7 year old twin boys will not go to sleep!!

[BigMomma3]

Last night they did not sleep until 11.30pm when they were put to bed at 8.00pm . Then of course this morning we had tears and tantrums when I finally got them out of bed at 8.00am!! They are always knackered in the morning and are very grumpy after school.

They have had the same routine every night since they were babies - milk and biscuit, then bath (or shower if pushed for time) and story then bed. Always make sure they are in bed by 8.30 at the latest but the little buggers will just not sleep. It does not help that they share a room and sometimes if they are being really noisy I will separate them and put one in my bed until they are asleep but they are usually then running in and out of the bedrooms! I have even tried sitting outside their bedroom reading a book until they fall asleep but they take so long to drop off that I can still be sat there until 10.00pm and can't do that everynight as I have an older child who I have to chivvy along to sort herself out as well.

They do plenty of exercise: cycling to and from school, spend ages on the trampoline and judo. I have tried turning off the TV and Wii an hour before they go to bed so their brains can wind down but it makes no difference.

Any advice please!!!!

[Kayran]

You seem to be doing all the right things - and thats when situations like this are most frustrating - when you do what seems to work for everyone else and it does not work for you. Having said that the routine may be part of the problem, it is too regular, too ordinary.
I am a foster mum and often have children come to me who have no idea of sleep patterns. One little boy (7) was practically nocturnal as he had not been to school and had been up with his parents who mainly were awake only in the night. What we did with him was explain how tired we were and how difficult it was to do things to keep the house running whilst being up at night time. Not in a cross way but very matter of fact. Then for a week when he came home from school he had his tea, had a bath and got into his PJ's straight away. No after clubs, tv, etc as we explained that we were just too tired. Very dim lights, very quiet - we were ready for our beds by 6p.m.! It did take a while but this led him to ask if he stayed in bed for a full night could he play on the Wi after school for an hour before having a bth etc. We agreed and within a month he had a 'normal' routine. BEWARE you really have to stick at this one and for your older girl you might want to have a reward at the weekend for her having to endure the 'lights out' routine at what is in fact an inapproriate time. (We did have other children and thats what we did). Good luck with whatever you decide to do. I LOVE my sleep...

[BigMomma3]

Well Kayran I tried your advice and put them to bed at 6.30pm with one in my room and they were both asleep by 6.45 (with me sitting on the landing so they could'nt do their usual shenanigans!!).

They were actually both badly behaved (no surprise) when I picked them up with DS1 having a meltdown when I told him he could not go on the Wii (knocking over a chair) and DS2 taking our tiny kitten on the trampoline and bouncing him 10ft in the air so I told them that they have to go to bed because they are so tired it's making them naughty.

Will continue with the 6.30pm bedtime for the rest of the week and gradually extend it until 8.00pm as they get better at settling down. Thanks!

[BigMomma3]

Oh FFS they are both awake now - WHY!!!!!

[TheFoosa]

I sympathise, my dd is exactly the same, but she's always been a nightmare sleeper

[3littlefrogs]

I think 8pm is too late for a 7 year old. I would aim for 7pm and stick to it. It sounds as if they are overtired and going into overdrive. You may need to sit with your book for a little while to stop them talking to each other though.

[3littlefrogs]

Oh dear - could something have disturbed them? Noise in the street perhaps? It is such hard work isn't it.

[BigMomma3]

3lf thanks - 1 back asleep and 1 just been shouted at to go back to sleep!! We have virtually no traffic here (very quiet cul de sac) and they are used to background noises like noisy DD! It seems the one in my bed woke up and went in and woke the other one up . Will keep on though and definitely keep to the earlier bedtimes. I was sitting in the lounge at 7pm marvelling at the peace and quiet but it did'nt last long!

[busybutterfly]

I think 8pm is too late as well. My 7r old goes to bed at 7 and has to stay in bed and be quiet.
Good luck!

[Kayran]

Good for you. The meltdowns are horrible but they will get craftier as the week marches on - look forward to offers of second hand left over school sweets (umm hard to resist that one) and then outright tantrums. Ultimately, for us it was a case of waiting for the penny to drop we did not offer him treats for behaving but just stressed that tiredness meant no one was in the mood for fun and frolics. Once the penny drops and they 'get' what a good bedtime will 'buy' them it will get a lot easier. I hope that the mornings are kind to you too let me know how it progresses but the good thing at 7 is that they are aware of 'baby' routine and do not want it to apply to them! We have also had the two in one room thing and it is really hard to deal with unless you separate them - oh the things we will laugh about when we are old and crinkly ...