My son Diego, who is 27 months old, is having problems sleeping. Let me start by saying he has been a pretty good (and independent) sleeper since about 2 months. However, over the past week and a half, he is having troubles falling asleep at night and is waking up too early in the morning. Consequently he is tired early in the morning and even though we have been trying to get him back on schedule, his naptime and bedtime schedules are all messed up. I'm looking for suggestions. He sleeps in a toddler bed, has been in it for about 3 weeks now (because he learned how to jump out of his crib - very scary) and loves the bed, so I don't think that is the problem. He is a hot sleeper and does not like blankets covering him, so he goes to sleep with lightweight cotton pajamas and when I go to bed, I cover him with a light blanket. Lately, I have been going in his room in the early morning to cover him up again because he squirms out of the covers (I've tried all different sizes and types of sheets and blankets) and gets cold. I cannot put him in warmer pjs because he is too hot at bedtime. Here are the things I've tried: a cool bath before bedtime, a fan in his room, talking to him about going back to sleep when he is still tired in the morning, covering him up a few times a night, blankets tucked in tight, loose blankets, a sheet instead of a blanket, making sure he is tired but not over tired when he goes to sleep, etc. He used to sleep from about 8:30 pm to about 7:30 am and is now having problems falling asleep before 9 pm and is waking up between 5 and 6 am. I know he is tired because he is yawning by 10:30 am. He still takes a much-needed afternoon nap, and he sleeps well for naps, but his nap time has changed slightly because he is so exhausted in the morning (naptime used to be about 1 - 3:30 and is now 12 - 3). Does anyone have any ideas? Not sleeping well is affecting his patience and ability to get through the day (e.g. not following directions, crying easily, throwing temper tantrums, not eating well, etc.) and this is hard on my husband and me, as we work opposite schedules so that we can care for Diego. Routine is important! How do I help him sleep better? THANK YOU FOR YOUR HELP!
Could part of the issue be the fact that it stays lighter at night and gets lighter earlier in the morning? Maybe some room darkening curtains could help-at least with the early morning wakenings. I think you can buy the fabric and trim to fit your windows. Just a thought...
My kids both stopped taking naps at age two. The first week they were a little crabby about dinner time, but they sleep very good at night. Bedtime is 9pm and they go to sleep within minutes, and wake up between 8 and 9 in the morning. It is perfect because I get to stay up and relax until 11:30 by myself or with my husband, and then do not have to wake up at the crack of dawn in the morning. They are both really happy energetic kids all day too. Makes for a long day without nap time, but so worth it to have a couple hours with my husband at night. I never sit still anyway during they day so I don't miss nap time at all.
My son who had been sleeping very well since a baby, started sleeping horridly at about 27 months as well! It started out he was awful to get to bed and then was also waking up an hour or 2 before normal. It progressd to him waking up at night and not being able to get back to sleep without someone sleeping in the room with him. We tried everything, and although I do think a few things helped, it mainly just took time. I think the worst was over in about 4 months. What ended up happening was him not needing as much sleep, even though in the beginning it was rough. It was similar to when he dropped his second nap and was pretty crabby at first.
We did figure out he was pretty scared when he was having a hard time going to sleep and also waking up. We ended up having to leave his light on low and his room door open with the hall light on all night. We also had to reassure him that we would be back to get him up. Luckily, he is STILL in his crib at almost 3 years. For whatever reason he had lost his ability to sooth himself to sleep when he woke. For all the kids between 2-3 that develop awful sleep, I think there must be something developmental causing it all.
Ultimately what has happened is that we moved his bedtime back to 1-1.5 hours later than it was. And also not letting him sleep more than 1.5-2 hours for nap, starting no later than 1:30. We did give him the comfort at night he seemed to need when he was at his worst, but when he started sleeping better again we weaned him off it. I wish you the best of luck that this stage will quickly pass. It does get better!
He is probably trying to adjust to different sleep needs. If it is important to have him sleep through the night then adjust his nap a little. Wake him up after an hour or so so that he is not so well rested at night. You will have a few crabby days, but it is likely that he will adjust to a new schedule since that is what this stage is all about (adjusting, new, and schedule.) At his age kids usually don't need as much sleep. So help him cut down the daytime nap if it is important for him to sleep at night. I taught my kids to play quietly in their rooms if they got up too early.
