Night terrors and nightmares
How to tell them apart, and what to do during each.
The short version
- Do not try to wake them during a night terror. Waking will likely make it last longer. Stay calm, stay beside them, let it pass.
- Lock windows and outside doors, clear the floor, use stair gates, avoid the top bunk, and put a jingle bell on the door handle.
- They will not remember it, so there is no need to mention it in the morning. Nightmares are common: around 1 in 4 children weekly.
- A terror comes 1 to 2 hours after falling asleep: eyes open, no recognition, comfort pushed away. A nightmare comes later and they wake fully.
- After a nightmare, comfort and reassure, explain it was a dream, keep it short and calm, and talk about worries in the daytime.
The rest of this page explains where this comes from. You do not have to read it tonight.
About 2 minutes to read
Night terrors and nightmares
These look similar from the landing at midnight and are completely different things.
| Night terror | Nightmare | |
|---|---|---|
| Sleep stage | Non-REM, deep sleep | REM sleep |
| Timing | Early in the night, about 1 to 2 hours after falling asleep | Second half of the night |
| How long | Several minutes, up to about 15 | Short |
| Are they awake? | Eyes may be open but they are not awake, and do not recognise you | Fully awake and responsive |
| Do they remember it? | No | Yes |
| Do they accept comfort? | Usually push it away | Yes |
| Typical ages | 3 to 8 | 3 to 6 |
Nightmares are common: around 1 in 4 children have at least one a week.
During a night terror: stay calm, stay beside them, and keep them physically safe without restraining them. Do not try to wake them. Sheffield Children's NHS Foundation Trust is clear that waking them will likely make it last longer. Let it run its course, and there is no need to mention it in the morning: they will not remember it.
After a nightmare: comfort and reassure, and explain it was a dream. Talk about worries during the day rather than at bedtime. Searching the room together every night can accidentally confirm there is something worth searching for, so keep reassurance short and calm, and have the conversation about the worry itself in the daytime.
Scheduled awakening
If night terrors happen at a predictable time, this is the technique sources agree on, although not on the exact minutes.
- Keep a diary for 5 to 7 nights to find the typical onset time.
- Wake them shortly before that time. The NHS says 15 minutes before, The Sleep Charity says 10, and other NHS services give wider windows. Sources genuinely differ, so pick a figure in that range and keep it the same.
- Wake them properly, not a stir. Enough that they respond to you.
- Let them settle back to sleep in the usual way.
- Repeat nightly for about two weeks, and stop after roughly a week clear of terrors.
Physical safety during night terrors and sleepwalking. A child in this state is not aware of danger. Sheffield Children's NHS Foundation Trust advises locking windows and outside doors, clearing the floor, using stair gates, avoiding the top bunk, and putting a jingle bell on the door handle so you hear them move.
See your GP if the terrors are frequent, carry on into later childhood, or begin for the first time in an older child, and sooner if your child is being hurt during them or if the episodes involve breathing difficulty. Specific age thresholds circulate for this, attributed to NICE, but we could not verify the wording against NICE directly, so we have not published the numbers.
Where this comes from
- Cerebra, Sleep Guide V4 (October 2025), for the environment consistency rule, caffeine and exercise timing, nap reduction by 5 minutes a week, the causes of early rising and the sleep restriction protocol.
- The Sleep Charity, bedtime routines and night terrors and nightmares, for light and dark, screens at the start of the routine, white noise, room temperature, decor, and never using the bedroom as a punishment.
- NHS, night terrors and nightmares, for the comparison between the two and scheduled awakening.
- Sheffield Children's NHS Foundation Trust, night terrors and sleepwalking, for not waking a child during a terror and for the physical safety measures.
- Cambridgeshire and Peterborough children's health, sleepwalking, nightmares and night terrors, for 1 in 4 children having at least one nightmare a week.
- NHS, separation anxiety, for the 6 months to 3 years age range and the practical steps.
- The Lullaby Trust, keeping a clear cot and room temperature, for the clear cot rule and 16 to 20°C.
- East London NHS Foundation Trust, Sleep Basics, for rapid return and white noise use.
- Derbyshire Family Health Service, sleep, for the same-words-every-night tip and the point about screens not feeling like a punishment.
- NHS, helping your baby to sleep, for the silent return and shifting bedtime gradually.
- Carter et al. 2016, JAMA Pediatrics, meta-analysis of 17 studies and 125,198 children aged 6 to 18, for the screens findings.
- Hugh et al. 2014, Pediatrics, for the measured output of 14 infant sleep machines and the hearing safety conclusion.
- Thorpe et al. 2015, Archives of Disease in Childhood, systematic review of 26 observational studies, for napping and night sleep beyond age 2.
- BASIS, sleep aids, for the caution about sleep machines disturbing parents and about products claiming deeper infant sleep.
- UNICEF UK Baby Friendly Initiative, co-sleeping and SIDS guide (October 2019), for night waking and feeding being normal and not modifiable in young babies. The responsive feeding quotes in the night feeds section are from UNICEF UK Baby Friendly Initiative parent guidance.
- Moore, Friman, Fruzzetti and MacAleese 2007, Journal of Pediatric Psychology 32(3):283-7: the randomised controlled trial of the bedtime pass, 19 children aged 3 to 6, maintained at 3-month follow-up. Also Friman et al. 1999, Archives of Pediatrics and Adolescent Medicine 153(10):1027-9, and Freeman 2006, Journal of Applied Behavior Analysis 39(4):423-8.
- Mindell et al. 2006, Sleep, for bedtime problems in children aged 2 and over, the 20 to 30% prevalence, and the finding that positive reinforcement was never evaluated as the sole intervention.
Last checked 1 August 2026. This page is general information, not medical advice. If you are worried about your child, speak to your health visitor or GP.