On and Off- No In Between

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Well my family all has issues with night owlism. Usually we only have two functions on and off. When I'm on I'm on. And when I'm off I'm off. Usually this means I have a lot of on during the night time. I have a very long battery. But so does the youngest J-bird at 14, he's not very good at going to bed at 12 midnight. Just not tired and his battery hasn't been used up. I understand why it happens to me too. If my brain hasn't been properly stimulated with the proper stimulation then I can stay up for a very long time. When I'm in college I go to bed right at midnight because socialization and learning is a very hard combo. But on the holidays my sleeping schedule is so bad because I don't have full mental stimulation to turn me off. I can watch dozens of documentaries. Same thing with J-bird he's been on holiday for the winter and his school is starting late because they were remodeling. And he's been going to bed at late hours of night. Like me I'm writing this thread at 4 in the morning. He went to bed at 3 in the morning. How do I go about making sure he turns off early so that way we don't have him not being able to focus in school? Or even wake up for school? Waking up to go to school is a good thing.

Teen sleep patterns are tough for everyone, and it's long been established that some people are "night owls" and some people are "morning people" naturally.

That being said, I'd watch for some basic stuff: make sure you have an established morning routine, and get up every day at the same time or close to it, even on weekends. Sleeping in messes up your sleep cycle more than not getting to bed on time, plus it makes you more likely to stay up late the next night. Encourage taking naps in the early afternoon rather than sleeping in to "catch up." http://www.sleepfoundation.org/article/ ... -and-sleep http://www.pbs.org/wgbh/pages/frontline ... sleep.html

Watch stimulants: caffeine and nicotine stay in your system much longer than you think, about 6 hours. This was something I forgot about in college, and it lead to sleep deprivation and panic attacks. http://faculty.washington.edu/chudler/caff.html

Thanks Sparky. Ugh...going to collaspe.