Just imagine your infant, be it a girl or boy, goes on crying in the middle of night. About 20 percent of infants are affected by sleeping disorders and your child happens to be one among them. You will understand how exasperating attending an infant is, as it refuses to sleep, whatever you try.

Hence it assumes more significance to know the sleeping problems of the infant and ways to correct the same, since if you face this problem night after night, it will wreck your professional life.

The following may be taken as an indicative list to show the infant has a sleeping disorder.

Signs of sleeping disorder:

• Refusal to follow regular bed time.

• Difficulty in waking up in the morning.

• Urinating in the bed.

• Snoring and breathing difficulty while sleeping.

• Awakening during night and refusal to go to sleep again.

• Sleep walking and sleep talking during night.

• Screaming and shouting while sleeping

Solutions for the disorders:

The child has to be trained to follow a regular time to go to bed. One of the parents may accompany the infant to the bed.

Before bedtime, the infant should not be involved in games which boost the activity level. Instead you may tell bed time stories to create a calm environment. A cup of warm milk may help the child to have sound sleep.

Nowadays, children are very fond of fur toys, such as a teddy bear, which the child may be encouraged to hold while sleeping, as it makes the child feel secure. If the child has been habituated to sleep separately, the door may be left opened.

For some children, playing music at a low volume may be soothing to sleep. If so, that can be used for the child to have undisturbed sleep. Also, a dim light may be on in the bedroom instead of total darkness.

Required temperature and coolness may be maintained in the bedroom adjusting the fan/air conditioner.

Following the above may help the infant to have good sleeping habits. In spite of all these things, if the sleeping disorder is not solved, it is advisable to consult a pediatrician.