TIPS FOR BEDTIME IN THE DIGITAL AGE

By Larissa Mills

Sleep is how our body relaxes, cleans itself and heals itself. But most importantly, the brain needs to pass through REM sleep each night in order to help us feel at our optimum. Kids are staying up later than ever before. Bedtime routines are a major factor in preventing mental health and the ability to manage feelings during the day. Teachers and coaches are observing the lack of energy and eagerness to learn in children at school and in sports. Psychologists and Psychotherapists have voiced their concerns about how children’s nervous systems are being overstimulated, making it harder for them to sleep.

Here are 8 tips to help at bedtime:

Put an alarm clock in their room. This leaves no room for argument for a phone to be in their rooms. Leave phones on the main floor or at a docking station.
Install control apps to shut down an hour before bed. Kids’ frontal lobes are not developed enough for them to decide if they should get off their phones.
No phones or technology in their rooms PERIOD. This includes parents too. Your sleep will be far more efficient for repairing YOUR body and brain for the next day.
Exercise or have outside time for 2-3 hours a day. Incorporate walking to and from school. This helps relax minds before bed.
Start your routines an hour before bed. Set the time your child should go to bed. I suggest starting with snacks, jammies, teeth, quiet time (books, talking, journal writing), snuggles, saying I love you and sneaking in a mantra or two before bed. For example, “I am fast, I am strong, I have superpowers” or “I am a problem solver”. Kids that say mantras before bed develop self-esteem and resilience because of “self talk”.
Parents that stay in their children’s rooms until they fall asleep give their child security.
Teaching kids how to fall asleep without technology is imperative in preventing phone addiction and teaching them healthy sleep habits for life.
Older kids (13 and older) can go to sleep between 10-11pm if they are getting up at 6:30am. This age needs more of a routine and someone checking in on them.

Learn how in these courses. https://iparentgen.com/product-category/online-video-courses/self-talk/

Larissa Mills, B. A., M.Ed. is the founder
of Iparentgen.com. She is a mother of three, a Parent Coach and a 4KIDS Sports & Educational Consultant.