Abnormal sleep patterns in children can often raise concerns. As a parent, differentiating short-term problems from more persistent, long-term issues can help you implement strategies or seek help where required. 

Short-term sleep disturbances can last a few nights and can be a result of new medication, a change in bedtime routine, moving house or sleeping whilst away on holiday or at a friend’s house. 

Persistent sleep disturbances can start to affect other areas of a child’s life, for example, difficulties concentrating, poor memory or behavioural problems. 

These disturbances can be divided into two main categories: 

Wetting the bed at night is also called nocturnal enuresis. It is a very common issue in young children. It is developmentally normal for children who are toilet trained during the day to still have trouble staying dry overnight, up until around 5 years old.  

Children develop at different rates, which means they may experience bedwetting accidents later than you expect. If you are concerned about the frequency or developmental stage of your child, talk to your family GP.  

Generally, bedwetting happens because your child’s body is making more urine overnight than their bladder can hold, and they cannot fully wake up in time to empty it. 

It is important to remember that bedwetting usually happens when your child is in a very deep sleep. It is not something your child can control, they do on purpose or because they are poorly behaved. 

See the Bedwetting factsheet for more information on bedwetting including causes, diagnosis, management and treatment. 

From 6 months of age, your child becomes more and more aware of your permanent presence and grows more emotionally attached to you. When you leave or separate from your child, they become anxious as they know you are elsewhere. This is called ‘person permanence’.  

Children start to learn that even though they can’t see you, you still exist. Because they have no concept of time, they become anxious because they know you are somewhere and don’t know when you will return. Children may cry or fret when you put them to sleep or when they wake up in the middle of the night knowing they cannot see you in their room. This behaviour usually peaks around 1-2 years, and children tend to grow out of this stage soon after.  

If separation anxiety is significantly disrupting your child’s sleep or continues for an extended period, speak to your family doctor.  

Nightmares happen when your child wakes up while having a bad dream. Your child might remember the “scary dream” and be afraid to go back to sleep. Children can have nightmares at any age and are most likely to have them during the Rapid Eye Movement (REM) state of sleep each night. This is the vivid dream state  between deep sleep and being awake.

See Explaining the sleep cycle for more information on REM sleep.

Supporting your child with nightmares:  

With nightmares, it is usually enough to reassure your child and stay with them until they fall back asleep again.   

Nightmares can be from worries or anxiety that your child has. It is good to talk to your child about any fears or worries during the day or at the time of tucking into bed. 

Night terrors happen when children are only partly aroused or woken from a deep sleep. This means they are not quite awake, but they are not entirely asleep either. 

During a night terror, your child’s brain is asleep, whereas the body's response can look awake and facial expressions can be very emotional. Your child may scream and seem very frightened, usually not recognising the people around them.   

Your child may remember being frightened, but not what the dream was about. They will not usually remember the night terror the next morning. Younger children are more likely to have night terrors and usually outgrow them by the end of primary school age. Like nightmares, there are usually no long-term psychological effects associated.  

Sometimes children will quietly walk during a night terror, this is called partial arousal or, more commonly sleepwalking. See Sleepwalking for more information.

Supporting your child with a night terror

It is best not to try to wake your child as this might prolong the night terror episode. They may try to abscond or push people away.  Gently keep them out of harm’s way where possible until it passes. 

• Set up safe sleeping arrangements, for example, lower set beds to prevent falls 
• Remove clutter or obstacles from your child’s bedroom floor 
• Secure your home by locking doors and windows in the house 
• Secure any stairs by installing an appropriately sized gate at the top or bottom (between your child’s room and the stairs) 

If night terrors happen at the same time every night, you may be able to prevent them by completely waking your child before it happens, for example, by gently shaking their shoulder until they stir. Doing this 15 minutes before the time of a night terror and letting them drift back off to sleep can be effective. 

If they do stop the episodes, after 4 or 5 nights of these scheduled wakings you can stop the waking and see if the night terrors have stopped. In this method doesn't work with your child, ensure your child is sleeping in a safe environment and seek help from your family GP as soon as you can. 

Obstructive sleep apnoea (OSA) is a condition where the muscles in the back of the throat relax while sleeping. This blocks or obstructs the airway to the point where there is not an efficient breathing pattern. Children with OSA usually stop breathing for a short period of time on and off whilst they sleep which often sounds like a snort, grunt or gasp for air.

OSA usually occurs in children who have large tonsils or adenoids, have a family history of OSA, are above a healthy weight, have issues with their mouth or jaw or have medication conditions, for example, cerebral palsy, down syndrome or severe allergies. 

As a parent, you may notice a few of the following signs and symptoms of OSA: 

• snoring 

• pauses in breath or gasping for air 

• restless sleeping 

• consistent tiredness throughout the day 

• other sleep concerns, for example, sleepwalking or bedwetting.

If you are concerned about your child’s breathing throughout the night, you should discuss it with your family GP. They may advise on one of the following if your child is diagnosed with OSA. 

Sleepwalking (also known as somnambulism) is where a child moves or engages in activity whilst still asleep. It usually occurs in the first few hours after going to bed.  

Even though the name suggests walking, it can include a range of other behaviours, for example, doing exercise, rearranging furniture or eating food in the kitchen. A child’s eyes will be open during sleepwalking, but they are likely to be vacant. Talking to a sleepwalking child may prompt a partial response or something that is unlikely to make sense to you.  

Keeping your child safe during a sleepwalking episode 

Sleepwalking is harmless in itself but can pose potential risks to children from embarrassment all the way through to life-threatening, for example, handling knives or attempting to drive a car or machinery. 

In order to keep your child safe during sleepwalking episodes apply the following tips: 

• set up safe sleeping arrangements, for example, lower set beds to prevent falls 
• remove clutter or obstacles from your child’s bedroom floor 
• secure your home by locking doors and windows in the house 
• secure any stairs by installing an appropriately sized gate at the top or bottom (between your child’s room and the stairs). 

See Improving your child's sleep pattern for more tips on how to help reduce the incidence of sleepwalking episodes. 

As a parent of a child who sleepwalks, you should raise your concerns with a health professional when your child’s sleepwalking is: 

• becoming dangerous or involving risky behaviour 
• significantly disrupts your child’s sleep where they are tired most of the day 
• occurring quite regularly or most nights. 

Plagiocephaly is a term used to describe a baby's uneven and/or asymmetrical head shape, which may also include the ears and face. It does not affect the development of your baby's brain. If it is not treated, however, it may affect your baby's physical appearance by causing uneven growth of the face and head.   

See the positional plagiocephaly factsheet for more information on the condition, including signs, symptoms, diagnosis, treatment and management. 

Sudden unexpected death in infancy (SUDI) is the term used for the sudden or unexpected death of a baby or infant in which the cause is not fully known.  There are two main categories of SUDI which occur in babies under 12 months of age, including:  

1. Sudden infant death syndrome (SIDS)- no known cause of death whilst sleeping 
2. Fatal sleeping accident- death is attributed to the child suffocating, being strangled or trapped whilst sleeping 

See the following for more information: 

• Sudden Unexpected Death in Infancy (SUDI) factsheet 

• Newborn Sleep page  

• SCHN news article. 

Sleeping away from home refers to any time your child is away from the house for the night, sleeping over at a trusted person’s house or at a school or recreation camp. It can be intentional with prior planning, for example, a school friend’s sleepover or a last-minute necessity, for example, if there is an emergency or you need to work away from home for a night or two.

Preparing your child for a sleepover with friends or family can prove to be an exciting and anxious time for you and your child. The more prepared you can be before the sleepover, the more information you know about the home and family looking after your child and the more reassurance you can give your child will all help ease the process. 

Tips to help you prepare for your child to sleep away from home. 

There will always be risk in anything your child does and having sleepovers is no different. It is about being prepared and mitigating any risk where possible to create positive experiences for your family. 

Sleepovers help your child create more independence, more experiences and a stronger connection with some of their friends. There are many benefits to being open to your child sleeping away from home under a trusted adult’s supervision.