My teenage son won’t sleep

Hi I’m new to this so please bare with me. My son just turned 14 he has Autism and ADHD. When he was much younger he wouldn’t sleep and it took a few years but eventually got there and on a good routine. However now with recent lockdown he won’t sleep and wants to be up all night and sleep all day which is not healthy and I’m worried as he won’t let me try help him? Any advice ?

  • intervention by whole family is required if possible sounds drastic but this is getting serious 

  • Hi, I'm also new. My daughter is 13 years old and after 6 years of assessments has finally been diagnosed with Aspergers.  We are also struggling this lockdown. She won't sleep at night, she signs into her online school work in the morning, then sleeps through the lessons! She comes downstairs at 5pm for her tea, then goes back upstairs. She never smiles anymore, is only eating one meal a day and hasn't left the house at all since the start of this lockdown. She had a meltdown this evening and accused me of hitting her. Luckily my other daughters and husband were there and know that I didn't touch her. How can we help her?

  • something that happened pre-covid must have taken some of his energy so he slept better ( this is a guess ). If true than if u replace the missing activity he may reset.  

    This could also be the onset of puberty ---- so try physical activites,, cycling walking swimming to knacker him more.

    what does he do all night ? if its video games ( especially online ) then u are going to have to switch of the router or get some rules set. 

    my son ( not autistic ) is a late night gamer --- me and my partner waken him in the morning to keep him from sleeping all day.

  • Hi NAS70988,

    I'm sure the Community will respond with their advice and suggestions.  In the meantime there is a page on our website about sleep issues which might be of interest which you can find here.  If you scroll down to the 'Next Steps' section there are a list of useful resources there which you might find helpful. 

    I hope that helps.

    Regards,

    Kerri-Mod