We all know PMS can be a real pain, and puberty itself brings a whirlwind of emotional changes. Helping your daughter reduce moodiness and feel healthier every day can be as simple as ensuring she gets enough sleep! Sounds relaxing, right?
It turns out adolescents aren't getting nearly as much sleep as they need, and sleep deprivation in teens can be particularly hard on girls. You might think a little lost sleep is no big deal, but complications from menstrual cramps to picking the wrong period protection can make it hard to sleep – and during her period, that's a lot of crucial sleep to lose.
Dr. Mary Carskadon, a renowned sleep researcher and professor at Brown University, emphasizes how sleep is foundational to health. "The benefit of sleep is huge. One of the main goals of adolescent development is to learn and to improve their intellectual capacity, and adequate sleep affects that," she explains. Less sleep means less motivation to learn, slower recall, and reduced retention of information, ultimately hindering overall learning.
Girls can experience significant emotional changes during puberty, and a lack of sleep can severely impact their overall mood. From acting irritable to acting out, sleep deprivation can cause teens to feel depressed, standoffish, and generally not themselves. Make sure she also had the right period care.
"Another downside that shows up is a loss of impulse control and greater risk-taking. We think of that as endemic to teenagers, but it gets worse when you don’t have enough sleep," Dr. Carskadon cautions. "It’s easier to flaunt it and take those risks and hammer down on the accelerator when they’re tired."
How Much Sleep Does Your Daughter Need?
You might think eight hours is enough, but Dr. Carskadon states that adolescents need even more sleep than adults to support their rapid growth and development. Some teens require over nine hours to perform their best. If your daughter is sleeping late on the weekend to catch up, or falling asleep at other times, it's a clear sign she needs more sleep. The best way to ensure she gets enough quality sleep is to plan for it.
"Parents have had instilled in them forever the notion of bedtime routines for their young kids, but they tend to drop it around adolescence. We all could benefit from that kind of bedtime routine."
Here are some rules Dr. Carskadon suggests for setting and sticking to an effective bedtime routine:
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No Caffeine: A big one for kids and teens. Caffeine can significantly interfere with sleep patterns.
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No Naps After 4 p.m.: Late afternoon naps can make it harder to fall asleep at bedtime.
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Regulate Light Exposure: Help set your body’s internal clock by using strong light in the morning and limiting light exposure before bed. This means significantly reducing screen time from phones, tablets, and computers in the evening.
Tackling Modern Sleep Disruptors
Sleep deprivation in teens is a modern issue, largely exacerbated by technology. Young girls are especially prone to using their phones to chat with friends when they should be sleeping.
"There’s nothing that’s more arousing than social interaction," Dr. Carskadon says. "They leave their phone under their pillow then Susie calls and wakes them up and they have this intense conversation and it really eats into sleep."
Dr. Carskadon suggests that parents can avoid this disturbance by setting clear rules for technology use earlier in the evening. "Create a family technology lockbox and put all the technology, including the parents’, into the box and don’t unlock it until a decent hour in the morning."
Managing Period-Related Sleep Challenges
Then there's "that time of the month." If menstrual cramps or back pain are keeping her awake, your daughter might need a heat pack and appropriate pain relievers. It's also crucial that she picks the right period protection for her flow so she doesn’t have to wake up in the middle of the night to change.
Waking up in the middle of the night makes it hard to get continuous, restorative sleep. When trying to get back to sleep, Dr. Carskadon warns that staying away from bright light is the best way. Otherwise, she might inadvertently trick her internal clock into thinking it’s morning!
Following Dr. Carskadon’s advice to turn out the light and prioritize sleep may require a little adjustment, but ensuring your daughter gets enough sleep will benefit her tremendously, especially in boosting her mood and overall well-being during puberty.
