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sleep issues after starting nursery?

1 reply

principalitygirl · 08/11/2013 11:28

My son is 14 mths and has just done his first couple of days at nursery. He goes 2 days a week. He's only been left with family until now He's cried each time we've dropped him off and picked him up at nursery though the nursery's feedback is that he does calm down and look for cuddles when there and then plays ok, naps and eats ok. But the past few nights he's gone to sleep fine at usual bedtime but has then woken around 11 and then will not settle. As soon. as DH or I leave him room, he wakes up / stands up crying. If we stay in his room or pick him up he stops crying and goes back to sleep.

Last night we ended up bringing him into our bed - a rarity - after 2 hours of being up and down every 10 mins or so. He went straight to sleep and slept til 7!

Don't want to make a habit of this though. Any ideas on what to do and how long this will last? Am thinking it's due to starting nursery and could be (late?) separation anxiety. He's more clingy in the day too. He's also just getting over a bad cough - mucusy in his throat - which haa disrupted his sleep a fair bit too.

DH thinks we should bring travel cot into our room for a night or two and then move him back into his room gradually.

We've never done / don't want to leave him to cry. He's never been this difficult to settle either.

Help! Thx!

OP posts:
Twoandtwohalves · 08/11/2013 11:43

We had this in the early days of DS1 at nursery although he was a little younger at 11mo. I think the days are quite full on and they can get overtired, even if they nap well while there. My experience of him crying at drop off/pick up was that it was fine at first (he didn't really notice me go), then it was quite distressing for us both for a few weeks and I just had to run, then it settled down and he and I just got in with it.

What helped was pushing bedtime back a little on nursery days to let him wind down at home (he was in for full days) and also offering a snack of fruit & cheese or a roll/hot cross bun plus milk in case he was hungry as whilst he eats well there, I think the day is more physically active. He now often has his best nights sleep after a nursery day it's all relative .

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