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5 Year Old Sleeps For 15 Hours Per Night

I am looking for advice. I have an active 5 year old who is at school. He has always been a good sleeper (sleeping 12 hours per night and has to be woken in the morning) however recently he has begun falling asleep at dinner time (5.30pm) and not waking until 8.30am.


Do you think I should have him checked out by our GP? He can be grumpy and misbehaves at times (usually because he is tired) but he is generally a happy child who has no health problems. Any advice is appreciated. Thanks.

Kevin: Hi there, thank you for sharing your experience. If his sleep quantity is so large and yet he is still tired, I would look into conditions that may be affecting his sleep quality, such as sleep apnea. Does he seem to have any breathing issues while he sleeps, or does he snore? Sleep apnea is the most common condition that disturbs sleep quality, because it results in dozens or hundreds of micro-awakenings as the body ensures it can still breathe. It is very common in adults, but also fairly common in children.

Much, much more rare is a hypersomnia condition called Kleine-Levin Syndome (KLS).

All the best! Please feel free to update this page using the comments below with how your son is doing!

Warmly,
Kevin


(Please keep in mind that I am a student of sleep science and not a medical doctor. Please take any thoughts I give with my background in mind.)

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