Night Terrors

[Jen in Chicago]

Is it possible for a 13 month old to have these. I am determine Jude had one last week. It was horrible! I ended up laying him on the floor b/c he was moving around so much.

Any details, cures, ways to handle,... would be appreciated!

[Marisa6826]

It's absolutely possible. Sophie used to get them all the time. We've noticed that she is most prone to them when she is in a) a new environment and b) extremely overtired.

It happened quite frequently when we were moving from the condo to the house and she still gets them if she's really, really overtired.

We have found that if we take her from her room into a dimly lit new room (this usually entails asking Sophie if she wants to go see her doggies, and walking her into our bedroom) she "snaps" out of it sooner than if we just sat with her in her own room. She often pushes us away, her bunny, her blanket, even her milk. It generally takes a good half hour to get her back to sleep. What you need to realise is that they're generally harmless and the babe isn't necessarily aware of their surroundings.

Hope things get better soon

-m

[JenCA]

Can you please explain what happened that led you to believe that your son had a night terror? I am wondering if my DD has them; sometimes she wakes up absolutely screaming for no apparent reason (i.e., not sick, teething, etc.).

[houseof3boys]

Ryan (13 months too) has been having them too. They freaked me out at first and DH and I watched him on the video monitor and knew he was fine. He has them like 2 or 3 times a week and it lasts for less than a minute normally. DH says he is having nightmares of me saying "don't touch that Ryan" everytime he goes for something.

[alkagift]

Totally possible! I found that Matthew has them more often when he has had a particularly stimulating day and perhaps hasn't gotten all of his sleep or went to bed overtired. Visits from family (and all the passing around and Grandpa trying to get Matthew to do "tricks" and the like) tend to bring them on, so I try to make sure he gets his naps when he's got a busy day planned.


Allison
Mommy to Matthew Clayton, 5/19/03

[kristine_elen]

Yes, Jack had them. He'd all of a sudden begin to cry really hard and kind of be in a trance and almost not realize we were there comforting him. Sometimes I could just rock him back to sleep, but often it required giving him a bottle, even if it was just mostly water.
Good luck!

[COElizabeth]

James had one or two several months ago, and they were so upsetting! For the PP who asked, the key sign, I think, is that the child is not only screaming but seems completely unresponsive to anything you do. We all have times when our child seems unconsolable, but this is different - it's like you are not even there! I think that is what is so distressing. The good news is that they aren't necessarily recurrent. James hasn't had one in many months now and just had the one or two. As Marisa mentioned, I believe being overtired is often related. I hope it proves to be a freak occurrence for your little one!

Elizabeth, Mom to James, 9-20-02
EDD #2, 10-30-04

[Jen in Chicago]

I found him SCREAMING in the corner of his crib. He did not reach for me, but I picked him up. He never focused on me. I tried to give him Benedryl b/c he is congested a bit, and he normally will take medicine, but he was not taking it. It was like I did not exist, and NOTHING calmed him down. After watching him squirm around on the bathroom floor, he instantly calmed down. I picked him up and he feel asleep in my arms. I think the whole ordeal was about 20-30 minutes, but it felt like hours.

[Marisa6826]

Definitely sounds like a night terror to me.

Was he overtired?

-m

[starrynight]

My ds used to get them, now that he is older he doesn't but he occassionally still talks or yells in his sleep. He got them more often when he was overtired and didn't nap well one day. After adjusting his naps and bedtime to make sure he got enough sleep they stopped.

[Jen in Chicago]

I don't think so.

He consistely takes 2.5-3 nap at daycare, and he went to bed at his normal 7:30 time all last week. In addition, he woke at the usual 6:00 am hour.