Bedtime for 13 year old? - Page 2

[msmerrilyful]

My 12 year old son has ADHD and my docter told me about melatonin, it is what our bodies produce naturally (so there are no side effects) and children with ADD or ADHD tend to produce less therefore sleep is hard to come by and they tend to want to stay up. I give my son 2 1 and a half hours before his 930 bedtime and it works great! He is rested and focus on the new day ahead! I think 9 or 930 is a fitting bedtime for children at the ages of 12 and up. Wish you luck!

[belindaJ]

My DS (12yo) has to be in bed by 9.30 on school days and 10 at weekends, etc. He sometimes complains that he is not tired and that all his friends stay up much later but I ignore that and insist on the proper times. He needs his sleep and if he is sometimes later than the regular times he is crabby all the next day!

[Narwhal]

Im almost 13 and my parents imposed a 9:30 lights out bedtime on sunday thru thursday nights. The problem with this is I have to get up at 6 for school and im always up at about 5:30 so im stuck for half an hour bored in bed. The other nights i pretty much go to bed whenever I want so it's usally between 10:45 and 11 then I get up at sux. I believe this is a reasonable case to get my bedtime moved for next year but I need a way to convey it because my mom, when I told her the part about me getting up early, said they might move it next year. Does this sound like a reasonable request to you and do you have any ideas on how to let them pick my own bedtime?

[ollyoxenfree]

Originally Posted by Narwhal 

Im almost 13 and my parents imposed a 9:30 lights out bedtime on sunday thru thursday nights. The problem with this is I have to get up at 6 for school and im always up at about 5:30 so im stuck for half an hour bored in bed. The other nights i pretty much go to bed whenever I want so it's usally between 10:45 and 11 then I get up at sux. I believe this is a reasonable case to get my bedtime moved for next year but I need a way to convey it because my mom, when I told her the part about me getting up early, said they might move it next year. Does this sound like a reasonable request to you and do you have any ideas on how to let them pick my own bedtime?

Most parents set up rules because they believe that the rules will help protect the health and safety of their children. You have to persuade them that the bedtime rule isn't necessary for you anymore. The best way to do that is to demonstrate it for them. 

Start with having a reasonable, emotion-free conversation about your schedule. Propose that you will be responsible for when you go to bed and when you get up in the morning. Ask them to try it for a reasonable length of time - maybe 2 weeks. At the end of the 2 weeks, you will all discuss it again and see whether the new schedule worked for everyone. Maybe it works well and that will be the end of it. Maybe you'll need to compromise a little if you find that you aren't able to maintain the schedule on your own. 

Don't forget that good sleep habits aren't just about whether you can wake up on time in the morning. You also have to be well-rested to manage all your energy needs during the day. So if you are staying up late, getting up on time in the morning, but dragging yourself through the day - grumpy, unable to focus in school, unwilling to do extra-curriculars and chores and generally unhappy - then your sleep needs aren't being met and the trial will be a failure. 

Also, if you are staying up later than others in your house, explain that you will be considerate and won't disturb their sleep with your activities (t.v., music, computer game noises, using the bathroom or kitchen appliances etc....)

Good luck with the negotiations! 

[Narwhal]

Thank you for the advice I appreciate it. We get reportcards next week so being as it is good I'll ask then.