concerned about one of my mindees

[chewy sweets]

A little girl i mind is 12 months old and is always really tired!
I have her for 10 hours a day and she sleeps for about 5 of these. If she's not sleeping she's lying down on the floor not wanting to play!

Have spoken to the mum a number of times and asked if she's not sleeping at night and mum said she's in bed by 8pm and having to wake her up at 7am!

Asked mum if she's started giving her any medication which could be making her drowsy but answer was no.

Mum's very youung and isn't very approchable- anything i say she gets quite defensive about so not really sure what to do now??

I am quite worried and don't think it's normal behaviour for a baby of this age.
I know it might sound as if i'm over reacting but it like she's been drugged some mornings!

[Hebs]

my son was EXACTLY like this he would sleep between 18 and 20 hours a day even at 18 months old PLUS :panic: he would only wake up to eat etc

i had to keep a sleep dairy for him so the dr could see his sleep patterns, they took blood tests to check for underlying health problems but they all came back clear.

GP said to enjoy it while it lasted cos it wouldn't last forever ............ he was soooo right cos now i have the opposite problem :laughing: :laughing:

some kids are jsut naturally like this :thumbsup:

[grindal]

How long have you been looking after her for? I have a 12 month old and he sleeps for ages here. I think the change of routine and stimulation of DS1 and 2 wear him out. He sleeps for over an hour am and 3 hrs in the afternoon, and I nearly always have to wake him. If you are concerned and have spoken to mum i would at least fill in an incident report about it and keep an eye on it as she gets a bit bigger.

[Maguiresmonkeys]

My own children love their sleep too! :clapping: Ive had to stop my five year old sleeping just before he started going full time at school (he used to have 3 hours nearly some days). My three year old still has 2 hours and my 18 month old still has around 3 and a half hours! Some children just love their sleep!!
But, might be worth getting it checked out if she still seems 'sleepy' the rest of the time.
Sorry I havnt been much help!

[chewy sweets]

I've been minding her for 2 1/2 months. She seems to be getting more and more tired every day. I try to put her to play with my other mindees and she walks herself back to the sofa and lies down.

Should i just let her lay down if that's what she wants??
I just feel that she's being left out of play and activities because she's always sleeping or lying down!!!

[Helen79]

I'd sleep like that if I had the chance :laughing:

I wouldn't worry just yet but would record the times she's sleeping & for how long which you're probably doing already. Maybe make a note of your concerns & that you've mentioned it to mum.

Does she eat and drink well?

[green puppy]

Could the lo be anaemic? A lack of iron in toddler diets is very common but can make the child lack energy. I had a lo with mild anaemia although he had plenty of iron in his diet but mum was anaemic through pregnancy. He took a aliquid iron supplement for a month. Is lo slightly pale at times or lack energy or irritable?

[Helen79]

if she's that lethargic even when she's had so much sleep maybe a trip to the hv or gp might help. Is she due her 12month check up or her mmr? maybe suggest to mum that she could mention it while she's there.

Maybe she's having too much sleep & can't wake herself up fully. I know if I have an afternoon nap sometimes I feel quite groggy for a while after waking up.

[Rach30]

Or could the mum be smoking dope ? cos if she is around the child then the passive smoking could be making her sleepy. Sounds exteme i know but i've seen in children when i was a TA at school :(

[solly]

I had a little girl who had been like this since she was a baby, she was quite a sicky baby and always had a rounded tummy. Mum always dismissed this until i kept a record of what we did. I would walk to school (2 min walk) she would come home and sleep then have lunch and sleep again, I also used to get phonecalls to pick her up from preschool as she had fallen asleep.
It took her to go into work late one day and drop her daughter to me later to realise something was not right.
Mum took her to the docs then she was sent to the hospital where they did various tests it turns out she was severly anemic and she was caeliac.

Now she has a different diet she is a different child with so much energy it is lovely to see.
Just after she was diagnosed i had my inspection and she was still quite lethargic which ofsted questioned me on her they were pleased with me as i had a diary which i had done with it all written down

[Mouse]

If it was me I would be concerned, at least enough to speak to the HV. Thinking of the 12 month old I mind, he sleeps for about half an hour in the morning & just over an hour in the afternoon. Other than that, he is active & on the go all the time.

I know all children are different, but it does seem that your mindee is unusually lethargic.

I'd keep a diary of sleep, food she eats, any activity she does etc and monitor it over time. Hopefully you could show mum and prompt her into getting her daughter checked out. It's got to be better to have her checked & find out there's nothing wrong, than do nothing & find out further down the line that there is something wrong.

[chewy sweets]

Thanks for the advice everyone. Lo is asleep again as i type!
I think there are possibly some underlying issues i need to deal with?
For example she was late last week and said she'd taken her to the doctor for mmr. I asked which leg and she said she's had injections in each arm and both legs because she wasn't up to date with her immunisations!
Checked arms and legs when i changed her and no sign of injections. I suspect that she took her to the Dr's because she's ill with something but doesn't want to tell me because she thinks i won't have her here????

Something's not right! :(

[Ripeberry]

My 13 month old mindee has been coming to me 3 times a week for 2 months and he still sleeps for England. His parents say he wakes at 7am, he arrives at my house at 9am and by 10am he is fast asleep!
He will then sleep for at least 2 hours, then he will wake full of energy run around like a mad thing have his lunch, we'll go out to the playground, collect kids from school and then by 4pm he is flagging again.
He seems to have a battery life of only 3hrs :D

[CherryBlossom]

Thanks for the advice everyone. Lo is asleep again as i type!
I think there are possibly some underlying issues i need to deal with?
For example she was late last week and said she'd taken her to the doctor for mmr. I asked which leg and she said she's had injections in each arm and both legs because she wasn't up to date with her immunisations!
Checked arms and legs when i changed her and no sign of injections. I suspect that she took her to the Dr's because she's ill with something but doesn't want to tell me because she thinks i won't have her here????

Something's not right! :(

Hope it all gets sorted out-every child is different and like a few other have said this is perfectly normal in some children.
If you have her for 10 hours a day, then you know her better and can probably sense if something isn't right.
Just keep an eye on her, and see if things get worse/better

x

[green puppy]

Isn't the mmr usually given at 13 or 14 months?

[gegele]

my son didn't mark for his mmr

at 12 months they do the one in the legs and the mmr 4 clear weeks later.

for the sleepiness my 10months old mindee has been like this for the last 3 weeks. she's doing 2top teeth!!

my own children used to sleep lots when they have grow spur. my DD was sleeping 2hours in the morning AND 2hours in the aftenoon until she was 18months old then it become 1 afternoon sleep of anything between 1 1/2 hours to 3h!!!
my son however rarelly ever had 2 nap in a day!! he sleeps once around lunch time for about 1h30 maybe 2h and that's it.

I think you need togive it time and see what happen, you should be writting the time he sleeps in his diary, keep a eye on it and see, he might just be a sleepy growing baby.

sorry but you seem a bit suspicious with the mum, maybe you're not being really objective.:blush:

[HomefromHome]

my son didn't mark for his mmr

at 12 months they do the one in the legs and the mmr 4 clear weeks later.

sorry but you seem a bit suspicious with the mum, maybe you're not being really objective.:blush:

sorry but i disagree - 1. every area is completely different in when they do the injections

2. i would be very concerned at this - especially at the fact that she wasnt up to date with her injections!!!!!!!!

i would keep a diary for the next month - time arrived, any coments from mum, food eaten and at what time, sleep at what time and for how long, time left etc. then if you are still concerned speak to mum again and say you really are concerned, maybe help her with a visit to hv/dr?? if she still isnt receptive then speak to someone but not telling the child's name.... get another opinion.

i agree that all children are diff but this would raise my suspicions on her health.

what if you didnt do anything and it turns out she has an underlying health condition??? because as well as her family, you will be asked about it. you need to cover yourself. it mightnot be anything that the parents are doing at all! just an undiagnosed health problem.

[westbrom44]

I would also be very concerned if a child was sleeping alot and lethargic. It does not sound normal as I believe your instincts are telling you.
I went on a safeguarding children course recently and drugging children to make them sleep was mentioned as something to be concerned about.

[mrsgreen]

sounds abit worrying. do you mind me asking is the child just needing lots of sleep or actually drousey? i.e not sitting up, or playing or looking at you properly? does she ever have times where she does play? she may just need more sleep then normal, but i agree with a few others, of maybe keeping a diary of pattens? does she get more tired at certain times? does she eat ok?
good luck

[miffy]

If it was me I would be concerned, at least enough to speak to the HV. Thinking of the 12 month old I mind, he sleeps for about half an hour in the morning & just over an hour in the afternoon. Other than that, he is active & on the go all the time.

I know all children are different, but it does seem that your mindee is unusually lethargic.

I'd keep a diary of sleep, food she eats, any activity she does etc and monitor it over time. Hopefully you could show mum and prompt her into getting her daughter checked out. It's got to be better to have her checked & find out there's nothing wrong, than do nothing & find out further down the line that there is something wrong.

Good advice from Mouse. I think you're right to be concerned.

Let us know what happens

Miffy xx

[Chanelle]

It is a very tricky situation.

Any worries or instinct for me is something I always keep an eye on. I would definatelly keep a diary.
Write down absolutelly everything that is said, happens, her sleep, time awake, and what she eats. Food diary is essencial. I am hypoglacemic, and cant eat too much carbs as it makes me very sleepy. She may have

Ask Mum discreat questions. Act completelly normal and just say things like, How is .... today ?
What time did she wake this morning, so u know what time to put her down to sleep?

I would also do alot of extra observations while she is awake and playing. Watch her eye movements, her reactions to things that mov e, ie car across the floor. These could give you more of an insight to what the problem might be.

Keep us posted hunny :)

Hang in there and always act on instincts. Better to be wrong than not investigate and be right! :)

[Chanelle]

Forgot to mention that dehydration can cause unusual sleeping patterns.
Does she keep foods down? Spit up alot?
Check for her nappies too, how many wet ones a day and how much does she drink?

:)

[chewy sweets]

Thanks for all the great advice. Not got her till Monday now so we'll see how she is then. She's always been quite a sleepy child but this has gotten really bad over the last 2 weeks.
As a few of you have mentioned I already keep a daily diary of everything she eats/drinks/nappy changes and sleeps.Mum has this given to her everyday.


We'll have to wait and see but thanks for people's opinions- I started to think maybe i was being a bit too sensitive! :blush:
But at the end of the day they are not our children and better safe than sorry!!:thumbsup: