When Teens Chronically Sleep In

How to Solve This Issue and Increase Their Overall Success

Jan 17, 2009 Catherine Owen

Teenagers can be hard to get up in the morning. Encourage them to learn this essential skill to improve their chances of success in school or work.

Adolescents tend to have erratic sleeping patterns. Sometimes they stay up late, watching television, chatting on the phone or computer or listening to music and thus have a hard time getting up in the morning. If they go to parties on the weekends, or have friends stay over on a regular basis, this may unsettle their sleeping schedules for the rest of the week.

Teenagers do need more sleep than adults. Their bodies are growing and their minds are rapidly changing, creating conditions for exhaustion. Also, they have been proven to learn better later on in the day rather than first thing in the morning. However, to succeed in work and school, adolescents need to learn to get up and out of bed at a fairly early hour. By following these steps and having patience, the teenager will eventually be able to rise independently and pursue their goals.

Encourage Them to Follow a Regular Schedule

The body functions more effectively when it adheres to a routine. Going to bed at a regular hour is important. Teenagers need nine or ten hours of sleep a night. If they have to get up at seven, then they should go to bed by ten. Once the body and mind become accustomed to such a schedule then it becomes easier to wake up in the morning.

Create Evening and Morning Rituals

It's less of a strain for teenagers to fall asleep at a certain hour if they train their body to expect particular rituals. Whether it's a warm drink, listening to a music program on their headphones or taking a bath, once the mind is used to these signs of imminent sleep, slumber will come faster.

Similarly, in the morning, if the teen wakes knowing he or she will have a favorite hot drink, cereal, a paper or book to read, a show to watch or an invigorating shower, it will be less challenging to get out of bed.

Get an Alarm Clock

Adolescents should learn how to use alarm clocks and take them seriously. Purchase one with large numbers and position it at a sufficient distance from their bed. That way when the jarring alarm rings in the morning, they will have to rise from the bed to shut it off.

If they can just press the snooze button, they will be too likely to fall back asleep. Also, if it plays music instead of sounding an alarm, they will be less capable of waking, especially if the music has played at a lower volume all night.

Ask Questions and Impose Consequences

Discuss their morning routine with teens in terms of how long it takes them to rise, get ready and make it to school or work. Give them the responsibility of waking up accordingly. However, if they are not up and at it by that time, wake them and remind them of the consequences agreed upon.

These consequences may include no friends over, no parties, no computer or no phone privileges for that day. The next morning, they have another chance to prove that they are capable of waking on time and fulfilling their obligations. This process may take as much as a frustrating month to impose, but once it is ingrained into the adolescent's system, waking up will become much more pleasant. Try to maintain a positive attitude to make mornings the enjoyable starts to the days they can be.

The copyright of the article When Teens Chronically Sleep In in Parenting Teens is owned by Catherine Owen. Permission to republish When Teens Chronically Sleep In in print or online must be granted by the author in writing.

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