A good starting point is to understand that children, like adults, go through several sleep cycles in the night. During these cycles, there are times when they are in a very deep sleep and others when their sleep is lighter and they are likely to be dreaming.
It is at these times that they are more likely to wake up or to have nightmares or night terrors.
AVOID A DISTURBED NIGHT
Before looking at what to do if a child is waking in the night, let's look at ways in which we might actually prevent it from happening.
Some problems can be avoided by ensuring that your child is not overtired. Moving back bedtime may be all that it takes, as overtired children tend to have more disrupted sleep cycles.
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