Parenting: 4 & 5-Year-Olds Community

We went 5 days with no nightmares and then last night he woke up 1 time with the same pacing back and forth and being very shaken. I was able to get him back to bed. Read to him some pages of his book and he fell back asleep.

I don't think it's from the medicine since it's been out of his sytem. I guess just coincidence that they happened at the same time.

What do you think it is now, then? Do you think he's having night terrors? Is he sleep walking?

My boys seem to go through this thing if they are learning a lot in school. I noticed kind of a correlation between being pushed a little harder in school and nightmares ect. I know that sounds wierd.
Also certain video games have lead to nightmares, being over tired.
Not sure if any of this helps .

It's been consistent the past 3 nights with his "night terrors". I'll have to google this term again and see what it says. I think I looked it up years ago. This time it's maybe an hour after he falls asleep and then once I get him back to bed he stays asleep the rest of the night.

Thanks for the update. Hopefully its just a phase, whatever it is. You guys must be tired!

From Wikipedia:

Children
The sleep disorder of night terrors typically occurs in children between the ages of three to twelve years, with a peak onset in children aged three and a half years old.[26> An estimated one to six percent of children experience night terrors. Boys and girls of all backgrounds are affected equally. The disorder usually resolves during adolescence.[26> Sleep disruption is parents' most frequent concern during the first years of a child's life. Half of all children develop a disrupted sleep pattern serious enough to warrant physician assistance. In children younger than three and a half years old, peak frequency of night terrors is at least one episode per week. Among older children, peak frequency of night terrors is one or two episodes per month. Children experiencing night terrors may be helped by a pediatric evaluation. During such evaluation, the pediatrician may also be able to exclude other possible disorders that might cause night terrors.[26>
[edit > TreatmentReassuring a parent that this disorder will almost always outgrow the child is very important to treatment.[27> There is some indication that night terrors can result from being overtired, in which case interventions such as creating a bedtime schedule can increase the chances of restful sleep. If the night terrors are more chronic, however, some evidence suggests that the sufferer should be awakened from sleep just before the time when the terrors typically occur to interrupt the sleep cycle. In some cases, a child who has night terrors will require additional comfort and reassurance during the day and before bedtime. Psychotherapy or counseling can be helpful in many cases. Benzodiazepine medications (such as diazepam ) used at bedtime will often reduce the occurrence of night terrors; however, medication is rarely recommended to treat this disorder.[28>
Prevalence of night terrors is unknown or unclear because there have been very few epidemiological studies over time.[