Sleep training

[Smurf123]

Hi can anyone help with asleep training? Ds is 16 months old and he is still up a few times every night. He goes down at 7 after a bottle and rocked to sleep and generally wakes an hour later.. Usually he will then wake up around 10 and 2 on a good night and may want to start the day anywhere between 5-7...we have recently been getting to 7/730 am but only if he has had another bottle around 4.
I had cut out night feeds around 13 months but it's been so hot and he has been refusing water (and I've been exhausted) that we have given a few early morning bottles..
Last night we started attempted some sort of sleep training.. Kind of by chance.. He went to bed in the normal way at 7 then woke at 840 and I rocked him over in my arms. But he woke as soon as he touched the cot. I rubbed his back and he went back over until I tried to move.. Kept rubbing his bank and thought he was almost over in between screaming bouts for 2 hours.. Decided that wasnt working so dh took over and he lay him down saying shhs and stepping back every time ds got up.. One of us was always in the room with him as I feel bad leave to cry. Eventually at about 1240ds was finally asleep.. He woke at 2 and I last him down he got up I lay him back down and he grabbed my hand and held on tight to it but went to sleep (20 mins start to finish wake up time) he slept to 730 am..
But I'm dreading tonight where we will do it from the beginning of bedtime.. Are we doing it right? I hate doing it but we are all so tired..

Mine usually only struggled to sleep and got that distressed when something was wrong? Are you sure he isn’t teething? Most babies get their molars around 16 months.

I did something similar to you and it worked; I started by decreasing how long I rocked my DD to sleep by 2-3 minutes a night then sitting next to her cot rubbing her back and saying shush. It took maybe 5-7 days to cut out the rocking all together then I slowly reduced the time I spent shushing and patting and started just shushing and moving towards the door. It took about 10 days to get her to fall asleep at bedtime without being rocked but the night wakings decreased much more quickly. The first couple of nights were the hardest.
My DD was 11 months so it might take a bit longer at 16 months as they’re that much more aware.

Hi @mindutopia he had never really slept.. To be honest I stopped breastfeeding at a year before he was wanting fed every hour... Everyone saps give him formula before bed that will fill him up.. He still woke every hour or so he just loves milk. So we cut out all night feeds and he started sleeping for maybe 2 or 3 hours at a time.. We had gotten it down to maybe 2 or 3 wake ups during the night but he is getting too big to rock back over and increasingly isn't even settling in arms so would end up being pushed in his pram where he would fall asleep. But that can't be good for him either and with working full time it is taking its toll. Dh and I are both off work atm as we work in schools that are shut for summer. Ds has a lot of willpower and has recently started having tantrums if he doesn't get his own way. Generally he comes round quickly or is easily distracted but that's not easy to do when we want him to sleep..
He already has his molars also. He was crying through temper because he was in cot. And id give him a hug to calm him down if he got himself too worked up but just didn't lift him back out of the cot. Tonight he had a story and his bottle before bed.. Nice and sleepy I lay him down in cot for him to bounce back to screaming to get out. I did this a few times and then ended up helping him to hold his teddy with my hand on top of his. He was happy with that and he went to sleep and has been asleep since just before 8... But he fell asleep lying in his own cot with just me holding his hand. He hasn't done that ever so I'm pleased with that (I can't listen to him crying)...
I would happily continue cuddling him to sleep but I do think he needs more sleep than he is currently getting.. And everyone keeps telling me he should be sleeping through the night by now..

@user1493413286 thank you., that gives me hope.. I think we will do it that way.. Tonight he fell asleep with me holding his hand but at least he was in the cot.. Then I can work on reducing that eventually...