Moving to toddler bed?

[redfox14]

My DD is 14 months old and has suddenly started getting really agitated at bedtime. She has been a good sleeper for months and months now, we have always put her down in her cot after her bottle at bedtime and she’d babble away to herself for a bit quite happily and eventually fall asleep on her own.

Recently, the moment we lift her to her cot/she sees the cot she gets really upset and will just scream and cry. She will stand in her cot crying and wailing and getting really beside herself, it’s really upsetting and I’ve ended up having to cuddle her to sleep in the spare bed and then transfer her to the cot (which we’ve never had to do since she was a newborn!).

I had seen a couple of TikToks where people have had similar experiences when their toddlers were ready to go into a “toddler bed” or have the sides taken off their cot, and that their sleep has improved after making the change. I’m wondering if she might be ready for a toddler bed, she has definitely gone through a bit of a developmental leap lately where she’s far more independent and likes to do things herself. I’m wondering if she feels a bit restricted in her cot.

DD is very capable of climbing down from things like the sofa, our bed etc., but not very good at climbing back up. So I’m wondering if a floor bed might be better than a raised toddler bed? Has anyone had a similar experience of moving their DC to a toddler bed/floor bed and it improving their sleep?

Hmm, go with your instincts on it but my son is 2 and a half and I'm not moving him to a bed yet. He sleeps well in his cot and I'm not interested in dealing with re-training when he starts being able to get out of the bed by himself yet. We'll probably make it to 3 at this rate as he shows no signs of trying to climb out.

We went through various similar phases. I just stuck firm and said it was bed time and dealt with the tears. I don't think it would have been different if it was a bed, they just go through phases of battling certain things. Our current one is putting shoes on. The phases come and go and I want him to know that when we say it's bedtime, it's bedtime, regardless of what the bed is like.

If you think it will make your life easier though, go with it. I'm all for whatever makes things easier/less stressful for everyone.

We moved our son around that age but he was a good sleeper. Could you show her pictures of the toddler bed and see if she’d like that more? If you fit both in the room it might be worth having both options for day one of the toddler bed.

I think I’d be concerned that if she’s not happy she might try and get out of the toddler bed instead of going to sleep. It could be that she’s had a few bad dreams etc

My DD is two next month and still in her cot with no plans to move to a bed anytime soon. She’s been through the odd phase where she’s not settled and cried but we just powered through and kept back going in, laying her down, singing and stroking her face til she was calm so we could leave the room again and repeat till she fell asleep. Never lasted more than a couple of weeks each time this happened. Until she starts climbing out, we’ll be sticking with the cot

It' best done when the nights are getting darker but on your own head be it 😁.

DD2 is still in her cot and she’s 2, and perfectly content for now. We moved DD1 when she was around 3, and if anything she was a little unsettled for a few nights as she got used to it. Sounds to me like she doesn’t want to go to bed yet - as they associate the cot with bedtime, might need more calming, sleepy relaxation time before being put into bed. Imo 14 months feels young but whatever works for your family.

My son went into one at 15 months.
At first it was great but now he won’t sleep without us at 2.5

I wouldn't even contemplate getting her out of a cot at this age. Just ride through whatever sleep phase this is and persevere with the cot. They all have blips for years, it's very normal and doesn't mean she needs to go into a bed. They only need to be swapped once they're trying to climb out or they grow out of it. Everything I've read says if you can keep them in a cot until 3 the bed transition is much easier. 2y8m here and definitely not changing it any time soon!

I personally would not consider putting a child that young in a bed / floor mattress. I think the longer they can be in a cot the better. My first didnt go into a toddler bed until almost 4 and we had no issues and Im going to be doing to same with number 2. For me I feel like they neex to be old enough to understand the expectarion that they are to stay in bed.

Chidlren do go through phases of being scared of things, they often pass. I say hang in there...

It's trendy now to put young toddlers in beds/floor beds rather than cots. Mine is 2 and a half and still in a cot. We won't be changing that any time soon.

Every parent I know who have put their young toddlers into beds have ended up with kids who are atrocious sleepers. Won't settle until late, demand parents stay with them for hours on end to get to sleep, up multiple times a night and wake early in the morning.

I think, like with a lot of things, parents take a bizarre sense of pride in moving their children on to the next stage too early.

DS moved into a bed at that age and all was fine but he was an excellent sleeper, he’d just climb out on waking in the morning and could have seriously hurt himself going over the cot bars. In your case, the issue is she wants you. Giving her free rein of the house is only going to make that worse not better. If you’re happy to cosleep then by all means go for it but if you want to train her to stay in her own bed then stick with the cot.

All mine were in beds by 18 months, they could climb out of cots so were safer . We started off with very low to the ground folding beds and put the cot mattress next to it in case of any falls . They slept much better, I don't think they liked the bars.

My son is doing exactly the same and he’s 15 months…It’s like he’s scared of his cot!

However, I don’t believe it’s the cot - it’s the association with sleep and then potentially
leaving you and the fun behind…

It’s just a stage, honestly you will both come through the other side. Maybe try soft toys in the cot, or a light projector for the ceiling - I honestly think you’ll be opening yourself up to so much more stress with a free running toddler at night!

My dd went through a similar phase around the same age and we just stayed firm and only gave into picking her up when she was really distressed and then we’d have a little reset on our bed with cuddles and transfer her back. She never fell asleep on us though, and eventually she’d give in and fall asleep. I put it down to sleep regression at the time, it was very difficult at the time but like everything else it was just a phase. If your dd is becoming more independent then she could be trying to assert herself. My DD is 2.5 now and we’re just getting her ready for a toddler bed and she’s extremely strong willed and independent. She’s just too big for her toddler bed now hence moving her soon.

Personally I wouldn’t rush the toddler bed, especially if she’s unable to climb back up on it.

We moved our son at age 2 and I don't think he'd have been able to handle it any earlier. He just wouldn't have had the maturity to stay in bed when he had other options. And I think generally he was on the more sedate and sensible end of his age range!

But people do floor beds from birth, so clearly some children can handle it or some parents are more willing to "train" their kids than I am!

Mine moved from a cot to a proper single bed, but was a few months older than yours. I don’t think anyone needs a toddler bed - unless you’re short of space.

We moved my daughter at 2. She never settled in the cot and improved in the bed. It also meant we could give her a duvet and pillows. She learnt how remove herself from sleeping bags and sleepsuits at 18 months and would end up in just a nappy!

We had a fold up side to the bed from when she was cosleeping with us so we used that for the first few months. She has only just started to get out of bed on her own at 3.5

Definitely not ready. All that is going to happen is they can now keep running through and you'll need to out her back to bed a million times which will become annoying over time as it eats away at the whole night. She will also end up running through at any time during the night.

We took the sides off of the cot at 10months old after she was waking herself up after hitting the sides when moving in her sleep, so now in the toddler bed with a bed guard, we will be moving her into a single bed soon (now 2 years old, just). I think as long as you're comfortable they can get in amd out safely then go with your gut. We put a baby gate on the bedroom door so if she does escape in the night she won't get into too much mischief x

We took the side off the cot around that age and put a bed guard on, then moved to a toddler bed (we got the extending one from ikea that becomes a full single).

DD fared a bit longer in the cot but not much.

Mine were all in low beds by 2 yrs...none seemed to be happy in cots or cot beds..sleep times were a lot less stressed when they moved. It seemed to coincide with them becoming more aware and developing quite dramatically with their communication skills. I assumed that they had realised that they didn't want to be behind bars 🤣🤣🤣

My son slept with just a single mattress on the floor for 2 years because he refused to settle anywhere else from about 14 months. Try anything and everything!