twitching

Hello,

  I have a 26 month old daughter who has been twitching and jerking in her sleep.  I noticed it one night and she has been for the last three weeks. She is doing it at every nap time and all through out the nite. It seems like it is getting worse. I have finally brought her to the doctor while she was sleeping so the doctor could observed her. She jerks her full body,legs and arms. Her fingers and toes twitch. The doctor thought this was completely normal but yet she sent her for blood work  and a sleep test. My daughter's magnisum levels and cbc where normal. We are waiting for the lead test to come back and we have to wait for the sleep test. She doesn't seem to have any breathing problems while she is sleeping. It is really starting to scare me. She also seems so tired all the time she wakes up after sleeping for about 9 to 10 hours through the nite and takes two 2 hour naps through out the day.. please any info is appreciated..

[Kevin Kennedy, Ph.D.]

You may be witnessing the symptoms of a condition called Benign Rolandic Epilepsy. Your daughter is a bit on the young side; onset is generally not before the age of three. It would be reasonable to ask her doctor about this. They may decide to have her undergo an EEG to help with a diagnosis.