Night Terrors and problems swallowing - 2 year old

[ShakinThingzUp]

My 2 year old daughter had recurrent ear infections, colds and seemingly allergy problems.  Snoring was a problem and she didn't sleep well.  After 7 ear infections in less than a year we opted to have ear tubes put in and adenoids removed.  The operation went well & the doctors said she did not get upset or have any problems with taking the anesthesia.  Afterward, she did wake up scared and crying a lot (as I'm sure is common).  She recovered fine & played happily the following day... albeit more tired than normal, she took more naps.

It has been one month.  Her follow up was delayed (long story) and is scheduled for next week.

2 nights ago she began to wake during the night with night terrors.  I was familiar with them because her older brother had them when he was three.  She is not awake, just screams and screams and cannot be consoled.  I place her in the bed with me so she is safe, until she is calm and asleep soundly then I put her into her own bed.  First night it happened twice.  Last night it happened twice.

She has been getting to bed later than normal - we've been busy this week with her siblings starting school & have been out of our schedule.  So, the night terrors didnt surprise me or overly concern me.

What does concern me is that during these night terrors, she seems to be having trouble swallowing.  She gulps like she is having a lot of trouble and then fights for her breath after the gulping.  It seems to help (the gulping) if I hold her upright with her head on my shoulder until the terror subsides - the gulping is worse lying flat.

So, is there a normal reason for her to be gulping during her night terrors?

During my sons, he would get out of the bed and stand in the middle of the room screaming.  She stays still in her bed in the same position she was asleep in with tears streaming down her face.  By the time I get there to check on her she's doing the gulping.... ????

Thank you for any advice.
God Bless!
Amy

[ShakinThingzUp]

Thanks for your post.
I read a lot online yesterday about night terrors, and while I do believe the surgery had a lot to do with it, I think that our crazy week at home (with our schedules being off and everyone not getting enough rest) triggered her night terrors.  She had gotten to bed late a few nights in a row, and had a couple of her naps during the week cut short, so she was "sleep deprived" in a sense....
The doctors web sites indicated that she was not awake, but caught between two phases of sleep (which is what I had experienced with my son) and that she really wouldn't be aware of anything....... their best suggestions were to:
1 - Get her back on her routine of sleep
2 - Try putting her on the pottie (because many kids who have these are being semi-woken up by the need to pee and coming aware of it - potty training
3 - not to touch her unless necessary because it may prolong the episode (which is exactly what we had experienced - when I left her alone she was able to go back to sleep).

So, last night I made a huge effort to get her routine back in order and have her in bed right on time.  She slept through the night........

Now, I will follow the rest of their advice and make sure her routine stays in place for at least a solid straight week to get her back on track.  Hopefully this will end it...... the gulping just kind of worried me more because my son did not do that when he had his night terrors (he was actually up and walking during his).

God Bless!
Amy

[KD9ER]

I'd say the gulping might be in response to her experience with surgery.  People definatly act different going in, coming out of, and post surgery.  Some people consciously remember the whole surgery even though they are under, others will dream about being under, and some don't have any memories they can recall at any conscious level.  I have a feeling your daughter is going through night terrors in response to the surgery.  My son at 3 mo old did something similar.  He was put under for an MRI and he had night terrors (yes he was way to young to start this) for a good month and then it seemed to just disappear.  He would start sounding like he was trying to swallow his own tounge or something...it was a very weird sound over the baby monitor and then we'd run in there like he was dying and he'd start crying and flailing his limbs but was sound asleep.  He wasn't having a seizure.  So the doctors told us it was probably in response to what his body deems traumatic.  
The only thing we found to help him was singing his favorite song.  Talking did nothing to console him nor holding him.  But I found that putting his head on my chest (skin on skin) and singing his favorite song as if I were rocking him to sleep was enough to pull him out of the night terror enough to calm him down and let him continue sleeping.
Children don't have the ability to express how they feel fully.  That is why they go through the  night terror phase.  It's their response to things that scare them, hurt them, bother them...etc.  They act it out in a dream because they don't know how to de-stress.  An adult can vent or stand up for themselves in a bad situation whereas a child cannot.  It could be as simple as someone taking her stuffed animal away from her so they could play with it and she feels very hurt by it.  We as adults would not percieve this as a threat but she would.  Often we tell our children they must share and we force them out of their comfort zone.  We have the best of intentions, but enough of it and the child becomes overwhelmed and starts having night terrors.  
Have you ever asked her what she dreams about?  My best friend does this with her now 3 year old.  She started it a year ago out of total curiosity expecting her daughter to ask her what a dream was.  She was shocked by the responses she got and continues to get.  I'd try asking her.  Maybe getting her to share even a bit will help her.  It might be very confusing and weird, but remember your dreams don't make much sense either.  So if a My Little Pony is stealing her cookie and then she's swimming in the pool the next moment try not to laugh.  :)  Just empathize with her and maybe you'll see the night terrors go by the wayside a little faster.

I hope this helps.  Best of luck!
-K