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Q: How will my sleep habits effect me? (Heidi P.)
A: Heidi, good sleep habits are important because good sleep is fundamental to health and well-being. Sleep is a basic human need. Without good sleep, our bodies and minds can’t function optimally. Sleep deprivation has been shown to contribute to a wide variety of diseases, including mood disorders and depression, weight gain and obesity, high blood pressure, cardiac disease and even cancer.
Anything that keeps you from regularly getting a good night’s rest could be a sign of bad sleep habits. Perhaps it’s drinking coffee after dinner and then tossing and turning all night or staying up late doing computer work and being unable to “wind down” and fall asleep. It could also be something like not keeping a regular sleep schedule, as you would for your child.
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Q: Should I lie down with my child to help them fall asleep? (Tonya E.)
A: Tonya, generally, no. If children are not able to fall asleep on their own at bedtime, they will have difficulties returning to sleep during natural waking in the middle of the night. That is when they cry or show up at your bed in the middle of the night. Children who learn the skills to fall asleep by themselves at the start of the night can then use these same skills to fall back to sleep on their own in the middle of the night. Infants older than 6 months should be able to sleep through the night.
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