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Lack of sleep, tantrums, where to go from here?

3 replies

JinxJinx · 17/12/2017 16:31

Looking for help/advice from any health visitors or anyone with experience of 2 year old tantrums

So firstly, I do KNOW that two year olds tantrum and I KNOW it's 'normal' but my two year olds tantrums are just happening so often over every little thing that my patience is really starting to wear thin and I don't know what to do about it.

So over the last 5/6 weeks she's had a minimum of 3 tantrums a day. Every, single, day. Pretty much because I've said no or asked her to do something she doesn't want to do.
When she's like this, you can't talk to her and have to just let her get it out of her system. But she gets so angry, I've seen other people's kids tantrum before but the rage I see in her is frightening. She just seems to loose control completely then once she's finished just goes back to normal as if it never happened.
Seeing her like this is very upsetting and I'm sure must be frightening for her.
My way of dealing with her is basically just to let her get it out her system and just make sure she doesn't hurt herself or the other children while she's doing it. Sometimes I admittedly have been caught up in an argument to try to reason with her but it hasn't helped the situation

The second part of this, which I believe is very much making the tantrums worse is her sleeping habits.
She wakes every morning between 2-4 and won't go back to sleep unless it's with her dad. They either come into our bed or he goes into her room. This of course isn't great for him either but it means she's having an interrupted sleep every night as she doesn't go straight back to sleep once he's went through to her. We usually try to put her back to bed 3/4 times before he gives in and sleeps in with her so she can be up for 1-2 hours then still tends to get up for the day at 5am

We have other children, so when it gets to the point when she starts tantruming in the night we usually have to cave in to stop her disturbing the others.

I just don't know what to do at this point. I feel that if she's just get a few nights of good sleeps then she'd be back to the lovely happy child we once had instead of one who's permanently on the edge of a meltdown

Does anyone have any advice?

OP posts:
EveryoneTalkAboutPopMusic · 17/12/2017 18:17

Does she still nap in the day OP? I always found mine slept better at night if they were well rested in the day.

How’s her speech? Could frustration with making herself understood be part of the problem?

As for her sleep, have you read the Mo Cry Sleep Solution for Toddlers & Preschoolers?

JinxJinx · 17/12/2017 18:41

everyone thanks for your reply.

She does still nap in the day - I've tried letting her sleep as long as she wants, cutting it shorter, cutting it all together and it makes no difference

Her speech is really good. I kind of feel that's part of the problem, she uses it to her advantage I think to try to delay going back to bed. She'll say things are sore, she needs a pee, she feels sick etc
Things she knows aren't as easy to ignore

OP posts:
EveryoneTalkAboutPopMusic · 18/12/2017 18:14

Have you managed to have a look at the book?

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