Just wanting to hear some experiences to see if I have realistic expectations!
My DD is 5 this week. From the very beginning she was a poor sleeper and would only sleep in our arms so we co-slept till she was 9 months. After a difficult time involving a lot sleepless nights we got her into a cot in her own room. She used to feed to sleep but gradually I got her away from this and stopped BF at 13 months giving her a beaker of milk then she did stories and I put her in the cot with music and stayed with her when she fell asleep as she became hysterical if I tried to get out. This also applied to night waking which was frequent. By about 3.5/4 yrs she started sleeping through a fair bit but continued to be an early riser (5.30-6.15am). At 3 yrs she went straight into a single bed and we started using the gro clock which is often ignored to this day but we do it every night. When she went into the big bed we would continue to do 4 stories with her then a song then put on some lullaby style music. We sit at the end of the bed till she is fully asleep as if we try to leave before she gets very upset. This usually takes about 15-20 mins. We are generally out of her room by 7.15/7.30 PM at the latest. If she wakes in the night we try and get her to go back to sleep and sit on the bed but she is very obstinate. Sometimes this can take up to or over an hour and as we both work f/t we usually give in and she comes into our bed.
One of the reasons she wakes early is she needs a poo and won't do it in her pyjama pants but won't go the the loo on her own. She never goes back to bed when she has been to the loo and comes into our bed and has to lie quietly. At weekends she gets to watch a bit of CBeebies on the iPad for about 30 mins to help us not have such an early start as in the week.
I would like her to go to sleep on her own (like other friends children do and which they did as babies!) and I would like her to be able to settle herself at night. I would also like her to not come into our room when she wakes up so early especially if she doesn't need the loo.
I have have only one daughter so nothing to compare it to - am I being unrealistic?
Thanks!
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WestYorkshireGirl · 11/01/2016 20:13
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