Does your ADS child have difficulty sleeping?

Jodi - posted on 05/06/2013

Hi there, I just noticed your post & wanted to let you know that we have a son diagnosed with ASD whom is now 12 years old. However he has never had a tough time sleeping. In fact at the age of 4 we took him to a special Dr in Vancouver that said he had a large number of sleepy brain waves & wanted to perform Bio feedback to help with this problem. I don't think it helped much cause he still falls asleep right away at bedtime. He is also difficult to wake up. Sometimes it takes a lot of coexing to get him up for school.
I use incentives like free computer time before school or something that he really enjoys to get him up & awake. Now the teenage years are coming so I am guessing there will be more sleeping in lol!.

Jodi

Kimberlee - posted on 04/30/2013

I am in the beginning stages of all of this. My son Isaiah just turned 2 in January and has been diagnosed with PDDnos with Sensory Processing Disorder. He does not talk but he does communicate by pointing and taking you to what he wants. They will not say Autism for him until he is about 5 or 6. He has very violent behavior including banging his head. He has been hospitalized because of the head banging. They put him on Tenex but he was even more aggressive while taking that so we have taken him off. As far as sleeping............nights are horrible. He wakes up about every 2 hours screaming bloody murder. He tenses his entire body up and just cries and screams and sometimes hits himself in the head. Sometimes it lasts 5 minutes and other times it could be 30 minutes. I am exhausted!!!!! We have been told to give him 1 teaspoon of Benadryl which helps him fall asleep but does not prevent the "episodes". We have given him liquid Melatonin but I saw no difference with or without it. He takes a nap during the day and does fine while sleeping but when he wakes it is screaming and crying for atleast 30 minutes. I don't know what to do for him.

Karen - posted on 04/26/2013

Logan had always had problems sleeping through the night. He was my first and I was convinced kids never slept through the night. Around the age of 6 we discovered Melatonin and our lives have been drastically different. I would say for a year sold he took one every night. His Pediatrician said absolutely, go for it. And now at the age of 11 he might take one a month at night to help him sleep.

Janette - posted on 04/26/2013

hi my son is on the autism spectrum, he was diagnosed at 3 and a half years old , I was told it likely he would never talk , but he has done so well with help from teachers , speech therapist and myself working together , now he is about to turn 18 and I am so proud of how hard he has tried considering all the hurdles he has had to face and still does. He has always had trouble sleeping and has since a very young age, he has had to use television or music to be left on during the night and is also not keen on complete darkness. I guess if this sort of thing works to help them wind down its what I did with my son, he also had a medication recommended by his paedatrician called catapres which combined with his music and tv has been just enough to help him wind down at night, I chose the catapres instead of Ritalin, but this is something that is completely different for each individual and needs to be decided by yourself and with your doctor. It has been great to hear from others who share similar concerns with their children and families , I wish you all well and appreciate all that you do for your families. Its an incredibly hard road , with many ups and downs and I hope that with your beautiful children that you also have the loving and happy times that comes with them because I certainly have had an amazing experience with my son and though its not been easy its been an absolute priveledge

Kerry - posted on 04/23/2013

My seven year old (pddnos, anxiety, spd) has a very hard time sleeping alone, mostly because of vivid dreams and anxiety... Melatonin helps initially, it used to take hours to get her to sleep, now she'll fall asleep within one hour, but wakes up several times and is in panic mode... Can't get her back to sleep without drama. And every light in the house on. Any ideas? We want to explore our options before medications.

Diane - posted on 04/13/2013

Dayna... Will you be letting us know when you've published? I would love to read it. :) And if it works to do so, I'd even look at linking to it from my Asperger's website. :)

Diane - posted on 04/12/2013

Oh! Something else that I learned from a girl at wrongplanet.net. She said that going from being "up" or "out of bed" or "during the day" (however you word it) to going to bed at night was a transition and it was a huge problem for her.

Knowing that our kids suffer greatly when transition is presented, it makes perfect sense that they are having transition problems with being "up" to going to bed.

Diane - posted on 04/12/2013

My son had troubles for many years. And as a matter of fact he's 19 now and still has troubles.
When he was a toddler the doctor had us give him Benadryl every night to help him sleep because he was having night terrors.
He was a head slammer during the day and at night would literally bounce his forehead up and down on the mattress until he fell asleep (but not just his forehead, it was more like the upper third of his body including his head). If he stirred at night he would go through the same thing every time.
He ended up with other sleep disorders and then Restless Leg Syndrome. Lately Restless Arm Syndrome is showing up (I have it as well).
He also walked in his sleep when he was in his elementary school years. And he was ALWAYS up at like 4 am no matter what time he went to bed. That was a very exhausting time.
I let both kids into bed with us any night they wanted to be (which when they were younger was much more often than as they grew older). I found it to be one of the best bonding experiences there ever was. My son didn't bond until probably 5 or later (he had many serious health issues that, I found through research many years later, affected his ability to bond). I firmly believe it was due to having him in our bed at night that it finally happened.
Both "kids" happily sleep in their own beds but when dad walked out a couple years ago there was more than one night when my daughter (19 at the time) was at my bed in the middle of the night waking me because she was scared so I'd have her climb into bed (she's undiagnosed PDD-NOS) with me. My son (17 at the time) would occasionally want to sleep in the bed with me "just because" (I knew he was suffering with anxiety). We'd make a movie night out of it with goodies to munch on and then it'd be our own little "sleep over". :)
My daughter does need a nightlight but so do I. She's afraid of the dark and I've always been afraid of the dark (I'm 50 years old and recently diagnosed with Asperger's myself and have always had vivid, frightening nightmares) and I've never been able to be without a light. My son on the other hand seems to have no problems with the dark.
I hope this helps! :) Good luck with your publication!! :) Diane

Diane - posted on 04/12/2013

@Stephanie Jensen ... It could very well get better. :) My son "wet the bed" well into his elementary school years so I had him in pull-ups (and bless his innocent heart he wasn't shy about announcing it which gave the bullies more things to go after him about).

The doctors put him on Imipramine to help him stop wetting the bed. It worked wonders for my daughter. But with my son they kept upping the dosage until he was sick to his stomach. I told the docs no more and decided he'd be in pull-ups until he didn't need them anymore.

We then tried that alarm thing where the alarm part clips to their shirt collar and a wire goes down and there's a kind of snap that snaps to his underwear and the very second that liquid hits that snap the alarm goes off.

The first many times it was me flying out of bed to go get him when the alarm went off. Eventually he got to the point where it was waking him up instead of me having to. Then he got to the point where he didn't need it any longer.

Success! :)

Terri - posted on 04/09/2013

I have a 8 yr. old son, Nick.
Nick was diagnosed with sensory processing disorder @ age 4 and PDD-NOS @ age 6 as an infant/ toddler it was very diffcult to get him to sleep through the night. It was so much easier to have sleep with me and my husband.
Now that Nick is in school we try to get him to sleep in his bed , we gave him his own room and made it fun but still no luck. Nick is in bed by 730pm school nights and he will be up around 930pm trying to get back in our bed and we walk him back to his room and then he will get back up around 200 am by then I am so sound asleep I wake up to find him there beside me and my poor husband back on the couch.
I thought I was alone on this because I kept him in my bed as an toddler and it was a habit he couldn't break.
We feel that medication is not the solution at this point , I honestly feel that it would change him and make him to a boy that we don't know, he does make life more interesting......... I love my quirky big boy!!!!

Joni - posted on 01/07/2013

I have a son who is almost 3 he was just diagnosed with mild to moderate autism as a infant he did not sleep at all unless he was laying belly down across my legs and gently bounced it could have been due to gas.(at least that's what I was told). He didn't sleep through the night one time until he was 13 months old. He would sleep an hour then be up crying for two as an infant.
At 16 months he began to wake up again and didn't want to go back to sleep!(I. Was 4 months pregnate at the time). Finally @ about 20 months old he began too sleep all night again. If he woke up in the middle of the night he would cry out for a few short minutes then go back to sleep then id go in a check on him.
He will be 3 in march and still sleeps well cuddled up by himself in his crib.
He would rather sleep alone hopefully he stays this way.
I love my sweet little (Big) boy!

Sheree - posted on 01/05/2013

I have a 6 yr old (severe asd,adhd, odd, sensory processing disorder, anxiety) boy who has had sleeping difficulties since birth.... as a baby was up for 24 hours then sleep for 1 hour and then up for 24 hours again for 10 months and yes I was absolutely exhausted.... I took him to five sleep centres to help with his sleeping.... and after that I decided that I would just have to put up with his sleeping difficulties but they have improved greatly (he now doesn't go to sleep til about 11pm/midnight and then gets up about 530/6amish) and then the paed put him onto melatonin and that helped alot but what really helped was the reseridone and the melatonin together..... if medicated he now goes to sleep about 930ish/10pm and sleeps til 7amish.

My dauther 4 yrs old (mild asd, sensory processing disorder and anxiety) also has sleeping dificulties (was awake every hour after 10pm for 14 months and now gets up in the middle of the night to get into our bed cause she gets anxious) and has also been to sleep centre 4 times and sleeps alot better but still climbs into our bed in the middle of the night and doesn't like falling asleep on her own....

but in saying that my third child (18 months)whom is also thought to have asd (not diagnosed) has never had any sleep difficulties.....

Bonnie - posted on 12/26/2012

I dont know if you have tried this but my son was having the same issues and we put him on Clondine at bedtime. Within 1hr of taking it he is asleep and makes it through most nights. I still have to lay down with him until he is a sleep but after that I can sneak out. It might work for you.

Bonnie - posted on 12/26/2012

my son is 8 and has aspergers he will not sleep on his own at all. This past summer I was able to get him to spend the whole night in his own room but only if I lay down with him till he falls asleep (which really makes my husband mad). We did put him on Clonidine about 2 years ago and it is a miracle drug.... my son is alseep within 1 hr of giving him the medication. He doesnt always sleep through the night but I would say 5 out of 7 nights so its a win. The last time I tried to transition out of his room completely set him on a 2 week violent tantrum streak that was really bad. So I am gun shy of trying again. I tried the weighted blanket as well but that just makes the "I am too hot" complaint come out faster. We watch one show on the tv then switch to an ocean documentary with soothing music or just music...he fights it but it does help. Not sure how I am going to get him to fall asleep on his on....arrgggg

Melissa - posted on 08/04/2012

It is ironic that it is 1 am and I am responding. It is a typical night at my house. I have two boys with autism. My oldest son will get back on a schedule once school starts so it wont be so bad. He can take a five minute catnap and be refreshed for the rest of the day. My youngest son and I spend many nights on the couch so we dont disturb everyone else. He fights sleep. He naps during the day for at least 2 hours. If he doesnt get that nap when he goes to sleep at bedtime; he sleeps two hours but then gets up. His pattern is pretty predictable. I cant let him go to sleep before ten or I am up by 3 am. The problem is he has this never ending supply of energy and gets his second and third wind. For the last two-three weeks I havent gone to sleep before 3 am. Several times this week he has been awake by 7 ready to play. He sleeps like my husband. He is always moving and talks and sits up during the night. He has never slept with anyone and usually puts himself to sleep. Since he is predictable I try to stay on a routine that lets me get a few hours sleep before big brother is up. He also has digestive problems that can keep us up at nights.

Dee - posted on 07/31/2012

I am a 42 year-old female with Aspergers. I can still remember how terrified I was going to sleep at night. I refused to sleep in my own bed until I was over 9 years old. I had awful, vivid nightmares. As night time approached, I can remember the anxiety increasing with the thought that bedtime was arriving. My mother used rewards and fear tactics- my doctor told her to leave me standing in the dark living room until I decided to go to bed. Your child is NOT manipulating you, and it has very little to do TV shows or outside influences. Rather, the child has his / her own thought life, and to him / her it is very real. I wish my parents had recognized this sleep terror and addressed it appropriately. If meds work, it is a gift to your child.

Carin - posted on 07/31/2012

My son needs melatonin to fall asleep. Once he's asleep he pretty much stays asleep all night. There have maybe been a couple of times that he briefly woke up but he's fallen right back asleep, and another time that he woke up and it took him awhile to go back down.

Jill - posted on 07/30/2012

@Leilani --- that could be my fearful ASD son. We also can't do many meds because he won't swallow pills and takes very few liquid meds. AArrgh!

Jill - posted on 07/30/2012

I have an 11 year old son with Aspergers who has terrible nighttime fears. He rarely goes a whole night without either coming into our bed multiple times (we usually try to take him back to his bed, but have to sit/lie with him until he is back asleep), or having us take him back to his room. He is so afraid of what he is imagining that he won't even put it into words to tell us about it. He says that he sees normal things, but his imagination twists them into scary things. I can see by looking into his eyes how truly terrified he is. If I thought it was just a manipulative technique, it would be easier to be stern and insist on his sleeping by himself, but how do you keep a child who is truly terrified in his own room/bed? We are already sleeping with doors open, ALL lights on, sound of a fish tank on his computer and a white noise machine...I'm not sure what else to do. It's like I have a newborn again....can't ever get a good night's sleep. And our Queen sized bed is TOO SMALL for 2 adults and an 11 year old boy (and a dog! :) Doctors don't give us much help. I'm hopeful it is a phase, but we're coming up on a year of this now. I've tried rewards (waterpark, etc.), but no reward is big enough to have him face his fear.

Amy - posted on 03/12/2012

I have a 7 year old son with autism and he does not sleep. He only sleeps 4 hours a night max. He would be really tired and sleepy during the day but I try every possible way to keep him up. Hoping that he might sleep better at night But when it's time for bed, he doesn't sleep!

He would be wide awake on his bed saying stuff that does not make any sense for hours. He just makes noises and wiggles his fingers.

It is hard for both of us, I'm truly exhausted. When he does not get enough sleep, he does not eat, and would be cranky and throw tantrums at any minutes. I have not yet given him any medication I'm glad I found is thread, I never knew there are medicines that could help. I will ask my pedestrian about it.

Jenna - posted on 01/22/2011

I have a 4 yr old boy who was as of 2 days ago dianosed with aspergres ,and his sleeping habbits are way out there ,he sleeps the most 3 hours a night. And will not nap ,He is awake and gets into alot of trouble some issues.With him not sleeping he is not functioning ,so oI have a child that at times is so out of sorts that.I feel helpless.I should also state that he is ADHD and has a compulsive disorder,so ,I am not sure which ones play a role in his not being able to sleep... JB

Aimee - posted on 01/21/2011

Our son is 7 w/ PDD-NOS, and we've had trouble with his sleep from toddlerhood. Started with melatonin at about 3 or 4, what that stopped working he "graduated" to clonidine. Now, the doc has added Abilify to his regamine, and he seems to sleep better most nights and has the daytime benefits to show for it. It's not perfect (some nights he still won't fall asleep, some mornings up by 0430, etc.) and he still wants Mommy to lay down beside him to help him fall asleep (a bad habit we got into with both kids), but the meds have probably saved us.

Carolyn - posted on 01/20/2011

My daughter (now 16) wasn't diagnosed until she was nearly 14 years old but we had no end of trouble (and still do) with sleep. As a baby she slept for no more than 1-2 hours at a time and at one point had us awake for 72 hours straight. It got to the point where my husband (who starts work at 3am) would get up at midnight to look after her for 2 hours while I got some sleep then I would take over again at 02:30 am when he left for work. He would then go to bed as soon as he finished work in order to be awake at midnight again!!! Safe to say it caused some tension in the house because at that time we didn't know what the issue was and like every parent thought it must have been something we were doing wrong!! Got a referral to the sleep clinic but for some reason (can't now rememeber!! probably a string of miracle good nights) we didn't go. We were at one point precribed antihistamine as a 'sleeping draft' but she got accustomed to it so it stopped working even though we only ued it in desperation!!! Even now at 16 she rarely goes to sleep before 2am then struggles to get up for school in the morning but at weekends she will sleep until 10 at the earliest, lunchtime at the latest like any other teen!!! So it's hard to tell now what is teen behaviour and what is Aspergers!!!

Marianne - posted on 01/20/2011

Hi my eldest son who will be 17 in may has got realy bad sleeping habits its been 4am most of the time. He shares with his brother(14) who im thining of putting in the conservatory! ive tried sleep aid tablets with him but it has no effect, he plays computer/xbox wich I know doesnt help but if i take it away, its just easier to let him have it :(
Im not sure about going to the doctor 'hello doctor my son wont go to bed he wont take anything for it' any ideas would be realy usefull :D

Sheree - posted on 01/20/2011

has anyone tried catapress for the sleeping troubles, it worked wonders for my boy but it unfortunatly didnt mix with some of his other meds.

Michele - posted on 01/19/2011

Like so many Mom's on here...the sleep issue is an ongoing one. When he was a toddler, it was getting him to go to sleep. Melatonin was the choice for us, we were not ready for the "heavier" stuff. Made his night routine the same, and made sure the hours of sleep and wake were the same every day. As he has grown older, we added night tremors in the mix; as well as getting to sleep ok, but then waking up. He cannot fall back asleep for a couple of hours. Periactin was used to calm the night tremors sucessfully, and could be used in combination with the melatonin. Now he is eight, and we are kind of back at square one. He has the Trizopan to take, and the melatonin, and periactin...and makes his own choices as to what will work each night. Just recently things have been erratic for him, and he knows that anxiety is keeping him from sleeping, but cannot identify what specifically. So I have talked with him on white noises, his meds, blankets, nightclothes, and light. He is choosing to change some of those around to help him sleep. Specifically the heavier bedding (now needed) fan as white noise, and less light. He is also choosing to only take the periactin. Now, we get to see if it all works!

Stephanie - posted on 01/19/2011

My 8 year old with autism has trouble falling asleep at night. Once he gets to sleep however he is very hard to awaken even to go to potty during the night (yes he still wets the bed).

Karina - posted on 01/03/2011

I have a 9 years old aspi son. When he was 1 1/2 doctor recommended giving him calm for kids (natural herbal chewable tablets) 1 dose of childrens panadol and 1 dose of phenergan before bed each night. It still took hours for him to go to sleep and even then he would only sleep for 5 -7 hours at a time. Needless to say we did not continue with the doctors advise. now he has early an early dinner then a shower and off to bed at 6:30 / 7:00 pm. He struggles to get to sleep but he just lays there quietly waiting and eventually will drift off at about 9:30 /10:00 sometimes midnight but will wake up anywhere from 4 - 7 am. He is taking tolerade/ tofrinil which has really helped take the anxiety out of going to bed. Although he is in bed awake for quite a while it's better than having him up and about. He is not asleep but at least he's lying down and his body is still getting that all important rest time. Warm milk and chamomile baths can also help, but i think having the freedom of not being checked on or having us waiting on him to go to sleep has helped him to settle and not stress and over think about going to sleep. We made a schedule and stick t it no matter what otherwise he becomes very emotional, well more so than usual anyway. Curious to know what book you are writing so i can see it when you're done, seems like there will be heaps of interesting and helpful information :)

Talena - posted on 01/03/2011

My son is 8 yrs old. He used to be a champion sleeper. He was still taking 2 solid naps a day until well after 18 mos, always listening to the same sleeptime lullaby CD. He finally cut out his final nap when he was 4, but that was due to school necessity. About a year prior to that is when he was diagnosed with HF Autism and ADHD and his sleep patterns changed. He was prowling the house in the middle of the night with incredible stealth. We'd have to "booby trap" things just to catch him, because he was so quiet. We tried cutting out his naps, but he still woke multiple times a night. We still battle the nighttime wake ups. He takes 3-5mg of melatonin every night. It helps him fall asleep, but like many others, it does little to keep him asleep. He usually wakes anywhere from 1-4am. Most of the time, after about 2 hrs, he's finally tired enough to go back to sleep. Other times, he's sent to school having been up since 1-2am...with strict orders for the school to NOT allow him to nap or send him home because he's tired. (He'd previously been allowed to nap at school because he'd be more compliant afterward. Once he came to expect it, I vetoed it. He also has been threatened to be sent home for napping, which is counter-productive since he doesn't want to go to school.) Now, he still wakes every night, but mostly stays in his own room. For 6 mos this year, he crawled in our bed every night. Now, he opts for his sister's bed....or waking her to come sleep with him. I don't anticipate things changing any time soon. I do know his sleep patterns have a negative impact on his days, as I know they do mine, as well.

Sheree - posted on 01/03/2011

I have a 9 year old son who has ASD and frequently wakes during the evening and urinates anywhere and everywhere on the floor. When he does this he is in a deep sleep and when asked about it the following morning cannot remember a thing. At the moment we are trying endep at to help him get off to sleep. If he doesnt have any medication to help him get off to sleep he will remain awake until after 1am. If anyone has any tips for me i'd appreciate it.

Larreen - posted on 01/03/2011

Try making a weigted blanket for sleeping this helps and soothes the sensory overload fill blankets with weights or bean bags works well. Ir take and old shirt and make pockets where one can stuff with heavy material to be worn upon sleeping, cost effective and anything is worth a try.

Debbie - posted on 01/01/2011

Wow! It's so amazing to hear stories from other moms who are having the same issues. I feel so much less alone in my struggles here! In regards to the nightmares, I know I myself have nightmares when I'm stressed and will frequently wake my husband yelling in my sleep. Just last night I had a nightmare and he didn't even really wake up, just gave me a couple of nudges to wake up! lol

I think children can react to stress too. Even something that seems not so scary to you and me, can be disturbing to a child, especially if they can't articulate it to you. We're fortunate that we haven't had many problems with Jack's nightmares, but I know my dad had them too, so they might be a family trait. Hang in there, moms! You're encouraging me and each other! Happy New Years!

I've started a new blog to share my experiences with my son's issues: http://jackpatzmom.blogspot.com/. Check it out and let me know what you think!

LINDY - posted on 01/01/2011

thanks debbie ethan always wakes up saying his dreams are sad and since my husband and me have split up know its that he is just so frighten to fall asleep it very sad and i think i will have to take him to drs but will have a look at what he is watching throught the day thaks:)

Sarah - posted on 12/31/2010

My son is almost 3 and diagnosed with PDD-NOS. He has always slept too well. His sleep schedule is very strict. He is in bed for the night by 7:30pm and doesn't make a peep until 8am the next morning. He also takes a 2-3 hour nap in the afternoon, starting at 2pm. I actually spoke to his doctor about it, because he is not nearly as active as other kids and sleeps MUCH more than other children his age. After lab testing to rule out any iron deficiencies or other problems, it was concluded that it may be his form of "escapism" from over-stimulation during the course of a day. I'm glad that he is a great sleeper, but because his routine is so strict, it sometimes limits family outings, etc.

Frances - posted on 12/31/2010

My daughter was a crack baby. She is diagnosed with PDD-NOS right now, but her neurologist is leaning towards aspergers. She is 6. She never napped, and hardly slept at night. We tried clonidine, but she had adverse reactions and her sleep was not restful. The doctor then prescribed benedryl at night......it was a miracle for us. Even though she would still come to our room, she would sleep through the night. She also occasionally naps now. We have recently taken her off the benedryl and she falls asleep on her own.

Sherri - posted on 12/30/2010

I so understand the inability to take medications. Both my 8 and 5 year old still drink from a bottle at bedtime because it is the only way we can get the Melatonin and Trazadone in them! We crush up a tablet and mix it with rice milk. This is the only way we can get Tylenol in them if they have a fever too. I set a bottle next to the bed at night so that when they wake up, they can just grab a bottle with the med in it and hopefully go back to sleep without waking me or my husband. Some nights it actually works... :)

Leilani - posted on 12/30/2010

Wow, when I first read the answer by Debbie Krencicki I thought she was talking about my 10 yr old son. He was diagnosed with "moderate autism" when he was 3 and has had the same sleep issues his entire life. He will go to bed in his own room but will come into our room while we sleep, usually between 12:30 - 4:30am. We are not allowed to use the word "dream" in our house because he's afraid that hearing the word will cause him to have nighmares. There are some nights where I have to 'type words' into his brain computer to help him sleep. He will pull out an imaginary keyboard from his forhead and I will type phrases on it such as "no dreaming only sleeping. period. enter. lock", or "only good thoughts allowed" and we have to wrap imaginary chain locks around his head to keep the good thoughts in and bad thoughts/dreams out. We used to have to do this on a nightly basis but lately it is only on occassion. I don't give him anything to help him sleep because he can only tolerate the taste of Blue Raspberry flavored Motrin in liquid form and he gags or vomits at even the thought of putting a pill in his mouth (he has super sensitive gag issues).

Emily - posted on 12/30/2010

hi heather thanks for your message will try your ideas.

emily

Heather - posted on 12/30/2010

Hi Emily. I believe that bedtime must be as set and as regular as possible. It is also good to have a bedtime routine, one that you can do even if you are traveling, i.e. jammies, brush teeth, story, bed. with so many kids maybe a group story or if there are say two different bedtimes one for the younger group and one for the older. you can try explaining to those old enough to understand that bedtime is quiet time and even if they can't sleep they must stay in bed. maybe try relaxation music or something my son loved was a disney carosel. It was a projector that played "when you wish upon a star" and projected images of the Disney characters on the ceiling. It helped because the song was soothing and the pictures gave his adhd something to latch on to that calmed him. Remember every child is different and what works for one may not for others. Good luck.

Emily - posted on 12/30/2010

after reading all the below comments i'm grateful not to be the only parent who son has problems with going to sleep at night.

our son dylan, who is 7, is diagnosed with pdd and adhd.

we also have 4 other children (2 girls aged 5 and 12, and 2 boys aged 2 and 10). our youngest son has severe language delay and some autistic traits and our eldest son is undergoing tests for add at present.

we have tried several medication which have all failed getting our son to sleep as he just can't switch off at night and keeps his siblings awake most nights!

i am open to suggestions for all our children as our youngest dosen't goto sleep very earlier either and is still awake at 10.30 most nights!

thanks for reading

emily

Janet - posted on 12/30/2010

My kids are both affected by ASD, and both have odd sleeping. Mostly in that they don't like to be alone. They won't go to sleep in their own beds, they sleep in the livingroom with eachother and I take them to bed after they've fallen asleep. They are 5 and 3 and I'm considering getting them bunk beds now that they're old enough, so that they can share a room, hopefully to help them sleep in their own beds. One or the other will wake up in the night and come to sleep in my bed, anytime after midnight I can expect the pitter patter of small feet. I always wake up with one or both of them in my bed.

Heather - posted on 12/30/2010

My Son has Aspergers Syndrom and ADHD. He is 17 years old. Much of his life he would have trouble going to sleep either becaue of too much stimulation during the day or something he ate or his meds. He is now off all medication but is falling into that teenage sleep deprivation stage. I try to keep his schedule the same, for example he is on school vacation this week, but ai still get him up with me when I got to work, if I don't he'll sleep until noon and not be tired later. He has a bestime of around 10pm. Up until last year he had one of 9pm as he seemed to fall assleep in class if he didn't have enough sleep. Things are getting better and I am trying go get him to use his alarm clock and get up in the morning by himself instead of my waking him. It's funny, so many people don't understnad the special challenges of raising kids like my son. They don't understand about the disability or about his immaturity especially because he is so bright. Kids like Matt are a challenge, but when they succeed it is such a great joy!

Sherri - posted on 12/29/2010

I have 2 children with ASD, 8 and 5 years old. My 8 year old was never a good sleeper. She would wake several times a night and would not be able to fall asleep without someone laying down with her. My 5year old was a great sleeper until 11 months old when he regressed into ASD. Then it was the same thing with the waking several times a night. I remember playing musical beds a lot! We use Melatonin at bedtime for both of them and then my son takes trazadone during the night to try to keep him from getting manic. Sometimes the trazadone doesn't work at all but if he misses a dose, you are guaranteed a 3-4 hour manic episode at about 2am. Their sleep has been slowly improving as they get older, so I am very hopeful that the trend continues!

Debbie - posted on 12/29/2010

Something is causing him to have unpleasant dreams when he goes to sleep. Maybe it would help to read soothing stories, listen to calming music, etc. before sleep. Does he watch much TV? Maybe something he saw on TV stuck with him and is upsetting him. I remember having vivid dreams as a child, some of which I still remember. All you can do is make him feel as safe, loved and secure as you can. If it continues, I'd talk to his pediatrician and see what he/she has to say. Good luck!

LINDY - posted on 12/29/2010

my son is 5yrs and has autism he is having horrid nightmares is afraid to go to sleep (he calls his dreams sleep stories) im doing a sleep story book were i draw pictures of what he is dream though he was still crying before he goes to sleep because he says the dragons will eat him he asked me to come in his dreams with him which broke my heart so i had plastic glow swords and told him he was to kill dragon in his dream and draw a picture of it and made him stab the paper he said thank you for helping me mum i cried is was so sad now we still having nightmares but he is just saying he doesnt want to go to sleep and no crying about it so it helped a little im at a loss what can i do for him would love any advice oh and me and my husbands just split up so he was been unsettled from that too

Coralie - posted on 12/29/2010

My son is 15 and does sleep through the night...now. I found when he was little he got into the sleep/wake routine when he was feeding. When I stopped the night feed he kept on waking. (it was also the same pattern invitro surprisingly enough!) It took close to 5 years to break the routine/habit. I chose to enforce the controlled crying/comforting routine. Believe me there were many nights when I would sit exhaused and crying outside his bedroom stareing at my watch until i could go in and comfort the hysterical crying. I was luck that he saw bedtime as the time he had to spend in bed so he never came out of the bed.
I have found now that the hormones are pumping that we are again hitting sleeping problems. He has always taken at least an hour to go to sleep but this is now stretching to hours. He also verbalises the day before he goes to sleep and this has got louder. We live in a small unit so this now keeps the whole family awake!!! Oh Joy!!! Have started to see a therapist so will see how this goes but of course it will take time.
We have personally found, for my son, that many medications have the opposite effect on him. So things that are surposed to calm him send him bouncing off the walls. Coke as always had a calming effect on him (however not good for the teeth)
I think its all a bit of trial and error until you find what works for you and your child.
All the best

Jane - posted on 12/29/2010

My son is now 9 - he has HF autism and ADHD.
Sleep has always been an issue - we tackled it head on when he was a toddler. One night I put him back over 160 times! We used a digital alarm clock and put the number 7 above it. We trained him that he couldn't come out of his room till the first number was 7. It wasn't easy - but worth it!
Sleep terrors were very common in the early stages.
He has always had trouble falling asleep. We have gone with routine as that is what works best for most kids with autism.
Now he is older it is slightly easier that he can go in his room and read or listen to music - however he would often fall asleep around 11pm and then be awake around 2am.
Since moving a few years ago, he hasn't been so good at staying in his room - so would be up and about from 5am.
His behaviour got worse during the day - some I'm sure to being overtired - after all I get seriously cranky when I'm tired!
We used melatonin for a while. we have recently gone to the long acting one. His dose has gone from1mg to 4mg. this is helping. At the moment he is also on Risperdone which is helping to calm him too. Occasionally now we get a full nights sleep - which is more than we were ever getting before! Sometimes he is asleep by 8.30pm, and my 3& 4am starts are a thing of the past.
no melatonin usually means a bad night.

Tina - posted on 12/28/2010

my son is 4 yrs old and has ALWAYS had sleep difficulties. As an infant, I found it hard to keep him on a schedule for at least the first 6 months. The first time he slept through the night (8hrs straight) was at 19 months. This was not consistent. After trying every behavioral idea for improving sleep, we finally relented to trying melatonin at about 2 years old. It helped him fall asleep but not stay asleep. We started seeing a DAN! Doctor for biomedical treatments (not just for sleep) and eventually we tried adding GABA when he was 3yrs old. It had very short benefit. At 3 1/2 we tried some HBOT and could wean him off all sleep meds within 2 months or less. We kept him off sleep meds and he did fairly well but still woke up at night but usually fell back asleep. He stopped napping around 3 yrs too. Well, in the last several months, his sleep was getting worse...insomnia for 3 hours at a time several days per week. We treated for yeast and it improved wonderfully. He has had occasional insomnia episodes (once a week or so), and melatonin does not help if I give it to him when he wakes up at night. My doctor just suggested giving him benadryl if needed. I have not tried this.

Christa - posted on 12/28/2010

My son is 9 and was diagnosed with sensory integration dysfunction at the age of 2 1/2. By the time he was 4 we knew there were greater problems than just sensory issues. After a long haul and many doctors he was finally diagnosed with ADHD and PDD-NOS along with the sensory issues. He has never been a good sleeper and after consulting doctors about it we put him on melatonin, if he doesn't take it every night he doesn't get sleepy until 11 or 12 and then gets up at 5. With the melatonin he is in bed by 8:30 and up between 4 and 5. He has stopped getting up 3 or 4 times a night but the trade off was him getting up at 7 to now getting up at 5. I hope this helps! Sincerely,
Christa

Tiffiny - posted on 12/28/2010

My son is 10 and goes to bed on cue. It sounds great but if you want to enyoy time out its hard becasue he has such rigid sleep issues he is in bed by 8:30. he wakes at the crack of dawn and the whole house is up with him.