Some children with special needs suffer from rages or night terrors, or both. These can be very confusing and frustrating for parents. Carlson (2007) states “But who are the children with severe mood dysregulation/rages? These explosive children are not new. A closer look at the traditional diagnoses that apply to this group of youth gives us further insight. Although there is no significant difference in the rates of ADHD between children with narrow phenotype bipolar disorder and those with severe mood dysregulation (60.6% and 86.7%, respectively), more than twice the number of children with severe mood dysregulation have oppositional defiant disorder (39.4% versus 83.3%)” (para 3). Rages can escalate quickly when a parent joins in the frustration. Share with us some of the ways you handle rages. Night terrors can be disturbing to watch in your child. He/she may have their eyes open, and screaming about what they are “seeing.” Familydoctor.org (2010) states, “Some children have a different kind of scary dream called a "night terror." In children, night terrors happen during deep sleep (usually between 1 a.m. and 3 a.m.). A child having a night terror will often wake up screaming. He or she may be sweating and breathing fast. Your child's pupils (the black center of the eye) may look larger than normal. At this point, your child may still be asleep, with open eyes. He or she will be confused and might not answer when you ask what's wrong. Your child may be difficult to wake. When your child wakes, he or she usually won't remember what happened. Children who have night terrors may also sleepwalk” (para 2).
If your child has rages or night terrors they can be a separate issue or part of another disorder. Rages and night terrors can also be comorbid with other disorders. It’s important to remember these symptoms when talking with your doctor.
Carlson, G.A. (2007). Who are the Children with severe mood dysregulation, a.k.a. "rages"?. Retrieved from http://ajp.psychiatryonline.org/cgi/content/full/164/8/1140
Familydoctor.org, . (2010). Nightmares and night terrors in children. Retrieved from http://familydoctor.org/online/famdocen/home/children/parents/common/common/566.html
We went through the night terrors with J for a few weeks, before we knew he was disabled. Interesting that it's common. Our doctor just told us to give him benedryl to help him sleep and get over it - not an ideal fix and I doubt a doctor would say that today, but it worked :)
ReplyDeletefunny, we were told the same thing, except Dimatap! lt helped, but didn't get rid of them. The only thing we could do was hold him tight until he went back to sleep. The night terrors stopped when we had his tonsils out thank goodness! I guess sleep apnea was causing them.
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