Does your child often struggle to get enough sleep? Getting a good night’s sleep can be a big problem for children who have ADHD. It doesn’t take much to figure out what’s going on here: When children are awake, it’s hard for parents to get any shuteye. 

Find below some tips to calm your child before bedtime and help him or her get more restorative sleep. 

🔵 Exercise daily and avoid trigger foods. 

Exercise will help them sleep better at night. Avoiding caffeine and artificial ingredients that may promote hyperactivity. 

🔵 Set a realistic  bedtimed.

Whatever bedtime you establish, enforce it consistently on weekends as well as during the week. Make sure the hour before bedtime is calm and quiet and that lights are kept low so the body can produce enough melatonin, the body’s natural sleep hormone. 

🔵 Set a bedtime alarm. 

Make sure the sound of the alarm is quiet and not intrusive. Eventually, your child will naturally associate the sound of the bedtime alarm with sleepiness. 

🔵 Use white noise and blackout curtains. 

Try an air purifier or fan for white noise or download an app that offers different nature sounds. Use blackout curtains to eliminate light in the room. Too much light at bedtime can interfere with the body’s melatonin production, so avoid screen time an hour before going to bed as well. 

🔵 Try aroma therapy. 

Let your child choose a calming scent that appeals to him or her, and then dab a little oil on a cotton ball and place it in his or her pillowcase. 

🔵 Reduce anxiety. 

🔵 Sleep with a weighted blanket. 

A heavy, weighted blanket can apply deep pressure to muscles and joints throughout the night, which helps regulate a disorganized sense of self and calm an overactive central nervous system.  Organizing and calming the senses can support the body’s natural ability to fall asleep.