Late toddler bedtime and night waking

[varicoseveined]

My DS is two. His bedtime has got progressively later and later and on occasion he wouldn't fall asleep until 10pm! If I left jim to himself he'd nap for 2+ hours in the afternoon, from 2pm. I've begun to cut this short to 1.5 hrs but he's not sleepy at all come bedtime! His sister (5 yo) is the opposite and falls asleep promptly at 8pm. He generally wakes up at 7.30am though can easily sleep past this.

He has never slept through the night, the longest stretch has been about 4 hours when I gave him calpol for teething once, he's still going through teething now,

Any tips or advice?

might I add, he's still BF to sleep

I would try getting him up earlier in the morning. The afternoon nap is rather late too - most toddlers are going to bed around midday after lunch at 11.30ish.

thanks for your reply, I wrote him up earlier than usual this morning and of course he napped earlier. Here's hoping for a sensible bedtime from now on!

oops woke not wrote

Yes try a nap 12.30-2.30 maybe. Then a good runnin the afternoon!

Well first night he fell asleep about 8.30 which is a step in the right direction. 7:30 or bust!

So a 2 hour nap is OK, it's just the time I need to be mindful of? DD napped for hours with no problem. DS is such a different kettle of fish!

Of be waking him up after 1.5 hours which is one sleep cycle. Think the early nap is also the key. Try to get him outside at some point after his nap too. It will help him sleep and help to reset his body clock.

1.5 hours is a sleep cycle of an adult btw. A baby/ child ( up to around 10), is only 45 mins.

Sorry yes you are right and I'm talking bollocks . Meant 2 sleep cycles obviously.

Our DS 34 months went down like a dream and stayed asleep for 12/13 hours each night until we moved house 6 months ago. Bedtimes now are a nightmare. He has never been allowed to sleep past 3 in the afternoon (if abs necessary then would allow 20 mins). This is our one saving grace. He is at least relatively tired by 7.30pm. We are starting to cut down 2 hour naps but also cautious about the fact that, up to this point, more sleep earlier in the day meant more sleep at night. DS2 has slept in fits of 45 mins max for his first 6 months on earth. How can they be so different???

I think 1.5 hours may be the ticket, he fell asleep at 8.30 again last night, which is far better than the 9.30-9.45 he had been falling asleep at!

Going to try night weaning in a couple of weeks (after his next weight check at clinic), to see if that will help him to sleep for longer stretches instead of waking up every 2-3 hours!