Is this normal toddler behaviour?

[coffeeiseverything]

Not AIBU but hoping for responses here, as no replies on parenting.

Looking for advice please, my 14 month old has never been a great sleeper but when things that are different happen e.g. birthday parties, holidays, Christmas he just cannot cope and end up overtired and hyper. Over Christmas with the excitement of seeing lots of family and new toys, he is now extremely overtired, he cannot calm down. He is fighting all naps and bedtime, and is awake for 2 hours during the night unable to fall back to sleep.
We have a few quiet days now and would love to be able to calm him down and get his sleep back on track, and advice would be greatly appreciated!
Also, if anyone had a baby / toddler who found any changes very disruptive when did it start getting easier??

My DS is still like this at 2 years old. He is just a child that needs his routine. He had a rubbish christmas day because both sets of grandparents wanted to see him so we had to go two places and try and get him to nap as well. Next year we are staying home.

Seems normal to me. I've had that conversation with friends and they agreed. DC1 was never one of those children who would sleep anywhere, I used to dread family gatherings, I'd be told to put him in his pram in the corner. Nope. I'd have a distressed, upset and overtired little boy with ramifications for the following days. He's 4 now and much better, though I still don't like keeping him up past bedtime as he just doesn't cope well. He's totally fine in all other respects, just struggles sleeping unless in familiar places with familiar people and he likes routine.

Hi there! This happened to us when we took a holiday when our oldest was around the same age. Had been sleeping well, but the new routine really threw him off. Doesn't sound particularly abnormal. We made sure that each naptime was a shorter version of the bedtime routine. We also completely blacked out his bedroom and got a groclock. Good luck!

Yeah it's hugely exciting and overwhelming for them, but I would say within a week of being back to a normal routine he should be ok again

Sounds normal to me.

when did it start getting easier??

DSis is approaching 40 and has settled down a lot, certainly my 6YO is still a demon when unsettled- so somewhere between 6 and 40 probably.

I really envied my friends with babies that would sleep anywhere, in pubs and at noisy parties. Mine needed routine and a calm quiet cot to go to sleep. We had some nightmare attempts at family events where no one was having fun and decided to leave it til youngest was 4 and could understand what was going on. Older family didn't like it but soon forgot a few years later. You know your DC, do what works.

Thanks all! I'm glad I'm not alone in this, it just seems like all the other babies I know snap back into routine, and catch up on sleep easily! We're on day 6 today and he's napped without too much fuss so keeping my fingers crossed we are getting back on track.

Mine was like this too. Especially when we went away on holiday.

Sounds pretty standard.

My ds responded well to long walks in his buggy. The fresh air put him to sleep very effectively.