Boys & Puberty?

iVillage Member
Registered: 03-06-2006
Boys & Puberty?
7
Fri, 09-29-2006 - 11:09am

Is it normal for pre-teen boys to be tired all the time?

My 12.5yo DS seems to be exhausted all the time. He's tired when I wake him up in the morning, drags himself through showering, dressing and eating breakfast -- often so slowly he has to eat in the car, he's tired all the way to school, he's still tired when I pick him up after school, during dinner, after dinner ... well, you get the idea.

He seems to be under puberty assault from all directions -- he's grown 4" since his last check-up as well as changing in all the usual physical ways. I imagine that all these physical changes can be tiring (like when babies are entering a major growth spurt, they either sleep a lot, or eat a lot) but this extreme tiredness make me wonder. DH says he remembers sleeping whole weekends away when he was a teenager, but maybe at 14-15, so DS is still a bit younger than that.

His appetite seems to have actually decreased lately. I thought it went the other way around?

Any btdt experience?

 

 

 

iVillage Member
Registered: 03-26-2003
Fri, 09-29-2006 - 1:09pm

Mine all became night people. They all said they were tired in the morning no matter what time they went to bed(because of course this was moms answer-go to bed earlier!)If they could sleep until late morning on a weekend, they were 'perkier'

I cant say mine were tired in the evening though-that was actually when they livened up!

Yeah, mine all had an appetite increase which, because all my kids were fussy, was also a willingness to try new foods. That was huge for me after all the years of worrying about variety and nutrition.

Since the doc said something to ds about his weight, its possible he is conciously eating less or perhaps has become interested in girls and is more worried about appearance?

IMO if hes grown 4 inches he is definitely in puberty and what your DH remembers about age 14-15 may very well apply to him even though he is still 12

Avatar for mjaye2002
iVillage Member
Registered: 03-26-2003
Fri, 09-29-2006 - 1:28pm

I remember both mine being tired a lot of the time, but seems like anytime there was any *fun* to be had, they perked right on up! They both slept tons on the weekends. I think overall, their appetite increased, but I do remember it going in spurts. There would be days that they just wouldn't be hungry. I remember that the most with my ds19, ds15 has pretty much stayed hungry since he was about 10. :) Just about the time I would start getting concerned that ds19 wasn't hungry, he would start eating again.

Does he take a multi-vitamin? I don't know if that would help, but it certainly can't hurt! You might try that and watch him over the next several weeks and see if maybe this is a cylical thing. If it doesn't appear to be, then I would talk to his doctor about it. It is probably nothing to worry about, but it certainly helps to have a doctor double-check and confirm it for you.

iVillage Member
Registered: 07-19-2003
Fri, 09-29-2006 - 1:43pm

Tiredness is a function of puberty. They are growing alot and their bodies need sleep. My 11 yo son is just on the verge of his own puberty growth spurt and what I find is that his sleeping patterns are just a bit unpredictable. Sometimes he's tired really early in the evenings (ie he wants to go to bed at 9, 930). Other times he's revved up until past 11 and I can't get him to sleep. Some mornings I have to drag him out of bed and other mornings he's up at the crack of dawn.

My 15 yo daughter actually never went through the sleeping-in stage. Her friends love to sleep until noon and stay up late. My dd is up early every day (even on weekends) and in bed by 11. She just never feels like sleeping in.

I think boys have a more dramatic growth period during puberty. They seem to just explode all of a sudden and so I'm not surprised he's tired. Make sure he gets proper nutrition, takes a daily multivitamin or maybe even some energy drinks/supplements. And if he still feels tired all the time, take him for a physical.

iVillage Member
Registered: 03-06-2006
Fri, 09-29-2006 - 3:48pm

Thanks everyone ... after posting, I do recall that DD was always tired during her middle school years too. Something about that place just seems to wear them out. Go figure.

DS does take a daily multi-vitamin and his diet really has gradually improved over the last year, year and a half, through efforts on both our parts, so I feel he is eating fairly well these days. Good be that better food choices are making him feel fuller longer? So less snacking? One can only hope, right?

Last spring he missed two full weeks of school due to a particularly tenacious virus and the doctor ordered quite a bit of blood work, all which came back normal. I WILL keep an eye on him over the next week and see how he does. Even DH remarked that he seemed really run-down these days.

Oh and yes, he does perk up quite a bit when something fun happens. Last Friday night, he went to a friends bday party -- ball game and sleepover at which very little sleeping actually occurred. Of course, the next night, when we celebrated MY birthday, he was pooped!

Thanks again, ladies!

 

 

 

iVillage Member
Registered: 10-16-1999
Fri, 09-29-2006 - 8:58pm
Glad you were able to get answers to your concerns - I was about to chime in that my DSs went thru phases of sleeping ALL the time off and on from about 12 thru 16 or so.
iVillage Member
Registered: 03-06-2006
Fri, 09-29-2006 - 11:05pm

Thanks for sharing your experience, Rose. I picked up an "I am SO tired" kid at 2:00 this afternoon and he stayed that way until about 4:30, when the phone rang, an was invitation extended and boy, did he perk right up!

 

 

 

Avatar for suzyk2118
iVillage Member
Registered: 07-30-1997
Sat, 09-30-2006 - 7:20am

Same here, and since dh is tall, I know ds14 has a ways to go. He definitely had tired times in MS and seems better in 9th, but still probably has about 6" to go, so I expect the ups and downs of energy again. And appetite too. Sometimes he can eat a load; other times he snacks. But he's healthy and growing, so I guess that's all we can do; roll with the needs!

Sue