Moving 2 1/2 year old into a cot bed - what to expect

[Summerdays2014]

Hi,

I have a 2.6 year old son and up until now he has been sleeping quite happily in his cot in a sleeping bag. For the past month bed time has been a nightmare - taking hours to go down, screaming when he is left, waking up in the night and then up for the day around 5.30. We have been sitting with him and rocking/stroking him to sleep in the end. As it’s so hot he’s been out of his sleeping bag and in just a vest/nappy and has been launching himself head first over the side of the cot - luckily we have been there to catch him.

So we decided to take the side off the cot tonight. This was unplanned and only as a response to him nearly knocking himself out trying to escape the cot.

I’m really worried about how it will go tonight... I don’t think that given the mess that has become bedtime recently it’s the best time to make the change, but I’m so worried he’ll hurt himself.

How did everyone else find the transition? Did you buy those bed guards? I guess i need to get him a pillow/sheet/duvet for when the temperature finally drops... do you get specific cot bed sized duvets or just a single bed sized duvet.

Sorry this has been long and full of silly questions - I’m now seriously sleep deprived...

Thanks

We did it at about the same age when dd became a climber.
We put a bed guard on and used a cotbed sized duvet and small pillow.

For a couple of weeks dd didn’t even try to get out of the bed!! We were gobsmacked! Then she would get out to get things (book or teddy etc) but get straight back in. Then she started running riot around her room.

We put a stair gate on her door and left her to it... she settles and goes to sleep when she’s ready.

I second a stair gate on his door and leave him to it!

Mine used to get out of bed to sleep on the floor!!

Maybe it's a good time to do it if things are disrupted anyway - when everything eventually settles down it will be done and won't cause further disruption later at least.
And it sounds like you have to do it for safety. We've got a cot sized duvet and pillow from IKEA. I can't give any advice on the transition - DS1 is 3 next week, but every time I suggest taking his cot side down he says he wants to keep it up because a wolf might come!! He's getting heavy to lift in there now!

We transitioned at about 22 months as DS was a climber. It was totally fine and made no difference really to his sleeping. He didn’t even get out of the bed for about a week!

However about 2.5 he starting being a huge pain at bedtime and it was due to his nap. I found that a rough transition, but cutting back and eventually dropping his nap meant he settled very quickly again at bedtime. I think that’s something to consider!

Thanks everyone. We survived the night. He went to sleep with us in the room at 9. He fell out once but didn’t wake up! Then was up for the day at 5.30. I could not put him down for a nap though he refused to stay in the bed and then just kept opening the door and screaming. He clearly needs the nap still as he fell asleep the second he got into the car...

You can put a pool noodle or rolled towel under the edge of the sheet to prevent rolling out.

We've just moved DS in the last few months, he's not quite 2.5.

He's a bit of a nuisance at bedtime but is happy to lay in bed and listen to a couple of stories then we leave (this is what we have always done) he has a gate on his room, sometimes he will shout for a drink, sometimes he's asleep in minutes.

Naps started similar to yours but in the last 6 weeks or so he started asking for bed (in the last 2 weeks he's dropped his nap but that's a whole other matter)

oh and we have a folded up spare duvet on the floor, if he rolls out he just sleeps on the floor.

We use a guard, we tried putting a duvet on the floor but dd kept moving it.

We put ds in a toddler bed at 17 months. I knew he'd be much happier in a bed. We didn't bother with bed guards because ds would likely have stood up to try and climb over them, we just put a gate at his door. The first few nights we put the old cot mattress on the floor just in case. But he was fine.
We have a toddler bed quilt and pillow set as they are smaller than a single bed.
Ds loved it.

Thanks for all your replies. He is still not happy at bed time, crying and not sleeping for ages as we sit and rub his back. He has also fallen out a few times and then not gone back to sleep so come in my bed. Today I have bought a cot guard and a new sheets and a pillow for him. He seemed quite excited and said it was now a comfy bed so we shall see what happens tonight... I’ve also ordered him a pirate Pete big boy bed book, but the potty training one hasn’t worked as of yet so not holding out too much hope! at least I no longer have the fear of him throwing himself over the top of the cot and breaking his neck...