36 mo not sleeping at night

[Cadwan]

The trouble started several months ago when we put DS from a cot to a big bed. Having slept soundly all night til then, he suddenly started waking at 3am wanting to play and for me to sleep in the bed with him. Sometimes I'd be able to get him back to sleep, but often he'd be awake, crying and banging on his door til the morning. This has been going on for about 4 months now and he now sleeps with the light on. I've removed anything 'scarey" from the room - e.g. animal mobile and I reassure him every evening when he goes to bed that he's safe and that we're here to protect him etc. I've now taken to sleeping in his bed from around 4am til the morning so that both of us get some sleep. He looks wonderful and I look like a zombie. Can anyone offer advice??? Please.

Perhaps he finds the big bed alarming, having been used to his cot. Is he really too big for his cot or could he go back into it for a bit? Ideally, perhaps have both in his room so he could go to sleep in whichever he preferred until he was more used to the bed. It's a big transition to make for him.

If he's 3, ask him what the problem is. Tell him he is a big boy and he has to stay in his bed and if he wakes up he goes back to sleep by himself.

If he wakes up and bangs on the door, tell him off for banging on the door and put him back to bed quietly, minimum talking, minimum intervention. No getting toys / drinks / bollocks musical toys. Repeat times 500. He'll do it less and less as the week goes on.

If he's frightened, I think I'd be inclined to be rather more sympathetic than combine. My own three-year old sometimes gets scared at night and I don't just shout at her to deal with it by herself.

I said nothing about shouting and OP said nothing about him being frightened.

I do believe most three year olds are capable of going back to sleep by themselves unless they are ill or having a nightmare.

Does he have a sibling? DD2 used to be like this until about 2 1/2 when we put her in the same room as her older sister. She just wanted reassurance that there was someone else there, so the fact that she would wake up and see her sister was enough to put her back to sleep again, without waking anyone up.....