ABSTRACT
Parents of young children often face extensive night-time disturbance. The stress caused by this problem can be very great and some parents have chronically disturbed sleep for five or more years, especially if they have more than one child. Although adults can adjust to reduced amounts of sleep their reserves of emotional energy become depleted and they are likely to be more irritable, prone to mood changes, and less patient. This can affect both the marital relationship and the parent-child relationship.
