Bedtime routine help!

[ScrummyYummyMummy]

I need help...

my DD (14 months) has slept brilliantly since she was 15 weeks until now. She has started standing in the cot and screaming. We go upstairs and she wants to play.

I've tried to time her screaming (I allow 10 minutes until I go up to her) but she doesn't stop.

We have always followed a strict routine of bath, bottle and bed which has worked a treat until now. Recently, she's not interested in drinking her milk morning or night.

I realise that our bed time routine probably needs to change, need some ideas on what will work.

Also, what time do other kids go to bed. We start bathing at 7pm. Is this too early?

Have you tried sitting with her in her room? We had to do that with DS for a while. Don't speak or even make eye contact, just sit quietly until they drop off. You can then try leaving when they are quietly lying there but not actually asleep.

Patting and shhhhing also worked for us too (but only after DS started nursery as this was how they got him off to sleep then)

You can also try a music or story CD. This really works with DS at the moment. He's 2.3.

Another thing that works, but makes me feel a bit guilty is saying I'll be back in a minute. So if DS objects when I leave the room, I'll say I'm just going to talk to Daddy and I'll be back to check on him in a bit. He's happy to let me leave then and drops off. Makes me feel guilty as I don't really like lying to him.

What about her daytime sleep? Is it possible she's napping too much/too late and isn't tired at bedtime? Bedtime sounds about right to me. DS's bedtime has been 7pm (as in, into bed at 7pm, we start bath etc at 6.30pm) since he was 6 weeks old!

i think it is too late a bedtime

i woudl start the bath much earlier and have her in bed for 645 pm

i found the older DS get and the more active he needed an earlier not a later bedtime

an over tired baby/toddler will wind up not down

Scrummy - I could have written your post, right down to have a 14m DD! Just like your's has always been a great sleeper, sudden switch a few weeks ago to waking more in the night,and then taking a while to settle at bedtime.

On Monday night, DD cried for 3 1/2 hours, standing in her cot. Just wanting to be cuddled. If you cuddled her, even if she had fallen asleep, she would wake up as you move and wail again. If you cuddled her while she was in the cot, this had no effect, the wailng just continued. Calpol - no effect. Eventually, I took her out and gave her a cuddle and she fell asleep and I was able to put her back into the cot.

Now, part of me is somewhat impressed by being able to stand for 3.5 hours, but mostly I was upset that she was so upset.

Hopefully, some of this was because she's been ill and sleepy and probably that day was just not very sleepy and all out of sync. However, to help this along a bit, we have started to put her to bed a little later, eg bath at 7.20/30 rather than 6.45 ish, and fingers crossed, this has helped. Lso, we are cuddling her longer so that she is asleep when we put her down rather than mostly asleep as before. This feels retrograde, like she's losing the self-settling, but she needs the sleep, so this will do for now.

So, other than delaying bedtime at bit, I have no advice, but lots of sympathy!

Thanks. The advice and sympathy is really helpful. I am going to have to give a trial and error approach to bed times for a few days to see what I can do.

Unfortunately, when we try to cuddle to sleep, she just want to play.

Day time sleep isn't a lot. Maybe 1 hour - but pretty random.

Last night I ended up driving around to get her to sleep.

What about the milk situation? My mother suggested drinking chocolate as she doesn't want her milk??

Any suggestions about trying supper before bed?

Try milk in a cup rather than in a bottle and maybe stay in her room and read her a story to soothe her and let her know that it is bedtime. Its tough but to quote MN mantra 'its just a phase'.