Reasons for crying a newborn baby in a dream. Baby cries in sleep

Motherhood is the best time in a woman's life. When the baby is nearby, time stops, you forget about everything, you just want to see his smile and hear happy laughter. Any mother is happy when her child is happy. Many problems in childhood are solved simply by hugging mom. The topic of this article is baby crying in a dream. Why do babies cry when they sleep, how to deal with it.

Why does the baby cry in his sleep

Probably every child has ever screamed in his sleep. Why is this happening? What scares a child during sleep?

Everyone knows that children under one year old have their own sleep schedule. And during the first year of life, this regimen will change regularly. Getting smaller. Until the sleep pattern becomes stable, the child does not learn to distinguish between day and night, whimpering in a dream without waking up will be a constant night companion. But if the cry is loud, constant and without interruption from sleep, then this is an occasion to pay attention to the health of the baby.

The main causes of night crying in children:

Physiological - a wet diaper, a numb leg, a dry nose, I want to eat.
Overexcitation, do not deliberately try to exhaust the child before going to bed, the nervous system is quickly excited, but calms down slowly. And instead of a tired child, you can get overexcited and refuse to sleep at all.
A lot of information. For example, during the day the baby visited a new place for him, saw a bunch of strangers, and at night his brain tries to sort out the information received.
instincts. All children subconsciously want to be near their mother, to have close bodily contact. Even in their dreams, they notice that their mother is gone.
Bad dream. Yes, babies dream too.
. The tummy or the head hurts, the diaper rash on the ass irritates, etc.

Be sure to consult with a pediatrician to rule out possible health problems for the baby.

Baby wakes up and cries

If you wake up abruptly at night from a loud and prolonged cry of a child, you need to calm him down immediately. To do this, pick up, shake, kiss. Let him know that mom is there and there is nothing more to be afraid of. As a rule, children, having felt the mother's warmth, immediately calm down. Provided that there are no problems in the form of a sore tummy.

If the child does not calm down in any way, does not recognize his parents, arches and pushes his mother's hands away, then the phenomenon of night terror may be taking place. This process is natural, associated with age-related changes in the children's brain. So the mind of the baby matures. This will go away on its own once the child's brain is strong enough.

The essence of this phenomenon is that the child experiences a sudden nocturnal awakening. The baby is no longer sleeping so soundly, but has not yet woken up. And the fragile brain reacts to such stress with emissions of negative emotions. A mixture of rage and panic.

At such moments, older children can talk and even walk around the room. But there is no adequate reaction to the parents or their words. And the best thing to do is to do nothing. Strange as it may sound, but you can’t help here, but it’s easy to scare more.

As soon as the baby can coherently answer what scared him, or the next morning, help him cope with fear. The words "it was just a dream" do not affect him yet. You need to open the door and drive away what scared him so much.

The child cries in a dream - what to do

Conduct all the necessary examinations and make sure that the baby is not bothered by pain.
Set a clear, lay down and wake up the baby at the same time.
Be sure to carry out water procedures before going to bed with the use of relaxing agents. For example, lavender.
Ensure normal temperature conditions in the child's bedroom. If the air is too dry and the temperature is too low or high, you yourself will not be comfortable sleeping there.
An hour before bedtime, go to calm, sleep-inducing. Read a book, sing a song.
Do not sort things out in the family in front of the baby. They all feel and suffer.
Make sure the baby is full and not overfed.
Children sleep best next to their mother. If it is not possible to put the baby with you, put the crib close to your sleeping place and remove the grate from 1 side.
Try not to completely turn off the light in the bedroom. Leave a small, not bright night light.

The best thing a mother can do for her child is to love him with endless motherly love. But remember that everything is good in moderation.

Most parents perceive baby crying as absolutely normal, because this is just a way to convey information about some needs of the baby to adults. Although in most cases the cause of crying is on the surface, there are also situations when it is problematic to guess the wishes of the child expressed in this way. If the child cries in a dream, and does it regularly, some parents are able to really panic - what if the little one is faced with a serious problem and needs the help of doctors?

For this reason, the question of possible reasons for crying in a dream is of great interest to young families, but we will try to answer whether it is worth worrying about in this situation.

The specifics of baby sleep

Most often, it is children under one year old who cry in a dream, and if a similar problem is observed in older children, then they can often express in words the reason for what is happening. That is why we will not consider preschool children, but will concentrate on babies.

Here it is necessary to immediately clarify that if a child up to a year old shudders in a dream, moans, jerks his legs, arches or even sobs, then there is really nothing strange or bad in this.

The fact is that babies spend most of their rest in the phase of the so-called “REM sleep”, which is also characteristic of adults, but only at the moment of falling asleep and immediately before a gradual awakening.

Such a difference from the adult norm is caused by the rapid development of the child's brain, as a result of which the nervous system never actually rests. It is in this phase of sleep that a person sees dreams, so it is not surprising that parents can observe a visible reaction to what is happening in the form of:

"Running" pupils with closed eyes;
Active movements of the limbs;
Triggered sucking reflex;
Grimacing;
Various sounds, including crying.

Such phenomena are called "physiological night crying", and according to doctors, they do not indicate the presence of any irritant.

In some cases, such an irritant may actually be a dream, in which the baby may find himself in uncomfortable or even frightening conditions - in such a situation, even a much older child talks in his sleep, screams and cries. In general, crying is a common way to release emotional tension, so the tears of the baby in a dream, if he does not wake up and calms down quickly, should not cause excitement.

Psychologists also believe that with the help of physiological crying, children instinctively check the situation around them - is the mother ready to come to the rescue if something happens? That is why by shaking the baby who did not have time to wake up in time, you can make sure that he continues to sleep.

Experts do not advise calming the baby too actively, because he himself is not going to wake up yet, and zealous motion sickness can easily interrupt his sleep; in this case, it will be enough to gently shake it or even just sing something softly - the little one will subconsciously understand that everything is in order and fall asleep again.

If the child does not observe any reaction, his brain signals insecurity, and then the baby wakes up and starts screaming much louder to attract the attention of adults.

Approximately by the end of the first year of life, such a reflex of "scanning" space should disappear.

Too many emotions

In the first months of life, the baby does not have a sufficiently developed psyche so that what is happening around causes some strong emotions - in fact, he reacts only to discomfort. However, at the age of 3-4 months there is a strong emotional shift, which is the first serious step towards the psychological maturation of the individual.

This may not seem obvious to adults, but at this stage the child is already beginning to actively perceive the world around him and try to remember or understand it. Emotions accumulated during the day, even positive ones, do not allow the child to fall asleep quickly, excite him and excite him, which leads to poor sleep quality, including crying.

At this stage, parents should move away from strict adherence to the schedule, and to a greater extent focus on the current needs of children. So, if the child slept poorly the previous time, the next period of wakefulness should be reduced. If this is not done, the lack of sleep will again accumulate stress in the child, and this will lead to further sleep deprivation, resulting in a vicious circle.

So that emotional reasons do not interfere with the child's sleep and do not provoke him to tears in his sleep, follow a few simple rules:

It is unacceptable to take away from the baby part of the time allotted for sleep for lulling. To ensure that he falls asleep on time, start putting him to bed early. Do not wait for the moment when the child begins to clearly show signs of fatigue - this is already an indicator of excessive overwork.
Vivid emotions, even positive ones, are not recommended for babies under one year old at all. This statement is especially true in the afternoon, otherwise you can lose too much time on lulling.
TV for young children is very harmful precisely because of the large number of emotions. Even quiet cartoons give a lot of different information, invigorate with a lot of bright colors, and in general for a baby they don’t seem so simple and accessible as for an adult, therefore they can cause poor sleep and crying at night.

As for nightmares, their existence at the age of less than one year has not been proven. Older children may cry because of them, but this is usually a one-time occurrence, not a recurring one. If a child complains about regularly having terrible dreams with a repetitive plot, it makes sense to contact a psychologist.

Unsuitable microclimate

Since babies, as we have already said, sleep much more sensitively than adults, it is not surprising that in general they are much more demanding on indoor conditions. Further aggravating the situation is that a child under the age of one has little influence on the situation - after all, he cannot hide on his own when it is cold, or open up when it is hot. The child may not wake up, but feel discomfort and cry in his sleep, which will worsen the quality of rest and can lead to full awakening.

To avoid such situations, parents should pay great attention to creating really comfortable conditions in the nursery and their constant support. Ideal comfort in understanding the baby looks like this:

The temperature is about 18-22 degrees. It all depends both on the individual qualities of the baby, and on the number and thickness of the diapers in which he is wrapped. The argument “steam of bones does not break” does not work here at all! If the baby is uncomfortable falling asleep, he will cry regularly in his sleep.
Humidity - within 40-60%. Too dry air causes the mucous membranes of the upper respiratory tract to dry out and evaporates too much fluid from the baby’s body, but we want him to sleep soundly, especially since he cannot drink on his own and will cry. In our latitudes, the air is usually overdried, and this problem can be solved with the help of a humidifier. Too humid air for our country is not typical.
No dust. Getting into the baby's nose, dust clogs the respiratory tract and interferes with the normal enrichment of the body with oxygen, although the child's brain, actively developing even in sleep, urgently needs it. Because laying occurs gradually, dust is one of the most common causes of crying in your sleep without waking up. To eliminate dust, ventilate the room and carry out regular wet cleaning, as well as minimize the number of books, carpets, upholstered furniture and toys in the nursery.
Fresh air. A growing body needs oxygen critically, so airing is almost a must before going to bed. If this is unacceptable due to climate or pollen allergies, look to sophisticated modern air conditioning systems that can solve this problem.

How to solve the problem of hunger and thirst?

Babies want to eat much more often than adults, so the desire to eat in the middle of the night until crying is quite normal for them, but a person of any age can want to drink at night. However, after such awakenings, the child will have to be euthanized again each time, which does not allow either his mother or himself to sleep, so you have to come up with ways to reduce the number of such rises.

In the first months of life, it will not be possible to completely avoid night feedings - you will have to wake up anyway, but you can reduce the number of night anxiety if you feed your baby more intensively during the day. If an adult is not recommended to eat before bedtime, then for a baby such a procedure is not only possible, but also useful, since it will provide stable sleep.

We have already mentioned how poor-quality rest can cause constant night crying, so in the evening you should eat hard, after all, a child of this age still does not eat anything that is difficult to digest.

At the same time, experts recommend intensifying the nutrition of the baby not so much in quantity (whether it is the actual weight of food at one meal or the number of meals per day), as in quality. With those children who are fed with baby food, the situation is clear - you just need to pay attention to more high-calorie foods.

As for babies who are breastfed, there is a very important point that not everyone knows about: the fact is that when a baby is attached to the breast, the so-called fore milk. It has a relatively low nutritional value, but in terms of volume, the baby does not need much - he feels that the tummy is full and refuses to drink further, only the nutrients received with foremilk are not enough for a short time. As a result, the baby, who seemed full, very quickly wants to eat again, and therefore cries in his sleep.

If the baby is clearly taking in a little milk at a time, it should be expressed beforehand so that he receives only the most high-calorie product.

Babies should be offered water during night feedings only in the heat, but if the baby is artificially fed, then some water must accompany each feeding session.

Teeth

Very often, the cause of night crying is a phenomenon that is characteristic of all babies without exception - teething. It is very difficult for such babies, because they feel itching and pain in their mouth all the time.

Of course, even in such a situation, the child still needs to sleep, so it is possible to lull him, but at the moments when the pain intensifies, he can scream, starts to cry sharply and wakes up. The problem is especially aggravated if the baby is currently cutting not one tooth, but several at once.

In the first weeks of life, crying is almost the only way a baby can communicate his needs to his parents. In most cases, the mother is able to understand the cause of tears, but when a baby cries in a dream, adult family members become seriously worried and do not understand what to do. No less excitement is caused by the night cries of one-year-old and older babies. Let's figure out why children's sleep can be accompanied by crying.

Crying for a newborn baby is practically the only way to communicate to the family about their needs.

Sleep features of newborns

The structure of a newborn's sleep is different from that of an "adult". Almost half of the rest time is spent in REM sleep (with rapid eye movements). This period is accompanied by dreams, as well as:

active movement of pupils under closed eyelids;
moving arms and legs;
reproduction of the sucking reflex;
change of facial expressions (grimacing);
various sounds - a newborn cries in a dream, whimpers, sobs.

The predominance of the "fast" phase in infancy is due to the intensive growth of the brain and the rapid development of higher nervous activity. If the baby periodically cries at night for a short period of time and does not wake up, then this is a variant of the norm.

Doctors call this phenomenon “physiological night crying” and believe that it helps the child relieve stress caused by emotions and impressions received during the day.

Another function of "physiological crying" is the "scanning" of space. By making sounds, the newborn checks whether he is safe, whether his parents will come to his aid. If the cry remains unanswered, the baby may wake up and throw a tantrum.

It is important for a crying child to be aware of his safety - he subconsciously checks if his mother will come to calm and protect him

At the age of 3-4 months, all healthy babies have the Moro reflex, which consists in the automatic throwing up of the handles in response to the action of the stimulus. A sudden movement can wake up a child. You can solve the problem with the help of swaddling. There is a technique of loose wrapping with a diaper, which allows you not to constrain motor skills and at the same time provides good rest.

How to respond to "physiological crying"?

Do not be too active in comforting the child at the time of "physiological crying." It is enough just to sing something to him in a gentle voice or stroke him. In some cases, after a few seconds of whimpering, children calm down on their own. Intense motion sickness in the arms or in the crib, or loud speech can finally wake up the baby.

The correct reaction to "sleepy" crying also carries an educational burden. The child must learn to calm down and accept his nocturnal loneliness. If you pick him up at the slightest sign of anxiety, he will demand the attention of mom and dad every night.

Approximately 60-70% of children learn to calm down on their own closer to the year. However, mommy must definitely know how to calm the baby if necessary.

Crises of development

In the first year of life, a child goes through a huge path of physical and mental development. In some periods, changes are felt especially sharply, they are usually called crises (see also:). They are characterized by a significant increase in the load on the nervous system and can cause crying at night.

It is important to protect the psyche of the crumbs from overload:

observe intervals of sleep and wakefulness;
at the slightest sign of fatigue, give him the opportunity to rest;
avoid emotional overexcitation.

It should be borne in mind that at 12-14 weeks there is a change in the pattern (structure) of sleep. The transition to the "adult" model leads to a deterioration in its quality or "regression of 4 months". The child may burst into tears at night, wake up from this and not calm down for a long time.

During this period, it is worth accustoming him to falling asleep on his own. One way is to do things that soothe your baby but keep her awake. It is necessary that before going to bed the baby is peaceful, not excited, then it will be easier for him to plunge into the arms of Morpheus.

Emotional overexcitation can also become an obstacle to a child's healthy night's sleep.

Cycles and phases of sleep

Changes lead to the appearance of a phase of "superficial sleep", which begins immediately after falling asleep and lasts 5-20 minutes. The baby then falls into a deep sleep. At the moment of transition, the child is partially awakened. At first, this provokes crying, then he learns to overcome this period without tears.

In addition, tantrums during phase changes may be associated with emotional overexcitation or accumulated fatigue. To prevent this, you should put the baby to bed on time. If, nevertheless, he woke up and cannot calm down, the next period of wakefulness should be reduced.

Changing stages (phases) of sleep form a cycle. In an adult, it lasts about 1.5 hours, and in a small child - 40 minutes. Duration increases as you get older.

The cycles are delimited by short-term awakenings that the baby needs to assess the environment and his condition. The baby is able to cry if something does not suit him - for example, the room is too hot or he feels hungry. You can soothe him by satisfying his needs. In the future, it is worth taking care in advance to eliminate provoking factors.

Emotional overload

In many cases, after 6 months, the baby cries in his sleep due to emotional overexcitation. The reasons for this are an improperly organized daily routine and an excitable nature. An overtired and irritated baby cannot fall asleep normally, which increases the tension of the nervous system. The accumulated "charge" prevents the baby from resting calmly at night - even falling into a dream, he often wakes up and cries a lot.

do not allow the baby to “overwalk” - start laying down a little earlier than he starts to act up from fatigue;
limit strong emotions, including positive ones, in the afternoon;
minimize the amount of time allotted for watching TV, in the evening it is better to refuse it altogether.

Children over one year old may wake up at night crying because of nightmares or fears. You should find out the cause of the problem and help the baby get rid of it. You can read about corrective techniques on the global network.

An older child may have nightmares associated with fragments of daytime emotions and fears. It is necessary to clarify the situation and try to stabilize it with the help of corrective therapy.

Physical factors

Why does a child cry in his sleep? Children of different ages can cry and scream under the influence of various external and internal negative factors. The first group includes:

incorrect microclimate conditions in the room - discrepancy between temperature, humidity and air purity to standard indicators;
bright lights and loud sounds.

physiological needs - hunger, thirst;
discomfort associated with uncomfortable clothing, wet diapers;
various painful conditions - teething, meteosensitivity.

Microclimate in the room

Hot dry air in the children's room will not give the baby the opportunity to get enough sleep. He will often wake up and cry from irritation and fatigue. The famous pediatrician Komarovsky gives the following advice:

Maintain the temperature at the level of 18-22ºС, and humidity - 40-60%. To do this, you need to install the regulators on the batteries and purchase.
Minimize dust content. This will help airing, wet cleaning, the rejection of dust collectors in the room (books, upholstered furniture, plush toys, carpets).
Leave the window open all night. It is worth closing it only if the frost outside is about 15-18 ºС.

Airing the room is a must before going to bed. It is undesirable only in the case when the baby is diagnosed with an allergy to the pollen of street plants. In such a situation, a split system will help, that is, a device that is equipped with the functions of cooling, humidifying and purifying the air.

To maintain the humidity in the room at the proper level, it is advisable to purchase a humidifier.

Hunger and thirst

If a newborn is hungry or thirsty, first he whimpers or makes other sounds, and then, not getting what he wants, he starts crying. In the first months of life, eating at night is a natural need for a baby, especially if he is fed breast milk. You can reduce the frequency of feeding by increasing the amount of food consumed during the day. It is especially important to make sure that the baby eats well before bedtime.

Do not overfeed the baby, exceed the normative amounts of formula or increase the frequency of meals. With breastfeeding, which is often carried out on demand, you need to monitor how carefully the baby sucks milk from one breast. Immediately after application, foremilk is released, which is low in nutrients. If the baby receives only it, he does not eat up. “Artificial” children, as well as all babies in the heat when crying at night, should be offered not only food, but also water.

Unpleasant sensations during teething is another reason why a child cries in a dream. The hardest thing is for those babies who at one time have not one, but 2-4 teeth. Children experience pain and itching in the mouth, which prevents them from eating normally and makes them cry out in their sleep.

The period of teething is quite difficult for the baby, because the gums ache all the time. Because of this, the baby may not sleep well.

A sure sign that whims are associated with teething is that the baby is trying to gnaw on clothes, toys, and so on. You can alleviate his condition with the help of chilled silicone teethers, as well as special anesthetic gels recommended by the doctor.

weather sensitivity

Weather sensitivity is a painful reaction of the body to changing weather conditions. Today, not only adults, but also kids suffer from it. The risk group includes children who have had difficult childbirth, caesarean section, intrauterine diseases, suffering from increased intracranial pressure. To the poor health of the crumbs, accompanied by whims and restless sleep, can lead to:

increased solar activity;
strong wind;
changes in atmospheric pressure;
a sharp transition from sunny weather to cloudy;
showers, thunderstorms, snowfalls and other natural phenomena.

Doctors cannot accurately name the causes of meteorological dependence. If the child does not sleep well and often screams when the weather changes, it is worth consulting with a neurologist.

Every mother is familiar with baby crying at night, and it is often difficult to determine its cause. We will try to tell you why a child cries in a dream and what parents should do in different situations.

newborn babies

Babies cry in their sleep at the slightest discomfort: a wet diaper, cold or heat, tummy pain or hunger. So the crying of the baby cannot be ignored, the child must be approached.

Intestinal colic. Newborn babies often experience abdominal pain. At the same time, they strain their legs, pull them, the babies pass gases. For such a case, you can purchase special drops or get by with dill water and tea with the addition of fennel. And be sure to stroke the baby on the tummy clockwise - mother's affection always helps ().
Mother's absence. Usually, newborn babies fall asleep either in their mother's arms or next to her. When the child ceases to feel his mother's presence, he begins to cry in his sleep. In this situation, just take the baby to your arms until he falls asleep again. Or you can teach your baby to fall asleep on their own. To do this, be patient for 3 days (this is the period that allows you to retrain the baby). When the baby wakes up and starts crying, just be patient and let him fall asleep on his own. Although this method causes a lot of controversy. An article about
Teeth. At 4-5 months, any mother encounters the problem of cutting teeth. So get pain relief gel at the pharmacy in a timely manner and smear the gums of your crumbs before going to bed. A suitable gel will help you choose both a doctor and a pharmacist. Period article
Hunger. Immediately after birth, babies should establish a feeding regimen. If you feed your baby on demand, then gradually he will get used to sleeping at night for about 5 hours and not waking up. But if you've made the decision to feed your baby on a "scheduled" basis, then be prepared for nighttime tears and feeding demands.
Hot or cold room. Another reason why a child may cry in a dream is a hot, stuffy or, conversely, cold room. Ventilate the baby's room more often and keep the temperature in it at 20-22 degrees.

Baby crying in sleep

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Children after a year

Why do babies cry in their sleep aged one year and older , deeper. Children after the age of two begin to have nightmares. The reason can be not only various experiences, but also banal overeating, disruption of the daily routine, or too active pastime before going to bed.

Night terrors can cause a dense or heavy dinner. Let the baby's last meal be 2 hours before bedtime, but not later. Food should be light. The daily routine will help to avoid problems with sleep. If the child goes to bed at the same time, then his body does not have to experience stress and the likelihood of nightmares is minimal. With rare exceptions (travels, guests), the time when the baby goes to bed should not deviate by more than an hour.
To set your child up for rest, come up with a traditional activity before bedtime. It could be reading a book or an evening walk. The main thing is that the lesson is calm and the child associates it with preparing for sleep. Active games before bed lead to overexcitation. Not only does it become difficult for a child to fall asleep, but his psyche may also react too aggressively to such fun.
One of the common reasons why babies may cry in their sleep is playing computer games and watching TV. Nightmares can cause not only games and films with elements of violence, but also harmless cartoons. Therefore, reduce your child's interaction with the computer and TV, especially before bed.
Emotional turmoil can haunt your baby. This may be a conflict with peers, swearing in the family, excitement before the control, fear during the day, resentment. If you notice that your baby is worried about something, then before going to bed, try to cheer him up. Speak kind words to the baby, support him.
The cause of nightmares may be the fear of the dark. If your baby is afraid to sleep without light, then let him fall asleep with a night light. This will help the child feel secure and avoid unnecessary bedtime fears.

Many babies cry in their sleep, and most of the time there is no real cause for concern. Try to protect the child from negative emotions, support your baby, do not be afraid to show your care and love. Be friends with your baby, watch him and sleep peacefully!

Some babies, hungry during sleep, immediately begin to scream demandingly when they wake up, not wanting to wait a second. At the same time, they turn their head on the sides in search of their mother's desired breast or a bottle of formula. Or perhaps they just discovered that their mother was not around. By the way, for this reason, older children may also cry: if you and then leave, then he may be frightened by discovering your absence.

These seizures can occur during weaning, and this becomes more problematic as the child gets older.

As for children of the first year of life, there is a very interesting theory (by the way, scientifically proven) that they may dream of childbirth. It is believed that these are not the most joyful dreams: the baby relives the fear of the unknown again. And therefore it follows.

Another theory admits that infants see the other world or a parallel world, something more is available to their gaze or imagination (so to speak) than an adult, their connection with higher powers remains strong and open for up to three years.

And believing Christians are sure: anxiety and crying after awakening is observed in unbaptized children. It is better to conduct this ceremony immediately after the birth of the child, so that he receives the protection of heavenly forces.

The child wakes up and cries in pain

And at the age of 12 months, and especially after a year, it can be very painful. Against this background, children very often sleep restlessly and even wake up at night or simply cry in their sleep.

Even if the baby's first teeth appeared painlessly, you should not automatically cross this reason off the list of suspects. Because some teeth, in particular incisors and chewing teeth, come out very hard and cause severe pain to the crumbs.

At the same time, the child cries sharply, squeals directly, and it does not work to calm him down. Try giving him a painkiller before bed and see if he reacts. There are other ways as well.

Crying in pain is accompanied by wriggling, twisting of the legs, throwing around - the whole body of the crumbs is tense at the same time, he can clamp his fists and wave his arms. With toothache, children often hit themselves on the head and pull on their ears (in fact, the same is true for headaches).

A loving mother will certainly recognize the cry of a child because of pain: suffering, despair, a cry for help are heard in it. And anything can hurt - and the ears, and the throat, and the head, and the stomach, and the teeth, and even the priest.

Neurological causes

Despite the wide prevalence of the problem and the likelihood of a wide variety of causes of its occurrence, neurological disorders cannot be ruled out. It happens that during the examination, a child is found to have an accumulation of fluid in the brain and even the formation of blood clots. Any neurological disorders may be accompanied by crying during or after sleep. If a diagnosis is established, the doctor will prescribe treatment for the child. But caution should also be exercised here: some neurologists prescribe drugs without much understanding of the causes of the child's condition. In addition, many of these drugs have serious side effects and can cause serious consequences.

In the meantime, the child may simply not be able to cope with the emotional load that he experiences during the day, and especially in the last hours before bedtime. Any episode that caused him a strong emotional shock (and not only bad, but also good) can come back to haunt him at night in the form of crying. If during the day the child experiences stress or shock, then they are very likely to come to mind at night (or even during daytime sleep). Analyze what kind of relationships you have in your family, how you behave, what kind of psychological atmosphere reigns.

The children's nervous system is still immature, the psyche of babies is very vulnerable, and therefore 2-3 hours before going to bed it should not be disturbed: exclude active games at this time, any strong emotions, watching TV and playing at the computer. As night approaches, speak a half tone more quietly. Have evening bedtime rituals such as taking a bath or shower, reading a book, singing a lullaby, etc. Develop a daily routine for the child so that he always goes to daytime and nighttime sleep at approximately the same time. Make sure that the room during sleep was cool, fresh, moist air.

At an older age, children's fears become more and more relevant: being realized in nightmares, they often force the child to wake up in the middle of the night crying. Perhaps some time should be ? Believe me, you should not break the child's psyche for the sake of discipline or principles.

It was also noticed that small children are very sensitive to pressure drops and changes in weather conditions, lunar phases - outbreaks of anxiety can be associated with these circumstances.

The child cries in his sleep and cannot wake up

Of course, whatever the cause of children's anxiety and crying, the very first help should be mother's presence, love, care, affection, understanding. Hug the baby, kiss, try to calm him down and do not leave him alone until he falls asleep again. If awakenings happen at the same time, then come to the child at that moment in order to be there before he wakes up. Try to discuss the situation with the child: at first, immediately at night, and if it doesn’t work out or not the case (more on that below), then the next morning. Try to find out what is bothering him (unless, of course, the baby is already talking). Children often complain of pain or admit to having a bad dream.

Love and understanding are the simplest and most correct actions in the current situation, but, unfortunately, they are not always effective. A lot of parents grumble that the child screams and cries in a dream without waking up, and when trying to calm him down even more, he starts to hysteria and pushes away.

Doctors do not have a sane explanation for this phenomenon, and pediatricians also do not give specific recommendations. Meanwhile, experts in the field of sleep assess this situation quite calmly. Due to the imperfection of the nervous system among children, such cases are not uncommon, and even the norm. The sleep of an adult consists of several phases, in which he either superficially naps, or sleeps deeply and soundly. In a child, the transition between these phases can be “erased”: many parents observe a picture when the baby seems to wake up, opens his eyes, can cry or puff, even mutter something or move (crawl, get up), but at the same time it is clearly visible that he is in a dream. The child really has not woken up, he does not understand what is happening to him, and therefore it is useless to appeal to him and make any attempts to calm him down and put him to bed. After several minutes of such excitement (usually 15-20 on average), the baby can wake up completely and then fall asleep again, or go to bed without regaining consciousness completely.

By the way, such “seizures” usually occur in the first three hours of a child’s sleep, when he is at his strongest. And more often, such episodes occur at the age of a child of 3-4 years (although not at all necessary).

Perhaps this is a form of child sleepwalking, but it is difficult to confirm this, and it does not make anyone feel better about it.

Through trial and error, parents who find themselves in a problematic situation share their experiences. Some of them advise to fully wake the child if you are sure that he does not understand what is happening and is not aware of this. Then they offer to calm the crying child and put them back to sleep, even if for this they have to read a tale or watch cartoons.

Other mothers prefer not to bring the child out of an incomprehensible state and not to invade the subconscious. You just have to survive the "attack" and wait until the child falls asleep again - they assure. And experts agree with them.

It is very likely that if the child cries without waking up, he had a terrible dream. But this already happens much later - a few hours after falling asleep. And since the child's psyche continues its development for several years after birth, babies cannot always distinguish a dream from reality - and they get very scared. Nightmares are usually dreamed by children over 3 years old, and in the morning they can often remember their content. A psychologist will help to overcome night fears in a child if this is repeated regularly. Perhaps you yourself will find the reason for their appearance. But often there is no problem in nightmares: they simply reflect the events experienced by the baby, distorted by the violent childhood fantasy. And yet, you must show concern for children's fear: if a child wakes up in the middle of the night in a fright from what he saw in a dream, then behave as if this is really happening, but you know how to solve the problem: for example, expel monster from the apartment and lock the door.

Don't worry, these nocturnal seizures are not dangerous, as long as you are near your baby at the time. As the child grows older, they will happen less and less, and then, most likely, they will disappear altogether.

And it is impossible not to say in this context also about the evil eye ... Not all parents believe in such "things", but the topic is very much discussed, and many mothers associate the incomprehensible shrill crying of children in a dream with this. It is unlikely that any child will be hindered or harmed by sincere maternal prayer. Regarding other methods of dealing with the evil eye of a child, this is no longer the topic of our article.