Yesterday we celebrated the birthday of a friend of my son in a celebration with a small group of children of which five were between 10 and 13 years old, the birthday boy's mother commented that at the initial meeting of the Institute with parents, some teachers they suggested delaying the entrance to class one hour (now they are from 8 to 14 hours). The reason that had been put forward that as of adolescence boys and girls tend to experience drowsiness in the morning, and we already know that our children are approaching.
I recognize with a certain blush that I was surprised by the proposal, and I even pointed out that the solution would not be another that they could go to bed before getting enough sleep. Of course in the case of teenagers, it's not that easy, and now I'm going to explain why.
How sleep changes in adolescence
As we have said on occasion, at this stage of human development, sleep hours can be reduced a little depending on each person, so that we are talking about resting between 8.5 and 9.5 hours, therefore, depending on when they have to get up, we can calculate what time they go to the room, assessing that falling in bed and falling asleep is not always all one, that is to say, there is a time that we must count on, and it is what they take to read a little or fall asleep.
What is not always taken into account is that circadian rhythms undergo some changes in adolescence, due to melatonin, which is usually segregated at a later time than in children and adults, that is why they endure “nighttime” well and that is why it is difficult for them to open their eyes in the morning.
Curious, right? Although it is true that these rhythms are not the only ones responsible for the sleep deficit that has been observed (and not only in adolescents) as we will see below
Melatonin is not the only hormone related to sleep, since cortisol is also part of this complex (and at the same time exciting) world of circadian rhythms. Cortisol prepares for the body to have energy upon waking, circadian rhythms are adjusted to sunlight, and I fear that unlike other animals (except nocturnal) humans do not follow them, and we are not aware of the consequences that it has (they may not be immediate, but it will be noticed).
When children are ceasing to be their dream will change
The bad thing is that we are not able to remedy fatigue and lack of school performance (among others) that causes not enough sleep. It is important that we know that if we do not seek the necessary hours of sleep, cortisol production will be insufficient. The consequences? imagine them.
The dream is not just rest, dream, development related processes also occur, the secretion of growth hormone, neuronal regeneration ... not counting on the large number of functions that some of the internal organs may be developing at night.
Well it seems so, that delaying the entrance time to the institute could be a solution (As read above we conclude that in adolescence it may not work to go to bed earlier); in fact some states of the United States opted to do so, and as far as I know, in our country, this solution has defenders and detractors, although I am afraid that applying such a measure would cost us much more for many reasons.
Not only for melatonin and cortisol ...
Surely you are thinking exactly what I am going to expose, how many factors do you know that make a good rest difficult? Do you think it is the same to take to fall asleep reading, thinking, writing ... than watching television in the room itself, chatting, or discovering the worlds of "Destiny" - just bought -?
Do you remember what we were saying here about electronic overstimulation? it turns out that affects sleep and thought processes.
Sadder, or moody boys, lower sports and / or school performance, exaggerated increase in food consumption (With a feeling of sleep or thirst may occur, we know it well), which could lead to being overweight. In addition, mood can involve worse relationships with family and friends.
Are we willing to intervene for the benefit of children's performance?
What to do then?
I doubt there are many Institutes that propose what has been suggested in the one my friend's friend attends, and with this post I hope to clarify concepts in case it comes up in meetings, don't do like me. It is true that we must do our part to rest well, but also we must understand the issue of change in circadian rhythms, because it happens even when we don't believe it.
But we can intervene and it is not so difficult: time to go to the room away from dinner time, and dinner is not abundant. We must also prohibit them from going with the smartphone, the tablet to bed, and of course it is better that in the room there is no television or laptop (and if there is to be “requisitioned” until the next day); in the end even if they are 13/14/15 years old ... they are also your responsibility, and I understand that you would worry about a poor dream that had negative consequences.
Noises or too much light are not good in the bedrooms, so the little brothers who already leave the Scalextric, and the ceiling lights off to make way for the lamps. No coffee, tea, caffeine in other presentations (from cola to energy drinks, let's be serious please)… during the late afternoon, and if possible throughout the day.
The room is more comfortable if it is well ventilated and its temperature is adequate
Daily physical activity, and relaxing activities before bedtime (music, reading ...) help. If bedtime and getting up are always the same approximately, the body will respond better (Although I know that when they start to go out at night these rules skip them, but it is good that the bases are established).
It is a matter of proposing it, and understanding that it is something that concerns the whole family. Another related issue is that of night outings when they are old enough to do so, negotiations about the time to return, etc. It is not the subject of this post.
In Peques and More | Creating reasonable sleep habits ... also in adolescence, It is recommended to take care of sleep hygiene in children to prevent psychotic experiences, A good breakfast after a pleasant awakening
