How much does your 6/7yr old sleep?

[GatFoth]

As it says in the title. I am worried about my DD! She's 7 next week. She is only sleeping 2200-0700 most nights. She's energetic and bubbly but she looks tired and takes about 15 minutes to get going in a morning.

We try to get her to sleep earlier but it's a huge battle.

How much do your kids this age sleep? What time do they go to bed? I'm wondering if I need to see the GP.

My nearly 7yo is sleeping roughly 8-7. Sometimes later at night or earlier in the morning. It’s certainly changed in the last few weeks and harder to get him to bed at 7.30 like I want!

I guess my AIBU is AIBU to speak to the GP about my DDs sleep if she's generally fine but looks tired? I don't want to waste their time but I worry she's making herself ill not sleeping enough.

My 7 year old often struggles to get to sleep. She gets around 11 hours a night but this can be less.

Parent better! Wow. Thanks.
We spend 3 hours every night trying to get her to sleep. It is a constant, exhausting battle that is driving me to breaking point. She is a sleep avoider due to trauma.

But thanks for letting me know I'm a shit parent.

Mine is 7. Asleep 8/8:30 and wakes around 6:30. He reads in bed until 7. I think he could do with a bit more sleep than he gets but it’s hard to get everything sorted before 8 these days! We try to do a few earlier (7:30) bedtimes a week and otherwise he’s usually relaxing reading in bed (either with one of us or independently) at that time.

Mines about 7.15 till 6am

Come on @5thCommandment that's harsh. OP is seeking advice, not condemnation.

DD is 6 and I'm quite rigid with times unless there's an event on or something. We start winding down after bath, so around half 6 she's in her PJs and in bed. We read books, or she plays chilled out games on her tablet (this in itself would be an issue for other parents, but it works for us). Tonight we played a word association game.

She's usually asleep by 7.00/7.30pm. Sometimes it's a bit later but never much after 8pm.

Oh yeah, then awake again around 7am.

DS 7-asleep by 7pm, up anytime from 6am

During holidays he can stay up until 10pm but that means he wakes up quite late at 9am.

Sounds like I’m a bad parent too then…

My 7 y/o does sports and training is 6-7pm. I’m surprised how many of you get your kids to be by 7:30 at that age.

Mine is home around 7:30, quick snack/shower, teeth and bed. Sleeping about 8:30ish. Wakes about 7:30, so perfectly meeting the 10-11 hours the NHS says is optimal for his age.

Mine goes to bed at 8pm and is asleep by 8.30pm. He then tends to wake up at 7am, but sometimes I have to wake him at 7.30am (for school).

So I would say he gets about 10-11 hours on average.

DS hates sleep. He’s usually asleep by 9 and then up at 7. If we put him to bed earlier he gets up earlier. But I feel your pain, we start winding down at 7:30 to be asleep by 9 and he’ll do everything possible to stay up later.

DS slept 8:30-6am at that age. At 10 he sleeps 9-6/6:30. It suits him.

No harm in seeing the GP if you’re worried.

My friend’s 8 (almost 9) year old is in bed by 6.30 and sleeps for 13 hours! 😳

My DD is 6. She sleeps from 8ish to 5:30am. She falls asleep easily but she also wakes up several times in the night sometimes for a few minutes, sometimes for an hour.

We have been to countless sleep experts, doctors etc due to her poor sleeping over the years. We have tried everything you can imagine. What we have been told, and learnt, is that all children are different and they key is whether they are well and managing.

If she is really tired during the day that’s one thing. But if she is generally fine then don’t worry.

That doesn't seem like enough sleep, my nearly 9 year old sleeps 8.30-7 most nights.

According to this, 9-12 hours is normal for that age, and 10-7 is 9 hours... www.gosh.nhs.uk/conditions-and-treatments/procedures-and-treatments/sleep-hygiene-children/

That being said, if you think she's tired as a result, can you see if the school have a family support person who can offer some advice? We have someone at our school who does talks on things like sleep, plus offers 1-2-1 conversations once a month with parents who want advice on all sorts of things. If you're in England, you should have access to a school nurse who also might help - their details are usually on your local council website I think, or the school can probably give you the details.
Especially if there is trauma or a reason for her avoiding sleep.

My 7 year old ds sleeps 9pm to 7am ish. He has never slept 12 hours straight, not even as a baby. He says he has never felt the sensation of tiredness 😂 we find he sleeps best on football training nights.

I would recommend exercising your dc to the point of exhaustion as often as possible. Some children need a lot of physical activity to feel tired.

@Margarita45 We're quite lucky that DD does two activities, one which is finished by 5pm and one which happens on a weekend.

For the 5pm finish we get home, beans on toast with cheese on top for dinner, bath then bed. I don't beat myself up about a sub-par dinner one night a week. 😂

Actual sleep, 8-6:30.

Stupid, rude post. Ignore OP. Sleep, like anything else, is on a spectrum - some kids need more, some less. My DD (2.5) sleeps 2100-0730, and is thriving (well ahead of her peers). I wouldn’t worry too much about your DD.

What did she do in the holidays? Did she sleep longer in the morning when she didn't have to wake up? My 7yo wakes fairly early and struggles to sleep past 6.30 (sometimes 6) even when she goes to bed late. She was going to sleep about 8pm but that is creeping later. A friend's child won't go to bed until 10pm, never really has. It sounds like there is a specific reason why sleep is harder for her, so not as simple as saying she just needs less sleep than others.

DS2 (7) in bed by 8. Falls asleep…any time from then until 10:30. Up around 7:30. All incentives offered to get him to stop singing to himself and actually go to sleep are roundly ignored.

Sorry, this was in response to the PP who said ‘parent better’.