Why sleep is so crucial for teens
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Michael Bradley, EdD Adolescent Psychologist, explains how much sleep teenagers need each night and why getting enough sleep is so important during the adolescent years
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I think every parent in America is just intimidated by the fact that their kids suddenly as adolescents start to stay up late into the night, and they are bringing them in to my office cause they say they cannot sleep. Mother nature actually advances their sleep clock in to the night, the best theory explaining this is actually an evolutionary one because we found that animals that lives in herd in the wild often stay up all night where the young and the elderly sleep. And as it gets into the dawn, the young and the elderly wake up and the adolescents crash out. Why is that? Adolescents have the best eye sight, best hearing and as you know it they go insane with approbations. They are the watch dogs, they are the security system of the pack of the herd. So Mother Nature build this into your teenagers head, now you got your own security system in the house. The teenagers do not have to do that anymore, but guess what group of kids we get up first in the morning? The teenagers. It's all backwards. The average sleep load of an average teenager is under 6 hours a night now. Do you know how many hours you supposed to be getting? 10, 8-10. Some kids require even more. Mom, Dad, think of that one thing, how about if I cut your sleep in half for a couple of months and come back into an evaluation. Would you be a ADHD? Would you be a little depressed? Would you be a little reactive? Disorganized? Yes, if I could change one thing in the teenage world it will be they all get 10 hours of sleep every night.
Michael Bradley, EdD Adolescent Psychologist, explains how much sleep teenagers need each night and why getting enough sleep is so important during the adolescent years
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Michael J. Bradley, EdDPsychologist, Author & Speaker
Michael J. Bradley, EdD, award-winning author, has counseled adolescents and their parents for over 30 years and currently has a private practice in suburban Philadelphia. As a recognized specialist in adolescent behavior and parenting, Dr. Bradley is in demand as a speaker and facilitator for mental health professionals, educators, and parenting groups. He has appeared on over 400 radio and television shows, including CNN, The Today Show and Good Morning, America, and has been interviewed by numerous magazines and newspapers such as USA Today, The Philadelphia Inquirer, and Parents Magazine. His website forum is a great source of advice and encouragement to parents.
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