Better Sleep for Children with Cerebral Palsy

Children who have cerebral palsy have commonly had problems with sleeping. In fact, it has become so common that one out of every five children diagnosed with CP will have sleeping problems as well. You have cases where it relates to breathing problems, but you have other times where it happens because of spasticity problems. In addition, you have some children who have issues with vision, and they can’t see that it remains dark outside. For that reason, they don’t know that they should be sleeping.

Cerebral Palsy

Establish a Calming Routine

You don’t want to hype up your child right before bed time because he won’t want to sleep. Instead, you might establish a calming routine that will help your child to settle down. For example, you might establish story time before bed time as this can have other positive effects on your child as well. Don’t do any activities too stimulating before bed time because then your child won’t want to fall asleep.

Along with establishing a routine, you want to make it consistent. For example, you might include dinner along with a bath time after. Next, you have them brush their teeth, tell them a bedtime story and then let them go to sleep. You might look at other parents who set up a routine for inspiration.

Getting Exercise

It should come as no secret that children have a lot of energy, and some of them have more than others. You might get your child to sleep better through getting him the right amount of exercise. Let’s say that your child suffers from spasticity in the muscles. You can improve his strength and coordination in the muscles through increasing the level of control within the muscles.

In particular a few exercises have been found effective for children with this birth injury:

  • Swim therapy
  • Stretch daily
  • Balance, strength and coordination exercises
  • Slow wheeling for children of wheelchairs

Give a Child Naps

You’d never expect a child to fall asleep faster at night through taking naps. In fact, it sounds downright counter intuitive. If you let your child have a one to two-hour nap, however, they may feel more relaxed when they lay down to take a nap later on. You should be aware of the time of the day that you let your child take a nap. For example, while a midday nap can go a long ways, laying down later in the day can have negative consequences.

Your child may also need to get a medical evaluation because of how it can address problems before they have the chance to materialize. In addition, doctors will look at the birth disorder itself to figure out what might be causing some of the symptoms. Seizures have become one of the common things that happens to children with this problem. Falling asleep can get much harder when someone suffers from some of these conditions. If doctors discover that your child has a medical problem, they will do their best to treat it.

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