Does your "kid" have a hard time at night?

[Bean]

My daughter seems to always have a hard time at night. No matter where she is, she's always up late or partying, or running off at odd times of the night.

When she was at my parent's house, she'd be up until 10pm, then suddenly leave and come back at 2am. Or leave and not come back. Or just never come back.

Last night she came to our house (she had been living with my parents, got kicked out of there, moved in with her boyfriend, "broke up" with him, and was spending a night at our house), left to go to her friends at 3pm, never heard from her again. She never came home, never called.

I suppose I should worry, and I do. I've said before that we're the kind of family that talks to each other every night. She usually calls in. But it is typical of Bean1. She's thoughtless and impulsive. All I know is that she went off with some kid named "Hector."

I will worry until I hear from her, but this is just another thing that has become "normal" in our lives. A daughter that races out at all hours of the night.

 

[emotionallybankrupt]

Oh, yes. I think many teenagers' brains are wired so that night hours are "prime time." I can still relate to this because the same is true for me, and unfortunately it wasn't just a teen passage for me. I'm one of those people whose natural body rhythms are "off" the way the majority of the world operates, and I've always had to fight against that. Of course, the behaviors you describe are "over the top."

But are these behaviors that she would be into during the day if it were possible? Is it a nighttime thing just because that's when the other teens she wants to hang out with are awake too?

 

[CrazyinVA]

My girls both thad this issue. I was talking to my own therapist about it recently, and she mentioned that the staying up all night can be part of a manic episode. I think many of our "mood-challenged" kids tend to be night owls. Then again, lots of "normal" kids start their nightrs at 10, 11 or midnight, too... I used to notice that back in my 30s when I'd occasionally go to clubs downtown. I'd head out at 8 or 9, and the places would be empty. The crowds showed up between 11 and 12, mostly 20somethings. I was clearly too old to be there

 

[KTMom91]

Surprisingly enough, Miss KT fades out about 10 pm. It's rare for her to be out late. I'm the night owl; 2 am is the best time of the day. I've had to fight the "up all night, sleep all day" thing my entire life.

 

[DammitJanet]

Until Cory started hanging with other night owls he was a chicken. Everyone else here except me is a chicken...ya know, early to bed, early to rise. I am one of those who starts to come alive the later it gets.

 

[BusynMember]

My daughter got into 90% of her trouble at night. But it wasn't because night did anything strange to her...she knew hub and I would eventually go to sleep and be unable to monitor her activities. Can't tell you how many times I called the cops to bring her home after she'd snuck out of her room after curfew. She climbed through the window under we put bars on it.

 

[GoingNorth]

Definitely an "owl" here. According to my psychiatrist it is part and parcel with the BiPolar (BP) in some people. Plus, I worked nights for many years and I think that plays a role as well.