Question
How can you distinguish between a child’s night terrors and nightmares, and what are the treatment methods?
Answer
Night terrors and nightmares are common issues during a child’s sleep. Night terrors are usually accompanied by intense crying and a state that is difficult to wake from, while nightmares occur after a bad dream and the child can recall the dream. While the psychological and physiological mechanisms behind these symptoms are not fully understood, it is widely believed that they are related to the immature development of a child’s brain, causing abnormalities during the transition from deep sleep. Night terrors may be associated with psychological and social factors that affect children, preventing them from transitioning normally from deep sleep to lighter sleep. Nightmares are bad dreams that occur during deep sleep, involving terrifying scenarios, and the child can clearly recall the dream upon waking.