Almost 50 percent of the children say they have trouble sleeping when they are stressed, but only 35 percent of the parents guessed that was so. What the surveyed told us was, what we see is apparently not always what we get. We may think we see sullenness or shyness when in reality children are withdrawing due to stress. We may think we see lack of motivation, laziness or learning disabilities when children are actually escaping stress by daydreaming. We may think we're seeing a spoiled child who won't go to sleep or an insecure one who calls out to us all night long when she's probably suffering from insomnia or nightmares, two warning signs of stress.
Nightmares top the list of children's stress symptoms.
Parents say they notice their children's stomachaches most often followed by their headaches. It certainly isn't lack of concern. It's more likely a matter of timing and awareness. Nightmares are most likely to occur in the early morning hours when parents are often busy or unavailable. Children are often able to handle the bad dream themselves because when they wake up their room is light and they're distracted by the start of the day's activities.