Sleep disturbances are common in children and adults with ADD or ADHD. Children especially may have difficulty falling asleep, due mainly in lack of life experiences on how to self-calm and slow down. As children grow with the help of parent’s he or she can learn what helps and what hinders sleep.

Essentially, people with ADD or ADHD have difficulty in switching gears, and going from wide-awake and active during the daytime to quiet and still at night is difficult for any child. Children with ADD or ADHD benefit from a regular bedtime routine to help facilitate settling down and going to sleep.

Be sure to decrease caffeinated beverages and watch for sugar overloads, before bedtime. Encourage kids to drink caffeine free drinks from dinnertime until bedtime. A regular schedule of taking any night medicine, bathing, and snack will help.

Children need a quiet place to snuggle in and settle down after a nice warm shower or bath. A winding down period before lights out can be the key to a restful night’s sleep. During the winding down time, encourage children to read quietly. It is not a good idea to allow video games, action movies, or television.

A regular bedtime schedule is necessary for ADD and ADHD children regardless of weekends or summer holidays. Some children hear ever little noise in the home or outside, and it may help to have a white noise machine, or fan running in the room.

Consider temperature of a child’s room to facilitate restful sleep. If a room is too hot or too cold, it will make going or staying asleep difficult. Some rooms, which have a sun exposure in the morning, may require room-darkening shades to prevent those early risers from hopping out of bed at the first sign of morning light.

Establish morning house rules for your family s to when television, video games, and other noisy activities can begin. During the school year, there is no television or other electronic game activity before school. For those with ADD or ADHD television and computers are like magnets that freeze brain activity, creating zombies.

Finally if sleep disturbances continue consult your family doctor and consider having a sleep study done to rule out sleep apnea and restless leg syndromes. Sometimes medication is necessary to help ADD or ADHD children finally get to sleep. Over the counter remedies that include melatonin, which is, a natural chemical created by our bodies can help.