DD 8 cannot get to sleep at night

[sevenseas]

Hi, DD needs 10-11 hours sleep a night but just cannot get to sleep. I tell her to stop reading/switch her light off at 8-8.30pm on a school night but often she is still unsettled going on 10pm, coming downstairs several times for a cuddle. What she wants is for me to come and lie with her, which I sometimes do, but of course she needs to be able to settle herself (it's a bit like having a baby again...)

I am not sure what to do about it but wonder if it might be down to eating too close to bedtime - she often wants supper which can be fruit and/or hot chocolate. Maybe the hot choc is too sugary? Nothing after 7pm though. Maybe a hot bath each night (when we have time) - on her own without her sister to play with/wind up/be wound up by?

She is so hard to wake up in the mornings and can be very grumpy - until not so long ago she would bounce out of bed at 7am, now I struggle to get her up much before 8am...

No advice from me but my friend was just saying this morning that her ds (also 8) is going through the same, and her dd did it at the same age too, so it might be 'just a phase'..

Remember hot chocolate has caffeine in so that might also keep her awake. You might think there isn't much in it but I get palpitations from caffeine and I've had it from hot chocolate as well.

Would reccommend a hot bath and some quiet time reading before bed which is what my nine year old does.

Thanks for your replies. Yes it might be a phase - she has been moody on and off for a while, nothing too major though.

And yes of course - I didn't think about caffeine, which Im guessing is why chocolate can be a stimulant. Will have to get some good old-fashioned Ovaltine or Horlicks for her, that should help too.

Our 9.9 dd is exactly the same (without the coming downstairs). She is a girl who really needs to sleep but, I think, is afraid she'll miss something if she does.

Another thing, about the reading in bed - how long should I let this go on for? If I don't go and tell her to switch off her light and try to sleep she can go on reading for hours. However, if I tell her to do this before she's ready iyswim then it is hard(er) for her to get to sleep.

Also, some books (Harry Potter for instance) will keep her awake thinking about them for ages after. It's great that she loves reading, but am not certain it is helping her settle - but will of course let her continue to read. Maybe after a hot bath and mug of Horlicks she will be able to decide when to switch the light off herself...

Personally, I always read in bed at night because it makes me really tired, but I am always lying down. If I was sitting up I probably would be reading for hours. Maybe make sure she is lying down when she's reading, ie. fully relaxed.

Hi, thanks. I am trying her with two pillows tonight so that she can read lying down - she says very comfy, and has so far only come downstairs once saying she is too hot. So duvet off, light blankie on and so far so good...

We just keep repeating to DD - who has nights and nights where she cant seem to drop off - that shE doesn't have to go to sleep but she does have to lie quietly with her eyes closed and rest. It seems to take some of the pressure off. The white nosie apps you can get for the iPhone have also done us proud!