8 Yo Daughter Seems To Need Lots Of Sleep

[dmchr4]

My 8 yo daughter was just diagnosed as Celiac. She has always needed a LOT of sleep. She is a night owl, and even if she's in bed by 8:30, we often still find her awake at 10:30 (even though we've checked her in between and turned off her lights.) She also wakes up 2-3 times a night to go to the bathroom even though I limit fluids in the hours before bedtime. She will sleep in until 9:30 or even 10:30 if we let her. She snores awfully (so none of the other kids want to share her room), and she does have very large tonsils. The doctor doesn't want them out, though. She wakes up every morning feeling lousy with no appetite. Once she eats a bit, she feels a little better. She's been gluten-free for a week now, and seems like she's got a lot more energy, she's been running around like CRAZY. But she's still doing all the sleep patterns above. Anyone else had problems like this and seen improvement once on the gluten-free diet for a while?

[gf4life]

Why doesn't the doctor want her tonsils out. Sleep problems, chronic enlargement and snoring together make her fit into the criteria required for surgery to remove them.

Some of her sleep problems could be from gluten, and that might get a little better with the diet, but some of it might be sleep apnea caused from her tonsils. She may be waking up because she is having trouble breathing clearly, and then just gets up to go to the bathroom, since she is already awake. This constant night waking can also explain why she is always so tired and wants to sleep in in the mornings. It is a good idea to have them out if she is having problems because leaving them in can cause future health issues due to the strain on the body from the disturbed sleep and lack of oxygen (if she does indeed have apnea). I would question the doctor about this decision and if need be get a second opinion. Make sure you discuss the sleep problems and if they could be related to the tonsils. Her lack of appetite could also be attributed to the enlarged tonsils. It can make it uncomfortable to swallow, so kids eat less.

My 5 yo daughter is recovering nicely from her tonsilectomy from 9 days ago. Her snoring is relieved (although it was worse for a few days due to the swelling), her sleep is more sound (less waking up at night) and although she is on a soft food diet, she is eating much better. We are expecting another growth spurt, now that she can eat better!

God bless,

Mariann