Mom looking for tips to help newly diagnosed ADHD child with sleep

[ADHDgirlmom123]

Hello all!My daughter was very recently diagnosed with severe ADHD, and has had sleeping issues for quite a while. We are trying organic melatonin, and non-melatonin gummies, but she is still waking up in the middle of the night and staying awake for 1-3 hours. Has anyone tried something that seems to work at least some or most of the time that helps their child stay asleep? I feel like some of her daytime issues may be easier for her if she could just get the rest she needs.

TIA for any suggestions!

[Onthemove1971]

I strongly encourage a sleep study to find out why she is not sleeping..Were are a few suggestions:

Lots of exercise to get rhe energy out before bed

Weighted blanket

Noise machine/fan

Or really good ear plugs

Make sure the tempature is appropriate

If your child takes medication it would be important to consult about the sleep issues.

[Mamamichl in reply to Onthemove1971]

The exercise should not be the hour before bed, but exercise is part of sleep hygiene. I do agree a sleep study would be a good idea.

[Onthemove1971 in reply to Mamamichl]

Exercise before sleep was the only thing that helped our son. He always said " I have to get my energy out and would run around then shower and crash in bed. So it worked for us.

Good luck,

[Mamamichl in reply to Onthemove1971]

Ok, so not right before bed. It takes 30-60 mins for the heart to come back to baseline.

[Kd1970]

Dr. Teal’s epsom salts has several varieties. My daughter started bathing in them before bed, and it helps a lot. Also, limit screen time prior to bedtime. Magnesium supplement before bed is also helpful. Good luck!

Picture of bag of Epsom salts.

[Mamamichl]

nothing helped my sleep until I got the prescription trazodone. Sleep stories or audiobooks help me turn my brain back off to sleep faster. Look up sleep hygiene. There are things that can help like going to bed the same time everyday and waking up the same time as well, and no screens an hour before bed. Hope these help.

[Aloysia]

You might also want to try the extended release melatonin.

[ADHDgirlmom123 in reply to Aloysia]

I have looked for one for children not in pill form, because my daughter will not swallow pills. Do you know of a non-pill version?

[Aloysia in reply to ADHDgirlmom123]

No, I do not. Maybe someone else will know. Although I think there is a special coating and that's what makes it extended release.

However, you should start working with your daughter on swallowing pills. My daughter had huge problems with that, but we did a lot of things to practice since this is a life skill. Here are some of the things we did:- watched this video and practiced every day: hardynutritionals.com/video...

- practiced with mini-m&ms

- then moved to tic-tacs

- then I bought the smallest empty capsule that Amazon sold and filled them with sugar to give it a little weight. And practiced with those.

- then I moved to the next size empty capsule from Amazon.

- then I think it was regular m&ms

- etc.

There were also lots of rewards along the way for practicing. Just keep at it and always celebrate the small wins so she keeps the motivation for moving forward.

[LisethHIS]

Hi, ADHDgirlomo123,

Thank you for contacting CHADD National Resource Center on ADHD. How old is your daughter? If you’re not comfortable sharing, that’s completely fine. Having a routine is really important, especially since children with ADHD often struggle with sleepless nights. Here are some resources that might help you establish a better routine for her. chadd.org/adhd-weekly/new-d... and d393uh8gb46l22.cloudfront.n... Hopefully these articles can give you a better insight on things you can do.

If there is anything else you need, please let me know.

Best Regards,

Liseth

Health Information Specialist

CHADD’s National Resource Center on ADHD

chadd.org

[ADHDgirlmom123 in reply to LisethHIS]

Thank you for the resources! My daughter is 6 years old.

[Aloysia]

I also want to mention the visual time timers like this: amazon.com/dp/B08K9G2KS9/re... many kids this can really help because it is more visual for them.