(© Bonnie Schiedel. Originally published in Canadian Family, March 2006)

It’s 11 o’clock on Saturday morning and your teenager is still burrowed beneath the blankets like a hibernating bear. Is he sleep deprived, or simply avoiding his chores? Take this mini-quiz to see if your teen is getting the zzzs he needs. 

1. How much sleep does an adolescent need?
a. seven or eight hours
b. eight or nine hours
c. nine or 10 hours

b) Teenagers generally need between eight and 9.2 hours of sleep a night, compared to seven or eight hours for adults. So sleeping in may actually be an important part of your child’s development, and not just because he’s growing like crazy. “After puberty, their internal clocks shift, meaning they naturally fall asleep later and wake up later than a child or an adult,” says Carlyle Smith, an adolescent sleep researcher and psychology professor at Trent University in Peterborough, Ont. “But the real world means that they have to get up early for work, school or activities, so they often aren’t getting enough sleep.”

To remedy that, encourage an earlier bedtime, and a 20-minute afternoon nap if necessary. And while it can mess up the schedule come Monday, snoozing late on Saturday and Sunday can help a teen catch up when activities and homework leave them short on shuteye. “Teenagers really need to catch up on sleep,” says Smith, “and sleeping in is one way to do it.” Ask your teen to limit her chugging of the über-popular mochaccinos and high-caffeine sodas. While Health Canada does not have caffeine guidelines for young adults, the daily limit for 10-12 year olds is 85 milligrams (found in 2 cans of cola or one energy drink)/ 400-450 milligrams for adults (3 cups of brewed coffee). 

2. Signs a teen is getting too few zzzz’s include:
a. acting cranky and falling asleep in her Corn Pops
b. plummeting grades
c. irrational outbursts and inordinately long showers

a) and b) Signs of too-little sleep include crankiness and doziness, of course, but also free-falling grades. That’s because waking up before you’re ready—missing a cycle of crucial REM (Rapid Eye Movement) sleep — makes it harder to remember what you’ve learned the day before, says Smith. If your child’s grades are slipping, ask yourself if her schedule allows her to get at least eight hours of sleep most nights. She may need to scale back if it doesn’t. However, a sudden change in sleeping hours, combined with different eating habits, feelings of hopelessness or avoiding people, could be a symptom of depression, so talk to your teen and her doctor. 

Sleeper Hints 
“Our rule is no text messaging after 10pm. And we spend some quiet time together before bed, watching TV or talking.” 
–Cheryl Glassman, mom of Sarah, age 15

“I make sure she’s able to sleep in until 10 or 11 am on one day of the weekend.”
–Keltie Sim, mom of Kathryn, age 14

“He can talk on the phone between 10 and 10:30 pm and then it’s lights out. He listens to jazz or piano on low on his iPod to relax before he falls asleep — which only takes a few minutes.”
–Lorraine Daly, mom of Matt, age 16 

“If homework is not done by bedtime, too bad. We had some fights
over this initially, but they have all learned juggle their time better.
–Joyce Bellavia, mom of daughter Carlye, age 17, and sons Luigi, age 14 and Cameron, age 12. 


To commission, reprint, post or copy one of Bonnie's articles, email bonnie@northstarwriting.ca