“We battle with our daughter about bedtime every night.”

Growing Connected with Dr. Jeffrey and Amy Olrick

Most families deal with bedtime struggles at some point or another. In this episode, we discuss why kids are wired to be scared of the dark and strategies to make going to bed easier for everyone.

At the end of the episode, New Zealand pastor and musician Aaron Hardy joins us to share his story and music from his band, Te Rautini. His music is a gift that we’re thrilled to get to share with you.

Here’s today’s question:

"I'm hoping you all might have some advice for us. Every night we battle with our 5-year-daughter about bedtime. We have a routine: we have dinner, she's usually allowed to watch one TV show, then we go brush teeth, get in bed, and we read at least two books. She's happy all the way through that routine. But as soon as we turn out the lights and prepare to leave her room, it's all weeping and gnashing of teeth. She wails that she is scared of the dark. We have two nightlights in there and we leave the hall door open. But that does not calm her down. It's usually so bad that one of us ends up sleeping with her every night because she will wake up screaming if she's alone. She says she is scared of the shadows, but she can't articulate anything else that she might be scared of, just scared of the dark and she does not want to sleep alone. We don't know if we are being manipulated or if she's truly scared of the dark. We want her to be comfortable sleeping on her own. Do you have any tips to make our bedtime experience better?"