As parents, we’re often told that our babies will figure out how to go to sleep (and stay asleep)… eventually. Books abound that promise to share different sleep strategies, like monitoring wake times and what sleep cues to look out for. There’s even a whole industry of sleep trainers who help parents figure out the ‘trick’ to getting their kid to bed.
But sometimes there is no ‘trick.’ Sometimes, it’s not just about waiting it out. Sometimes, it’s a health issue, such as adenoids and tonsils. That’s what I learned when my youngest was a toddler.
This blog post is for educational purposes only and is based on personal experience. The tips below should not be used to diagnose or treat a health problem. I encourage you to seek the advice of a professional doctor/pediatrician or other health provider if you have concerns about your kids and sleep.
My daughter learned to sleep through the night pretty early on—around five months old—so I thought I knew what to expect for baby number two. Oh, how very wrong I was. What’s the joke? Your first child is easy (sometimes), so you think you’re ready for a second.
But I was unprepared for what would come our way when our little boy, Buster*, was born. By the time he turned one, he still had not slept through the night. Then, when his second birthday rolled around, his sleep only worsened.
Symptoms of a Sleep Disorder
Buster had all the signs of a child sleep disorder, but until he was nearly two years old, doctors largely dismissed the symptoms as “something he’d grow out of.”
- Difficulty falling asleep
- Night terrors
- Teeth grinding
- Restless sleeping (including rolling out of toddler bed and across his room – no joke)
- Waking multiple times a night
- Super moody/angry during the day (from lack of sleep)
- Sleep talking
- Snoring
- Sleepwalking
But the sign that finally got the attention of his pediatrician?
Sleeping with his mouth open. In fact, he was a “mouth breather” even during the day.
How We Figured Out the Adenoids and Tonsils Were the Problem
In early 2020, we finally – FINALLY – got a referral to a sleep doctor when Buster turned three. You can probably somewhat guess what happened next.
With the pandemic in full swing, getting appointments was nuts, especially for the rare specialty of pediatric sleep. Long story short, after virtual visits and waiting for months for appointments, Buster’s new sleep doctor referred him for a sleep study. The sleep study pointed to multiple issues, including sleep apnea and 10-17 sleep disturbances per hour. An ENT doc then confirmed he had enlarged adenoids and tonsils.
No wonder the poor kid wasn’t getting a solid night of sleep.
In January 2021—basically a whole year since we’d started the process—Buster had his tonsils and adenoids removed during an outpatient surgery. The recovery was not easy with my stubborn child, who does not like taking medicine, but after two weeks, he was back to his silly old self… and shortly after that, his sleep markedly improved. The night terrors, teeth grinding, and snoring? Gone.
He even stopped breathing through his mouth while he slept.
Did it solve all his sleep challenges? Unfortunately, no. But by and large, getting his tonsils and adenoids out to improve his sleep was a game-changer.
So, if your ‘kids and sleep’ story feels similar to ours, I encourage you to talk to your pediatrician about getting a sleep study to start digging deeper to figure out what’s going on. Because kids don’t just “grow out” of sleep disorders; sometimes they need us to advocate for them too.
* For my kids’ privacy, I only use their nicknames on my blog.
