Night tantrums? Or night terrors? Or something else?

[gitanamama]

For two nights in a row, my 17 month old has been having extreme night tantrums or night terrors. We co-sleep and he still nurses every couple hours at night, but usually just latches on, half asleep, nurses for awhile, and then I'm able to slip him off. For the past two nights, he's woken several times and gone from whimpering to full blown hysterical screaming. His whole body is tight, his back is stiff and arched, he lashes out and hits me, and screams--ranging from a high-pitched "pain" scream to an angry "ARGH" scream. His eyes are open and he seems "present," but it's hard to tell if he's really awake. It's really intense and scary--imagine a scene from the exorcist. And the worse part is that I can't calm him down. He won't nurse and bites me angrily if I try, and walking, rocking, singing, turning lights on, etc. doesn't help. The outbursts usually ends as abruptly as they start--after 10-15 min he just sort of snaps out of it, settles down, nurses and falls asleep. I'm feeling a little freaked out and not sure what is causing these outbursts. He's not teething and doesn't seem to have any discomfort during the day. We're definitely in a rough stage in terms of frequent tantrums and battles of wills so maybe he's just letting out some of that energy at night? But these night tantrums have been far more intense than any of the ones he has during the day. 

Anyone been through something similar or have thoughts on what could be causing these? I hate to watch my little guy suffer through such intense emotions (or physical pain?)

Thanks!

[Ginger Bean]

Yeah, I just started my own thread about something similar. My son wakes up screaming and crying -- very hard to get him to calm down -- when he's skipped his second nap.

Is your son transitioning from 2 naps to 1 nap? Or is he trying to drop naps all together?

I think night terrors, or whatever it is, are connected with overtiredness.

[IdentityCrisisMama]

Yes, my DC (now 10) has had what we call confusional arousal on and off since she was about your child's age.  It sucks!!  I can't get into a huge post right now but wanted to throw out a few ideas: 

Dr. Green has a good article on this.  

It could be related to needing to use the bathroom in the night and not really knowing the sensation.  Is your child starting to potty learn at all?

It certainly could be related to too little sleep as the PP said.  

It could be related to stress.  My DC's most recent bout of this was stress related (I was pregnant).  

It could run in families.  Does anyone in your DC's family sleep walk, talk, have confusional arousal or night terrors?  

At way to tell if they are nightmares or terrors/confusional arousal is to see if the child remembers them.  If they don't it's a confusional arousal.  Also, does it happen in the first hour after falling asleep?  That would be another clue.  

What I found is the best way to deal with them is to just let it run its course - don't try to reason with the child, just kind of support them as they cry.  When they're older - just agree with whatever they're on about.  Don't try to wake them.   

Good luck~  

[savithny]

Yes, it sounds like a night terror.   My older child (now 11) did that sometimes, starting around that age.

It's an issue of arousal from sleep -- it's a sleep disorder really, in which they "come to the surface" without really being awake.

My biggest tip on them seems VERY counterintuitive.  Do NOT attempt to wake the child, do NOT move them to another room/location.  In our experience, this made them worse, because then they come to full consciousness mid-scream, in a new room, with people DOING things to/at them, and it's even worse.  

What worked for us was just a firm hand on belly or back (whichever he was lying on), and a soft voice repeating the same thing over and over  - very short phrase, something comforting.   

But again -- don't try to wake him.

For us, they went on, occasionally, to about 4-ish (less than once a week - not a very regular thign).   And then they were replaced with sleepwalking and agitation.  That was ALWAYS associated with needing to pee -- he'd wake up and stumble towards the bathroom, muttering or moaning.   We'd need to catch him, make sure he was pointed at the toilet (once he didn't get far enough into the bathroom before he rotated 90 degrees, so he peed all over the sink cupboard.   DH would catch him and actually help him aim, and then get him tucked back into his pants and back into bed.  Sometimes he'd be a bit agitated for awhile -- but again, he was NOT awake.

And now, it's mostly that he still wet the bed once a month or so until he was 9 or 10.   Again,it's a disorder of wakefulness -- he'd be sleeping too deeply and start to pee before he woke up, jump up and run for the bathroom.  OFten, he wouldn't hit the bed but his PJs would get wet on the way to the toilet.

Long story short -- a lot of his seem related to bladder issues trying to wake him up while his brain isn't ready to be awakened.   

[gitanamama]

Thanks to all for chiming in and for the support! My son's naps have always been problematic and he's really having a hard time with control and exerting his will lately, so sleep deprivation and stress are probably both contributing factors. My brother apparently had terrible night terrors when he was a child, so they do run in the family. It's very scary and unnerving, but I'm glad others have been through it. And thanks for the tip Savithny--next time my son has one I won't attempt to wake him--it certainly didn't help at all last time!

[jocelyndale]

Canines and molars were horrible for night terrors/confusional arousal.

Later on, as he became aware of an urge to pee while he was asleep, the same thing happened.  We usually took him to pee as soon as he started stirring and that prevented the full on terror most times.

[choochootwo]

My son did this after his DTAP and HIB shots, so we discontinued them. His eyes were glazed and he seemed present, but not really present. Just a thought, if he's had a shot recently. 

[doodababy]

My son had very similar, I let the pediatrician convince me that it was some behavioral issue (not enough sleep, emotional stress, etc).  after nearly *two years* of frequent night terrors we had him tested for allergies (a different reason).  he tested positive for multiple things, including soy, peanuts and tree nuts.  only two weeks after eliminating these he was sleeping through the night.  it had never occurred to mr that it might be food allergies.  in the last year and a half he has only had two night terrors.  His daytime behavior is also very different (better).  I think most of the time my patience is a good thing, in this case not.  Night terrors are not just a phase that will pass, they are not "night-waking".  the difference is what you described: they sound in pain or fear, and your comforting doesn't help.

(typing w/one hand)

[gitanamama]

Doodababy, thanks for the heads up. It never even occurred to me that it could be allergies, although the first night it did cross my mind that it could be stomach related, since he seemed to be in pain. My son hasn't had another one in awhile now (knock on wood!) but I'll definitely pay closer attention to his diet if they do start up again. Thanks for sharing!