If your teen struggles to fall asleep at night and has trouble waking up for school, biology may be part of the reason. During adolescence, the body’s natural sleep schedule shifts later, even as school often requires an early start.
In an episode of Your Child Is Normal, pediatrician Jessica Hochman, MD, talks with Rakesh Bhattacharjee, MD, who leads the sleep program at Rady Children’s Hospital San Diego, about what this shift means for families. They discuss how sleep affects children’s mood, learning, attention, physical health and athletic performance.
The conversation also covers questions many parents have: How much sleep does my child need? Do screens, caffeine and sleeping in on weekends make a difference? Can too little sleep look like ADHD? Dr. Bhattacharjee shares practical ways to think about bedtime routines and consistency, and explains when excessive sleepiness may deserve medical attention.
About the Center for Healthy Sleep at Rady Children’s
The Center for Healthy Sleep, directed by Rakesh Bhattacharjee, M.D., specializes in diagnosing and treating a wide range of pediatric sleep disorders, including obstructive sleep apnea, obstructive and non-obstructive hypoventilation, central apnea, primary snoring and disorders of hypersomnia, such as narcolepsy. Learn more.