How you can stay sane when your child is not sleeping enough
Child sleeping problems can lead parents into depression but scientists say that listening to the advice of healthcare professionals can go a long way.
Scientists recruited 253 families from British Columbia with infants who were having trouble sleeping, and ruled out parents diagnosed with or currently experiencing clinical depression. They wanted to find out how best they can help the parents overcome the issues they were facing when children did not get enough sleep.
The recruits were randomly organized in two groups and while the first got information about child sleeping and help form healthcare services, the other only received basic information about child safety.
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And the researchers found that parents who worried that they could not manage their children’s sleep were more likely to have higher levels of depression. That was true for both mothers and fathers.
The situation improved after the intervention, notably by the 24-week mark. Once the infant sleep problem was treated, parental depression lifted significantly. There was a reduction of almost 30 per cent of mothers and 20 per cent of fathers reporting high depression scores.
Scientists say that healthcare professionals should listen carefully to parents of young infants, to recognize signs of depression associated with doubts about helping infants sleep. Also parents should ask for their help when they are faced with this situation in order to improve a child’s sleep and prevent depression and chronic fatigue.
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