Nightmares in preschoolers

This guide is general information only and isn't a substitute for medical advice. If you're concerned about your child's health, or they're unwell, please see a doctor.

In the preschool years, a lot of children start waking frightened in the second half of the night. It is unsettling to watch and exhausting to manage, and it is also a normal by-product of a rapidly growing imagination. Bad dreams happen at every age, and Raising Children notes they become especially common later, around age ten.

What a nightmare is

Nightmares are bad dreams. They tend to happen in the second half of the night, when your child is sleeping more lightly and dreaming. Your child wakes up genuinely upset, but they are awake, they respond to you, and you can usually comfort them. They may remember the dream and still feel uneasy in the morning.

This is the key difference from night terrors, where a child is still asleep, does not respond to comfort, and won't remember it.

What to do in the moment

• Go to them, and comfort them calmly. This is not a habit you need to worry about creating.
• Keep it low key and brief: reassurance, a cuddle, a few quiet words, then back to sleep in their own bed.
• Don't interrogate the dream at 2am. Morning is the time to talk about it, if they want to.
• Leave a night light on if it helps. Fear of the dark at this age is normal.

Reducing how often they happen

The daytime often matters as much as the night. A calm, predictable wind-down, screens off well before bed, and cutting scary content (including news, older siblings' shows and games) all help. So does a chance to talk through any worries before bed rather than at lights out.

Consistent, adequate sleep helps too. An overtired, stressed preschooler tends to have a rougher night, and children this age need about 10 to 13 hours a night.

Giving your child a small sense of control helps too: a torch by the bed they are allowed to use, a chosen soft toy to look after them, or a simple plan for what to do if they wake. Children who feel they have a strategy tend to be less frightened of the possibility of a bad dream, which is often half the battle.

When to raise it with your GP

Most children grow out of nightmares. Raising Children suggests talking to your GP if your child seems anxious during the day as well as having nightmares, or if the nightmares follow a frightening or traumatic event. If you are ever unsure whether an episode is a nightmare or something else, describing it to your GP is a sensible check rather than a sign that anything is wrong.

Sources

• Raising Children Network, Nightmares
• Raising Children Network, Night terrors
• Raising Children Network, Preschooler sleep

Last updated: July 2026. Sources include Red Nose Australia and Raising Children Network where cited above. This guide is general information only. For individual concerns, see your GP or child health nurse.