2 year olds and tantrums?

My 2 year old son just woke up from his sleep Screaming and crying thrashing all around and flipping out throwing himself back on his bed and when I tryed to hold him he Hit me... What was that was that a tantrum??? Has anyone ever had this happen to them? He just turned 2 in june and has a temper a little bit but Never that Bad. It lasted like 20min and then he just layed down and went back to sleep....I'm so confused it REALLY scared the hell outta me..Please Help!

Answers:
Breanna, it sounds exactly like a night terror. My 2 year old gets them - every night. She wakes up a few hours after she goes down, doing the exact same thing - screaming, crying, pushing me away and then will literally just fall asleep suddenly. I discussed it with my pediatrician and she reassured me that although it is frightening for a parent, they really don't remember it and won't be traumatized by it. Best thing for you do is to make sure you keep them safe, but don't wake them up or overreact to the night terror - if they wake up to you because scared it will probably scare them more. I hope your son just had a one time episode.

I have also read in some books that you can try to fully wake your child up before they have the night terror to try to break the sleep cycle before it happens. Unlike nightmares which usually happen later in the night, night terrors usually happen within the first few hours of going to bed. If you can break the sleep cycle (and then have it start over) before it happens, you may be able to prevent it from happening. I haven't tried that yet, but maybe if it continues I will.

Some other little tidbits - night terrors are considered a parasomnia, and generally kids that have one parasomnia will have others - ie, sleep walking and talking. So you may want to be prepared for that as well. My daughter has recently started talking in her sleep. Also, avoid letting your child get overtired as that may make them worse (like any parent in her right mind is going to purposely not let their child sleep, right?). I think I also read that sometimes if a child has stress in their life that can cause them as well. My daughter's started soon after we brought home baby number 2...my pediatrician wasn't convinced that was the cause, but it is something to be aware of.

I hope that helps. It's probably a good idea to mention it to your pediatrician, but until you do, rest easy knowing it is very normal and not cause for concern.

Night Terror

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2 year olds and tantrums?

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