Melatonin gummies for my 3yo

[Janch13]

My 3yo was an excellent sleeper until they hit 3. Now they wake several times during the night and will only settle when we bring them into our bed, where me & DH then sleep really poorly. I’m pregnant and getting bigger and bigger, plus with a newborn in with us I really want preschooler back in their own bedroom.

We’ve tried various things (reward charts etc) without much success. I’ve been reading about melatonin gummies. Does anyone have any experience of using these and do you think they’re ethical??

If I do get some, I’ll try micro-dosing initially (cutting a gummie in half/quarter) to use the minimum amount while still doing the job.

Not sure they’d even suit our needs - reviews seem to suggest they speed up bedtime but we need child to sleep through again.

Thanks for sharing any insight

Have you tried sleep training

@Mamoun I did (of sorts) when they were a baby, but I can’t leave a 3yo to cry, especially when it’s not crying it’s terrified screams. They’ve always slept very well until they turned 3 - more than grateful to be pointed in the direction of age appropriate sleep training but never going to be a “cry it out” parent (no judgement!)

@Janch13 We did the double bed thing and dh slept in there with dd for ages while I was pregnant/ with a newborn. She was a bit younger then but she's almost 4 now and he still does it from time to time. It was the best solution as we found she woke less with him there and didn't end up having the screaming fits that she'd have if she woke and no one was there.

I doubt it's going to be a long phase but be prepared it may last a while given the upheaval they're about to go through.

As an aside my friend had a similar experience, decent sleeper turned awful around 3, correlated with her having another baby but several months on they found out it was due to sleep aponea, after having their tonsils out the sleep went back to being fine.

Just to add that melatonin is only prescribed to under 18 by specialist services like CAMHS and for over 55’s in the UK.
Find another way of teaching your child to
sleep

My 3 yo DD is coming out of (pls god) a run of doing the same thing, I’m also pregnant. However I’m in the spare room most nights due to DH’s snoring, so once she’s in and settled she doesn’t really disturb me or DH- depends who the lucky parent is that night! The only thing that annoys me is she insists on sleeping on the bit of the bed I’ve warmed up ffs.

I think you either get a double in your child’s room or do a suitable form of sleep training, whether that’s return to bed or staying with them until they settle and then going back to bed yourself. I know, it’s shit.

Just let her go in with DH and you stay in with baby. That's what we do and everyone gets plenty of sleep! No need for medicating what is totally normal sleep for a 3yo.

What the heck are my eyeballs reading?!

Step away from the melatonin gummies!! You’re knackered, I totally get that, but in the cold light of day, this is not a good idea!

Best of luck to you. I hope your child’s waking phase passes quickly.

Put DC back in their bedroom and break the habit of sleeping in your bed.

Tell them if they wake up in the night they should stay in their own cosy bed and talk to Teddy. You might consider taking DC to shops to choose a very special furry soft toy for night time company.

Have you tried magnesium gummies or magnesium cream? I found these really helped two of my children when they were having sleep troubles.

Many autistic children do not produce enough melatonin. Ds’s GP & the CAMHS nurse both said Ds needed it but the consultant refused so we do get it from the US but he has never slept. You say your child did used to sleep. I didn’t think it sounds right for you.

Are they having nightmares perhaps? DS went through a phase at 3 years old of having nightmares and waking up screaming several times a night. It was exhausting, I tried different things like explaining what nightmares are and how they can't hurt him, suggesting he instead shouts at the nightmares to go away (he still does this sometimes when he gets the occasional nightmare, sometimes works), added in a nightlight, things like that. He did eventually stop having them and went back to sleeping normally, especially after I found out a poster in his room was scaring him so got rid of it.

Put DC back in their bedroom and break the habit of sleeping in your bed.

If only it was that simple!!

@Natsku I think it started with genuine night terrors and they quickly figured out they could say they’re scared & I’ll bring them into my bed. I’d never leave my child scared/upset so I suspect it’s now their go-to for when they just fancy a night snuggling up to mummy & daddy!

That's exactly what happened with DS, started with real nightmares then he got into the habit of getting up and shouting for me (though I never took him into our bed, always just put him back to his bed with cuddles). I would try and settle them without bringing them into your bed and see if that breaks the cycle.

You know I owe you an apology for snapping, but I wasn't judging. I've been in the same situation. My 7 year old is a terrible sleeper, when the doctor finally prescribed him melotonin the result was nightmares, which made things worse. I didn't want you to make the same mistake.

We are in a situation now where he needs a dummy to soothe himself to sleep. It's not ideal but it works.

I hope things are better for you now.

@frenchnoodle thank you. Definitely don’t want nightmares. We are still in the same situation except I’m only bigger and closer to due date, so it’s less than ideal!

I assume you've tried a big teddy in his bed with a shirt of yours on it. One you've warn all day so it smells like you?

Coming back to this to ask, I keep getting targeted ads on Insta and FB for Sleepy Patches / Natural Patches (2 brands looking to do the same thing)

Has anyone used these and if so are they worth bothering with?

Supposedly a natural blend of essential oils ..

100% natural content & chemical free

Sleepy Patches use a specially crafted formulation of essential oils to bring on sleep. Sleepy Patch is designed to help calm the nervous system, the mind and stimulate an overall relaxed sensation.

Active Ingredients:
Mandarin, Lavender, Sweet Marjoram,
Vetiver, Essential Oils.

Hi just find this as was chatting with friends about the gummies as the oldest 2 6&7. Curious did you try this sleep patches? They look like insta adverts ie promising the world to stressed out parents.

Our 3yr old starred coming into our room multiple times in a night, the only way was wife to sleep in oldest room so when 3yr old came in she only found me. Soon got bored of it and would go to sleep quicker with me then wife. Down to one wake a night after a couple of weeks, destroying me sleep wise but getting there.

The exact same thing happened when I was pregnant with my second and had a 3 year old. I was about 2-3 weeks off giving birth and she started waking up loads! I was really really worried about how I was going to cope with a newborn and this fresh hell. But to re-assure you it did calm down I think before baby was born. Husband helped out a lot as well.

OP I feel for you, DD started sleeping awfully around the same age but it coincided with me and her dad breaking up. I got her the double bed in her room, stayed with her until she fell asleep and some nights had to climb in in the middle of the night. She’s 8 this year and still not perfect! Apart from weekends where she sleeps like a log for some reason.

Get the double bed, try magnesium gummies rather than melatonin, don’t bother with the patches get a diffuser and put lavender essential oil in instead. Good luck!

🧟‍♀️ zombie thread 🧟‍♂️

Thread from December revived by a deleted poster.

I would be very surprised if a Dr recommended it to you. My DD is 9, hasn't ever slept through the night. More than likely adhd. I still would not give her melatonin. Your child will become reliant on a medically induced sleep. It's terrible for them, your child is 3!! Still a toddler.

It's perfectly legal to buy melatonin in the UK from a Spanish or US website for example. Why would you think it wasn't?