Sleep Support Pack

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Natural remedies to help kids sleep

Natural remedies to help kids sleep are important when establishing good sleep hygiene for your child. Being sleep deprived is bad enough as adults but being sleep deprived and trying to help our kids sleep is next level!  As our children develop from helpless tiny babies to independent children, it is very important that we as parents learn how to help our kids sleep better. If children learn how to put themselves off to sleep as well as how to resettle themselves during the night, the chances are they will view bedtime as a positive time to recharge and rest and continue these positive sleep habits into adulthood. Along with bestowing our children with love and belonging, teaching them the art of sleeping is invaluable and critical to them being successful learners in life.

What helps kids sleep?

So what can help kids sleep? We know lots of natural light, exercise, and fresh air are very important. Children are built to run, climb, jump, hide, hop, skip, dance, throw and catch. Their bodies need physical movement to grow strong and healthy. The Australian Department for Health recommends that preschoolers have:

At least 180 minutes spent in a variety of physical activities, of which at least 60 minutes is energetic play, spread throughout the day; and more is better.

Moving about in the home and outside environment teaches children about their world and their place in it. Young children are not meant to spend more than one hour sitting or being inactive. The physical environment teaches them about their bodies and how to manipulate the physical world around them.

Keeping daytime naps to the minimum required and not to close to bedtime will help ensure your child is ready for bed when it comes time to settle down for the night.

A predictable and consistent bedtime routine is essential. There are no absolute rules dictating what should be included in a sleep routine, but the basics such as having a warm bath, putting on pajamas, brushing teeth, listening to a story, will all signal to your child that bedtime is approaching.

There are many products to help kids sleep, and when I say “products” I am referring to natural products that might promote sleep such as essential oils, music, weighted blankets/toys, and sleep comforters. We also know that meditation to help kids sleep works by gently lulling busy little minds and bodies off to a place where they relax and drift off.

Bedtime blues

Many parents feel defeated by bedtime because, for whatever reason, some children simply do not want to sleep! Or so it seems when you have been in and out of their bedroom for what feels like hours, you’ve repositioned or rewrapped them, you’ve patted them, sung and rocked them, only to give in and feed them off to sleep. We all know this doesn’t teach our children “how to” sleep and we’ve been told it makes them reliant on external sources, but we’ve all done it and/or continue doing it, and that’s ok. Every family is different and whatever works for one doesn’t necessarily work for all.

Having struggled with getting my own children to sleep, as well as having had many friends attend “sleep school” to be taught how to help kids sleep better, I am only too aware of the challenges that a non-sleeping child presents. Depriving one of sleep leads to a reduction in cognitive function in adults as well as children. Therefore it is beneficial to our functioning as human beings that we help our children to sleep better as well as aiming for adequate sleep for ourselves.

Sleep helps kids be the best they can be

As noted in the previous paragraph, children’s cognitive function is negatively impacted if they don’t get enough sleep. What does this mean in practice? It may mean your child falls asleep during school when they are supposed to be learning vital information. It might mean they are cranky and irritable which makes for a very long day for parents, carers, and teachers! It also might lead to your child not retaining the information they learn which over time will start impacting their ability to keep up with their peers.

Sleep is as important to our children as food and water. Unlike adults who can probably get away with not having optimum sleep EVERY night, children really do need to get the right amount and the best quality sleep they can every single night. We all want our children to be the best they can be and live up to their unique potential. One way we can help them achieve this is by teaching good sleep hygiene from birth so that they reap the benefits that a good night’s rest affords!

I am so pleased to offer my natural remedies to help kids sleep in my Sleep Support Pack.  For whatever reason your child has difficulty falling asleep, here are some meditations to help.

Floating Meditation (4mins)

Immunity Meditation (8.13mins)

Sleep Tight Magical Knight Meditation (8.13mins)

Brave as a Lion Meditation (10.10mins)

Starlight Sleep Tight (15mins)

Singing Bowl Sound Meditation for Children (10mins)

Grounding and Relaxation (9.17mins)

Breathing Calm (5mins)

In our shop, you will find groupings of meditations, mindfulness scripts, and relaxation mantras to support emotions, introducing the very young to meditation,  meditation and mindfulness for primary school-aged children, family meditation, and a self-serve program for preschool and primary school-aged children incorporating everything parents, carers and teachers need to know about introducing meditation to their children.