16 year old sleeps a lot

lesleyg

This discussion was created from comments split from: Ask a sleep expert.

lesleyg

My 16 year old has cerebral palsy though is very mobile and without any eating or communication problems. However, she sleeps for hours during the day and also the moment she gets into transport. We have had blood tests which are all normal apart from thyroid which is borderline low. She sometimes wakes in the night thinking someone is 'coming to get me'. Until recently, this happened several times a night and she came into my bed every night for 15 years.
I am assuming that the effort of co-ordinating her balance and of processing everything takes extra effort? She is anxious about the amount she sleeps.

SleepPractitioners

Hi Lesley
We have worked with children and young people with Cerebral Palsy a lot over the years and some of them often tend to sleep more than average, as you say this can be due to the effort and hard work they put in to controlling their bodies.
We advise that the family ask for a full count blood test to check for anemia which you have already had so you know there is no issues there.
You don't say how many hours your daughter sleeps during the night or what she does prior to going to sleep, we had added the link for you to check out a good routine to follow.
routine http://www.scope.org.uk/support/families/sleep/routine 
We hope this information helps
Maxine and Angie