My little boy is nearly 16 months old and has just started having major tantrums several times a day. I am not sure what is causing them - I suppose it could be just part of a baby’s normal development - but I also suspect tiredness as he has been sleeping very badly due to the hot weather (we live abroad), possible teething, separation anxiety, etc. He is also probably quite hungry as he now refuses to eat proper food and only ever wants snacks and milk which we are trying to limit as we don’t think it’s very healthy.
Until he was about 1 he was a fairly good sleeper so we never bothered with sleep training (though we do have a consistent bedtime routine). Since his 1st birthday his sleep patterns have been a bit up and down. He has on occasion slept right through but whatever happens he wakes up around 5 still very sleepy but refusing to go back to bed. He then naps for about 10-20 minutes in the morning and for 2-3 hours in the afternoon. I know it sounds like a long time but he seems to need it as he’s tired and cranky again by about 7pm even after an epic nap!
This week he has been worse than ever - waking up several times a night, screaming hysterically to be held, rocked or patted, or to get in the bed with us, or to be taken into the living room.
We are now considering some form of sleep training but all the methods I have read seem to be based on the baby having his own room. (They talk about gradually leaving the room, coming back in to offer reassurance every few minutes, etc). Our baby sleeps in a cot in our room. We are always right next to him. He is never alone. So none of these methods really apply to our situation.
We have tried giving him comfort and reassurance by stroking his back etc. but as soon as we stop he wakes up and starts screaming again. We can’t stand there all night stroking him!
We have also tried letting him cry it out, as our doctor advised, since there is nothing physically wrong with him. But he just keeps screaming.
So my question is: what should I try next?!
We don’t want to reinforce “bad” behaviour but we also don’t want to deny him comfort if he needs it. People say he’ll never learn to go to sleep by himself if we give in to him but it seems so cruel to just let him scream for hours.
Sorry for the long rambling post - I just really don’t know what to do!