Hi there...I am hoping someone out there has a suggestion for getting my son to sleep through the night. Cooper is 19 months old and used to be great about sleeping all night and was very good at the whole self-soothing thing. Since he has transitioned into a toddler bed he wakes up atleast twice a night. We have a good bed-time routine abd try to stay very consistent with it. When he goes to bed I usually sing to him and he is out but then later at night when he wakes up that does not work. As soon as I stop or there is any silence he pops out of bed. I have tried letting him cry it out but after 2 hours what do I do???? Help...........
Thanks for all the great advice!! I did try to put the blankets around Cooper last night and he slept all night...still was up at 5:30 when my husband left for work but there was no getting up in the middle of the night. I know it was just one night but it felt good to sleep!!! To those who say to put him back in his crib...we tried awhile ago and he was not having any of that and that is why we thought he was ready for his "big" bed. I know it is just going to be a process and it is nice to know I am not alone.....thanks so much!!!!! Just wanted to let everyone know that for the past couple of nights Cooper has been sleeping without getting up at all. Yeah!! He is usually up around 7-7:30 now....I have the radio in his room, a night light and put the blankets around him also. Thanks again!!!
My son Tanner was the same way. He felt scared without the side walls of the crib. I bought him one of the tent beds. He stopped waking up right after that. He loved it. The first one was Pooh and the second one was a car. You can look at them at www.lillianvernon.com
Hi M.,
First of all, know that there are a million of us up with you half the night as well, so you are not alone. My thought is that 19 months is so little to be in a toddler bed - I've got a two year old and a 1 year old, and they both sleep in cribs. The two year old is just now getting interested in a bed, but he's still pretty safe and happy in the crib. If you've still got the crib, pull it back out and try the bed again in six months.
Good luck from a fellow sleep walker!
YOur toddler may well be jealous of his new sibling. You may want to talk about his waking in the night. The longer you get up with him, the longer it will go on. You may need to help him understand that he is old enough to put himself back to sleep. Instead of rewqarding his wakefullness with your attention, offer him a reward for not getting up in the night. Some time with you to do something special might motivate him.
I cannot fathom having children who don't sleep through the night well into toddlerhood! No way...sorry but that is just untrue and unhealthy! By just a few months, babies have the ability to sleep sound through the night, but it is a skill that has to be encouraged. Sounds like you have all of that figured out and had a good routine going. Since the only change sounds like the bed, I say bring back the crib. 19 monts is really young for a toddler bed. Babies have to be able to tell the difference btwn doing what they should and doing what they want...and at 19 months they lack that ability. No matter how much discipline you put into the situation, he's just too young to learn to stay in bed on his own. Bottom line...you both need sleep! It is not a luxury, it's a necessity...do whatever it takes to get his good schedule back!
If you are then giving into him even after the 2-hour cry, he knows he can outlast you. When he gets up and comes to you, don't say anything or make eye contact with him. Just take him back to bed and then quietly leave. If he comes to you again, repeat the walking him back to bed without any conversation and without looking at him directly. If he stays in bed but is crying, you must not give in and let him get up. You may have to do this over and over the first night or two. But then he should stop doing this. Being consistent and carrying through on what you tell him or show him will happen if he doesn't do something correctly is sooooo important. Without that, it won't work. (I've seen this concept on the show where the visiting Nanny comes to help with children issues and it really works! And as a mother of three grown children and 9 grandchildren, I learned how important consistency is!
V.
Try the Delta Sleep System. This is a calming CD, and worked for my son at that age.
Hi! I have 3 kids myself and am currently struggling to get my 9 month old into better sleeping patterns, so maybe I shouldn't be giving you any advice... :) Anyways, we had good results with our first 2 with the noise machines - you can get them anywhere (Target, Meijer, Walmart) and they play different noises, like streams or ocean noise or white noise. They now make clock radios that have the same sounds on them. Might be worth a try...good luck!
I have 3 children who are now 7, 11, and 14 and each one of them had periods of time that they didn't sleep well. I am afraid to tell you that I don't have any real answers to your problem but I can reassure you that Cooper will grow out of it if you are consistant. Our eldest was comforted by having a nightlight on and a parent that came in and settled him down. My middle child had a really hard time and we eventually had to put him in the same room as our older son. Being able to see another person when he woke up in the night seemed to help. He also spent many nights sleeping on the floor in our room. We always made a rule that the kids couldn't come in bed with us (mostly because I can't sleep well with them) but we would go into their beds or let them sleep with each other or sleep on the floor in our room. My youngest slept in the chair in our room and sometimes climbed in bed with her brother during these phases. He hated having her in his bed so we would put her at the foot with her own blankets.
Although I have no answers, I feel your pain. I thought I was going to lose my mind during those months. Hang in there!
Hi M.,
BOth of my girls have cd players in their rooms. One enjoys listening to country music, while the other listens to Baby Einsteins. That way there is that singing noise in the middle of the night when they wake up. A nightlight may also help.
Is Cooper falling asleep on his own, or are you still in the room singing when he falls asleep? If you are in the room when he's falling asleep, then he's not really going to sleep on his own and won't in the middle of the night either. Try singing one final song (try the same one every night), turning on his music of choice (maybe some of the lullabyes you sing to him), making sure his nightlight is on and he has some huggy thing to snuggle, and leave. Getting him trained on his own at 8 o'clock has to be easier than at 2 o'clock when we're so tired we do whatever it takes...which isn't always the best! :) Hope that helps.
S.
Try soothing music on continuous play throughout the night.
Good luck!
S.
Hello
I have a nephew who had trouble sleeping at night. My brother and sister-in-law bought a small radio and turned it on with a cd or a soft music station at night. He now sleeps at night and helps turn the radio on.
Good Luck
C.-Shepherd
try buying the side rails for the toddler bed. I think the rails of the crib may have been a security thing. Good Luck!
M., Place rolled up blankets on either side of him, so that when he does wake in the night, it seems like he is in his crib. Extra space around a child feels odd, and can even frighten them, because they temporarily don't know where they are, and it may be slightly colder. Also, my son goes to sleep with a sleepytime lullaby CD, so quietly that he just barely can hear it. If he wakes in the night, I go in and see what's the matter, and then give hugs and kisses, and then turn on the music again. He relaxes, and it puts him right back to sleep. You can even record yourself singing, if that helps. Also, my son has a "lovey,"....some kind of stuffed animal, tiny. His is a little lamb about 5 inches long. When he was as young as your's, he had one of those little square foot blankies, with a stuffed dog, cat, animal sewn into one corner. Just small enough to hug and cuddle, not large enough to hurt while sleeping. Also, our son has one of those tiny lights that plugs into the outlet and only comes on when there is some movement in the room. It is tiny, and then after no movement for a while, it goes back off. So, it is not a distraction, but rather a reminder of where he is, and that gives him comfort.
The only other thing I can think of is that he may not be ready for the toddler bed? You would know better about that. We didn't transition, until our son was trying to crawl over the railing of his crib. But since Cooper is already in the toddler bed, I don't know that you would want to switch back again. Anyway, I wish you all the luck in the world.
J.
Hi Mairah,
Have you tried putting bed rails on the toddler bed? Sounds like your little man is a bit un-easy with his big boy bed, this may help & he can decide if he wants the rails up or not.
Have an peaceful night.
'Auntie L.'
Hi M.,
I agree with Lacy, he may need to go back to a crib. My son will be 2 in Jan. and is still in his crib. I'm not planning to transfer him anytime soon. I think toddlers like the security of a crib. If you can't put him back in a crib I would try what another mom suggested and roll up some blankets to make him feel more secure. I also agree with Lacy when she said that kids can def. sleep through the night at this age. It always makes me chuckle when people say that kids don't sleep through the night until they are older. I have 2 boys, 4 and almost 2, they both sleep throught the night and have since my youngest was 6 weeks. Good luck
Chris
I have a cooper as well :-)
mine are now 3 and the other soon to be 4 in january. the one that just turned 3 nov 15th is still in a crib/daybed set up. she has lots of stuffed toys in there with her that keeps her company. my son cooper who will be 4 end of january also has stuffed animals/toys to keep him company. he was put in a twin bed from his crib at about 2 1/2.
maybe try some stuffed toys to help him feel less alone.
as much as i love to watch my kids fall alseep i make myself leave the room before they are asleep so they can put themselves to sleep , then if they wake up they can try to put themselves back to sleep. and not need you there every time to fall back asleep. they've figured it out on their own.
i'm not good at that crying it out either,, we always did the reassuring then leaving to let them figure it out. but let them always know we were there if they called us. still do now. i have a hard time disciplining them for not being able to fall asleep. don't feel it's an act that requires it.
we also have a heart beat bear in my daughters room. always have since she came home from the nicu.
my son had a luliby cd for the longest time and that was his routine. do you have a mist humidifyer? maybe that woooshing sound would work as a white noise to help him stay asleep.. and eventually figure it out on his own.
my daughter doesn't require the bear every night now.
good luck.. every child is different so maybe he's going thru an adjustment with the new bed.
T.
Your not alone. I have a 21 months old (really 19m) and she dose the same thing. she has slept in a toddler bed at the dcp ever sense she started going there, but we moved her to a toddler bed and she gets out of bed and come's in with us at all hours of the night. For me who gose to work at 5 in the morning, its hard, I never get any sleep.
I am putting the railing back on her bed, I think she needs it and ME too.. lol. Its a tough call, and one you and your DH need to make together. I wanted Shayli to feel like a BIG kid, but at this point also realize that she dosent understand that she needs to sleep in HER bed. So the railing to the crib is coming back.
i know its hard, but do whats best for all of you. Mom needs her sleep TO!
T.
You first have to be realistic, he is only 19 months old, most little ones don't even start to sleep through the night until they are 2, I remember having kids closer in age then yours and it always seemed like I never slept at night, even know with my 3 younger ones (6,3 and 16 months) I don't get a full nights sleep, really don't know that is or how it feels to sleep past 6 a.m, You may need to move him back to a crib, some kids just don't like the open feeling toddler beds or regular beds have, one thing I did with my 3 year old was to put blankets around her body kinda like another body to help her feel more secure, I really don't have many suggestions cause I am of the school were I just get up and do whatever needs to be done, it doesn't last forever, as I know from my older 4, I guess for me everything were children is concerned is a battle and I just pick them differently the most. Sorry but good luck I know what you are going through.
