Sleeping in Their Own Bed

I had the same problem with my 18 month old and i found that if i make it look like i'm laying down with him in his bed then he has no problems sleeping in his bed. I also found that when he takes a nap and i put him in his bed he sleeps longer and it helps them get used to sleeping in a bed. I hope this helps and if you have any other questions please feel free to ask me. I'm going through this for the second time and everything i'm doing now i did with my first. good luck.

I feel your pain. I have a 12month old who I am trying to transition to her own bed. Have you read the "no cry sleep solution" by Elizabeth Pantley? She has some great suggestions and they are starting to work for us. I would recommend putting a toddler bed next to your bed and once your child adjust to that. then gradually move it away from you bed, but in the same room and then into their own room, if that is your ultimate goal. It is a slow process, but it will eventually work. Good luck!

The best way is to put them in their bed and at 17 months they are old enough to understand that they need to stay in bed. And then when they come to your bed, you need to get up right away and put them back in their bed. This may take a few nights, but eventually they will learn that it is not worth it and will stay in their own bed. I don't know if your little one is still in the crib or has moved to a bed, but you may want to consider if they are still in a crib, getting a daybed or a toddler bed and make a really big deal about the big kid bed. But you just have to practice consistency, every time, all the time and they will learn, and you can get back to getting a good night's sleep. Good luck.

Diedre,

Believe me I feel your pain on this one. My now 10 year old daughter would not sleep in her own bed when she was 15 months old to around 24 months. She would throw up, give herself diarhea, scream, cry anything that would make me pick her up and allow her to sleep with me. I was so frustrated, I talked to a sleep specialist and this is the advice they gave me. Read read read, put her to bed about 30 minutes earlier than normal and read to her, then sit there close to the bed until she fell asleep, gradually moving the chair farther away from the bed each night. I literally would be sitting in the hallway until she went to sleep, we also used magic water, a glass of water that would keep bad dreams away,(which is still next to her bed every night) For the first couple of weeks we were also told to give massages, with non scented oils so she could only smell our scent and would be comforted. This did take awhile, but it gave us some great bonding time, and now she wouldn't even dream of sleeping in my room. The only personal touch I had was that I put a picture of the family next to her bed in a soft frame so if she wanted to hold it she could.
I wish you the best of luck, I know it is frustrating, but it does get better.

Our son is 18 months and since he was 10 months he has slept in his bed ALL NIGHT. We used the Ferber method and let him cry or play himself to sleep. It was hard the first night but after that, he LOVES going to sleep now!!

Try co-sleeping a bit longer...Unless you are completely fed up...My 4 year old daughter still sleeps in my bed, but I don't want her to leave until SHE is comfortable...My 2 year old son just perfers to be in his crib...If you literally cant take it anymore I would start by making her take naps in her bed first so she can get used to the idea, and be more comfortable with it in the daytime so she sees it isnt so bad and then go from there....

D.,
I have a 13 month old and have struggled with this issue time and time myself. With my son, I let him fall asleep in my bed and when he's deep enough in sleep, I move him to his own bed. Maybe letting your child sleep with something that smells like you could make the transition a little smoother. If your 17 month old hasn't been sleeping in their own bed for some time than keep in mind that it may actually take more time.

We didn't have trouble at that age...but later on with our son when he was scared of 'monsters'...
so we put his toddler mattress on our floor beside our bed - and he would fall right to sleep --- yet would lie awake for hours in his own room by himself. Just a thought and worth a try? That way - they aren't in your own bed...but they still feel the comfort and security of being close and in the same room. I have a friend who did that until her daughter was 9 and then one day the daughter just decided it was time for her own bed!... (ok - a bit long for me...but it worked for her situation). For us, it only took a short time - and now he's been in his own bed probably 97% of the time. He still will whine to sleep in our bed...but I tell him now that he's a 'big boy' that is where they sleep - in their OWN beds.
Good luck! I DO feel your pain!

Is he/she in a crib or a toddler bed? I have a 17 month old too, and she's in a toddler bed and doing great with it. Let me know the details, and i can try to help?!?

Sleep with him in his own bed. :)

I had to sleep almost half the night at first with my son when transitioning him to his own bed. He was much younger (had to get him out because I was pregnant), so maybe it was easier? But maybe it was harder? Good luck. I also liked the book Good Nights by Jay Gordon.

M.

Has he/she been sleeping in your bed since birth or this is habit that's just recently started? If it's been since birth, you're going to have to be patient because little ones don't willngly give up the comfort & protection of mommy & daddy's bed (at least mine didn't)! It depends on your child's temperament and how determined you are make it happen. You may want to slowly progress toward him/her sleeping alone...first on a mattress in your room next to your bed...then on a mattress a little farther away...then into his/her own room, etc. You will likely have to lay down with him/her some and/or run back & forth between rooms until he/she gets used to sleeping in a different place. You can also play up the "big kid" concept, get him/her a special big kid bed, give rewards for sleeping like a big kid, etc. If you're really fed up and can't stand the child in your bed or room a second longer, be ready for some rough days/weeks. You may have to employee a cry-it-out technique or at least some tough love to accomplish the task. I personally prefer the graduated method, but I know how it is when you're at the end of your rope and just have to make a change NOW. Good luck!!

Hey D.!
You might try putting a t.v. in the bedroom and letting him watch it until he goes to sleep. Not everyone would agree with me but I did that with my 5 year old. It worked well for a while. However, he still gets in my bed during the night.