Excessive Sleepiness Variation

You said that your child seems tired or falls asleep during the day. S/he may be sleepy because s/he is not sleeping enough at night. It is important to note that the amount of sleep a child needs is different for each child. It may be that your child needs more sleep that the average child. Preschool age children usually sleep anywhere from 8 to 12 hours a night. The average amount of nighttime sleep for children is as follows:

Age Avg. Hours of Nighttime Sleep 6 months to 5 years 8 to 12 hours 5-10 years 11 hours Adolescents 8 to 10 hours

Some things to keep in mind:

• When your child is sleeping, s/he should look peaceful and quiet. S/he should not snore or appear to have problems breathing.
• Most children don't wake up much at night. If they do, it is usually for a very short period of time.
• By age 5, most children no longer take afternoon naps. They are usually awake throughout the day.

Warning signs that things are getting worse:

• Your child falls asleep a lot during the day. This causes big problems for him/her.
• Your child has lots of trouble falling asleep at night.
• Your child does not fall asleep until very late at night.
• It is very hard to wake your child in the morning.
• Your child refuses to get out of bed in the morning.

If you think these problems are getting worse talk to your child's doctor, even if you have discussed these things before.

Adapted in part from the American Academy of Pediatrics (AAP) Diagnostic and Statistical Manual for Primary Care (DSM-PC) (1996).