to ask for your sleep stalling tips?

[cjt110]

DS, 17m, is a stubborn little monkey for approximately the last week or so, been a pain at bedtimes. Would previously go down at 7 and 9 times out of 10, settle himself after he'd had his milk and sleep.

This has stopped. Last night for example, he went down at 7 and we spent 1 hour and 20 mins of me lying him back down, going out, lying him back down, singing to him, going out etc etc. He had been fed, watered, was clean and had had pain relief as he is cutting 3 molars together. Most nights seem to be following the same thread. Last night in desperation we got him out of bed and he wandered around the lounge whilst we tried to eat tea. He pinched a chip or two, had a few raisins, then I put him back to bed, he had a good glug of his milk then went to sleep.

I cannot stand to leave him crying but also do not want to create a routine of him crying and getting up.

We have changed him from a sleeping bag to a duvet lately (he had been sick twice over two nights meaning both bags were in the wash) and he seemed to get on ok with it. He throws EVERYTHING out of his cot when he's getting upset too.

DH tries to help but DS is even worse with him and I notice he gets frustrated (DH) so I step in and deal with it myself.

I'm sure it's just a phase but can anyone give me any suggestions on how best to ride it out?

Give him what he needs. You won't still be doing it at 15.

Perhaps he's getting to the stage where he needs less sleep? Try an hour later, or a shorter sleep in the day?

DisappointedOne I flipping hope not!

Perhaps a bedtime of 7.30 instead and see how it goes? I know when he was smaller, an 8pm bedtime meant 5am wakeups so we moved to 7pm and got 6am wake ups.

It might be the 18 month sleep regression starting a bit early. It's not that kids regress, more that they undergo another huge developmental leap at around 18mo.

The advice online is not to change anything with their routine but I'd echo a pp who said to give him what he needs and just go with the flow.

Ah yes, it's the speech leap I think. It's MASSIVE

Oh you mean like wonderweeks leaps MingZillas? I havent got the app anymore :( I just hate him being upset, us getting frustrated but then also don't want him to think he can cry and get out of bed. Just like teaching him just because he paddies he can get the thing we have taken from him

I remember this age well

The 'rule' was, once in cot stays in cot til asleep. I used to sit by the cot being as boring as possible (no eye contact, repeating "hush now, go to sleep) for an hour each night. Had we got him out in response to howling he'd be going to bed at midnight even now. Equally, leaving him evoked a tantrum.

Still don't know that we did the right thing (I think so) but it was a pain in the butt for a couple of months.

It is starting to take it's toll on me BarbarianMum as DH has a shorter temper than I, and so I find it easier to just see to DS than let DH get cross and me have two cross men to deal with. Plus, I have always done DS' bedtime so it's alien to DS for DH to do it which pisses DS off even more I think.

When we got him uo last night we kept it as boring as possible. TV off, both of us just sat, Took DS away from his toys and said he needed to sit on the sofa with Daddy and not to play as it was bedtime.

With any regression DD came back in with me/us (DH worked away). I think life is hard enough at 17m without battles over sleep.

Well, last night was relative bliss. DH had gone up to bed at 6ish as he was feeling rotten. SO I put ITNG on early for DS, which he watched. We started bedtime at 630. I put him in his sleeping bag rather than his duvet and he was sparko by 730.