sleep so much better. I have noticed that he has had fewer mood swings during the day. They do sell the gummies which usually taste ok. I myself have taken it just to see how it would feel and all it does is basically tells your brain and body it's time for bed. 😊
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