I’m having a really hard time sleeping lately. Even with the boys doing better at night, I still can’t seem to shut my brain off.
It’s frustrating because I want so badly to go to sleep but I’m so used to not sleeping at night, that it’s like I need to retrain my body or reset my circadian rhythm.
I’ve heard from other Autism parents who experience the same type of thing themselves. The can’t wait for their kids to fall asleep so they can go to sleep, but when the opportunity presents itself, sleep remains elusive.
It appears to be a relatively common thread amongst Autism parents.
You need to find a couple of days where Lizze can be on call at night and force yourself to reset. Take some sort of sleep aid and go to bed at 11 or so and retrain your body to sleep at night. This also means that for a few days you’re going to have to give up control and not allow yourself to be available at a moment’s notice. And even worse, you will have to not nap during the day so that you can sleep at night. I’m not judging the nap, I just know that if I nap during the day, I don’t sleep at night. I understand that this is all easier said than done, but it’s worth a shot, no?
I wonder if that would be enough. As long as Rob feels he must stay awake when his kids are in bed but awake, and if available to “sleep” with them in the living room when they can’t sleep in their rooms, trying to reset his sleep would be a short-term thing. In those cases, it seems like snatching naps would be a help.
I’m not criticizing Rob for this sleep situation. He wants his kids to sleep better. Still, I wonder if Rob and Lizze could try to allow their sons to lay in their beds at night, even if not sleeping. Although an autistic child losing a night’s sleep would probably make him not able to function in school, if the boys knew they were always to stay in their rooms at night, Rob and Lizze could at least sleep and be more functional the next day.
Parents of autistic kids can’t win when it comes to sleep. 🙁
You need to find a couple of days where Lizze can be on call at night and force yourself to reset. Take some sort of sleep aid and go to bed at 11 or so and retrain your body to sleep at night. This also means that for a few days you’re going to have to give up control and not allow yourself to be available at a moment’s notice. And even worse, you will have to not nap during the day so that you can sleep at night. I’m not judging the nap, I just know that if I nap during the day, I don’t sleep at night. I understand that this is all easier said than done, but it’s worth a shot, no?
I wonder if that would be enough. As long as Rob feels he must stay awake when his kids are in bed but awake, and if available to “sleep” with them in the living room when they can’t sleep in their rooms, trying to reset his sleep would be a short-term thing. In those cases, it seems like snatching naps would be a help.
I’m not criticizing Rob for this sleep situation. He wants his kids to sleep better. Still, I wonder if Rob and Lizze could try to allow their sons to lay in their beds at night, even if not sleeping. Although an autistic child losing a night’s sleep would probably make him not able to function in school, if the boys knew they were always to stay in their rooms at night, Rob and Lizze could at least sleep and be more functional the next day.
Parents of autistic kids can’t win when it comes to sleep. 🙁