«Help, my son is a late riser!»

Reader question:
My son, 9, gets by on very little sleep. He sneaks around the house until late in the evening, but finds it difficult to get going in the morning. Just like my daughter, 11; she is a real morning grouch. Both are good sleepers and good students, but sometimes suffer from lack of concentration. What can I do apart from giving them both coffee or Red Bull in the morning?
Sonja, 42, Solothurn

Nicole Althaus:

In the case of your daughter, there is a clear answer: puberty. Teenagers are morning grouches, this is scientifically proven, hormones are to blame and there is little you can do about it. The son, however, simply belongs in bed earlier. Fixed bedtimes improve concentration and school grades. This has also been scientifically proven. Introduce a fixed bedtime in the evening for your son and daughter. And don't negotiate about it. Your children are too young to decide for themselves when, how much and where they sleep. And what stimulants they consume anyway.

Kathrin Buholzer:

Children need structure. Rituals are therefore often helpful - even at bedtime in the evening. I therefore recommend that you always end the day in a similar way. Set a time together when the children go to their rooms and give them some time to themselves. Make sure that there is a «proper ending point». Go back into the room, have a quick chat with them and then say «good night» and switch off the light.

Peter Schneider:

Hm ... A double espresso instead of a simple coffee in the morning? I'm afraid there's little you can do about the sleep rhythm if you don't want to give your children a melatonin nightcap in the evening. Starting school early is complete rubbish for most children. But as we all know, nothing is as persistent as bad habits.

Nicole Althaus,
47, is a columnist, author and member of the editorial team at NZZ am Sonntag. She was previously editor-in-chief of "wir eltern" and initiated and managed the mum blog on "Tagesanzeiger.ch". Nicole Althaus is the mother of two children, 15 and 11.
Kathrin Buholzer,
42, is a journalist, parenting counsellor, operator of the parenting blog "www.elternplanet.ch" and mother of two daughters, 13 and 11.
Peter Schneider,
works as a psychoanalyst and columnist in Zurich. Until 2017, he was Professor of Developmental and Educational Psychology in Bremen; he currently teaches the history and scientific theory of psychoanalysis in Berlin.

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