The trick my mom used was to have us lie down in bed and tense and relax specific muscles one at a time. We started with our toes, tense & relax. Move to sole of the foot, tense & relax. Move to heel, tense & relax. Keep going all the way up to the top of your scalp. The more you can focus on small specific muscles, the longer it takes.
This gets kids focused on their body and relaxing, which often stops the brain churning thinking that keeps them awake. It's pretty meditative and I actually still do it when I'm having trouble falling asleep.
Extra bonus points - it also helps with growing pains when going through growth spurts.
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Date: 2012-06-22 01:57 am (UTC)This gets kids focused on their body and relaxing, which often stops the brain churning thinking that keeps them awake. It's pretty meditative and I actually still do it when I'm having trouble falling asleep.
Extra bonus points - it also helps with growing pains when going through growth spurts.