Through her first eight months of her life, I endured long, sleepless nights walking the floors and rocking my baby girl. For some unknown reason, she would wake nearly every hour. I was fully aware of the fact that newborns typically sleep in three-hour intervals for the first month or so; however, I was not expecting to get up quite this much for this long. I would often wonder why my child kept waking up for no apparent reason unlike the other children her age, but I was a young mother and inexperienced with these issues; therefore, I simply handled the situation the best that I could.
After my daughter turned nine months old, she finally began to sleep throughout the night, and I was at last able to get some much needed rest myself. Life was good, and she was growing into a happy, inquisitive toddler. This, however, soon faded away when without warning; she once again began to awaken in the middle of the night with no obvious explanation as to why. During the day, she was a typical, happy-go-lucky two year old, but at night she would always wake up screaming. At times, I would find myself crying right alongside her simply because I was tired, I was frustrated, and I simply did not know what to do. There didn’t seem to be anything physically wrong with her, and I could not understand the reasoning behind her screaming. When I asked friends and family members for advice, they said that she was either having bad dreams or not getting enough to eat. These were more than dreams or hunger pains; my child was shrieking in terror.
I refused to accept their nonchalant opinions and decided to go to my daughter’s pediatrician about the problem. During her examination with the doctor, I discussed how my daughter would awaken me with horrific screams, and yet she would push me away whenever I tried to comfort her. I went on to express my surprise that she never seemed to remember these horrifying events the next morning. The doctor informed me that my child was suffering from a common childhood condition referred to as ‘night terrors,’ and the episodes she was experiencing would cease over time. There is no known cause, he went on to say, and the lengths of the night terrors vary with each individual child. My daughter’s had lasted nearly six months this time. The best advice the doctor could give me was to hold her in my arms and reassure her that everything was all right. From then on every time she experienced another night terror, I would take her into my arms and hold her close to me. I patiently ignored the constant kicking and thrashing about as she tried to fight my loving embrace, and I often had to remind myself that she was unaware of her actions. Eventually, the night terrors subsided, and my efforts in helping her prevailed. In fact, the advice I received not only helped with her night terrors, but I am employing the same technique with my latest challenge.
The sweet, little girl that once suffered from night terrors has since grown into a typical, rebellious teenager. Raising young children is difficult enough, but a teenager can certainly test a parent’s patience. However, I firmly believe that surviving those horrendous night terrors has given me a chance to see things in a different perspective. The world around us not only can be frightening to those who are younger, but teenagers often experience their own fears as well. Going through puberty while trying to fit in and dealing with peer pressure is certainly a frightening ordeal in itself, but realizing that they are becoming young adults and having to face up to the responsibilities that go along with this is without doubt a terrifying period of adjustment. Therefore, in my approach to helping my daughter through these new fears in her life, I am simply taking the same advice as I did with her night terrors. During her most frightening moments, I hold her close and reassure her that everything will be okay. I tell her that she has the ability to overcome anything that life may throw at her. She knows that no matter how uncertain things may get, I will be there every step of the way.
