2 year old keeps waking at night and coming into our bed

[Loulou560]

Hi
Any experiences/ advice most welcome. We have 2 DDs; one just turned 3, and the other is nearly 2. The youngest goes to bed no problem (it’s a cot bed) at 8pm. She also has a 2 hour nap in the day. However, she wakes up any time between midnight and 2am and screams the place down. To try and get some sleep initially and not disrupt our eldest, we’d bring her into our bed, where she falls back asleep immediately. This has become a habit which we really what’s to break, and it’s impossible to sleep with a wriggly two year old. I know some well meaning people say ‘leave her scream,’ but, if she was the only young child, we would. What on Earth do we do to not wake up our three year old? We desperately want to try something different to either stop her waking up at night, or at least not scream the place down until she gets her own way.

Take her back to her bed and lay with her until she falls asleep. Once she gets use to that sit next to the bed and stroke her back. After a few days sit next to her with your hand on her arm. Basically you are gradually working towards her going back to sleep in her own bed. Eventually get to the point where you silently walk her back to her room and leave. Hopefully she will stop waking if there is nothing to wake for

I’d probably trying shortening the nap.

Imo I'd get a decent mattress for her room and one of you go in there. The other bed share with her in the main bed.

But I know people sometimes prefer not to

Sounds like split nights so reduce her nap.

Also mattress on the floors in your room so someone can Kip on the floor. Whatever gets everyone the most sleep.

Quite a few children give up their nap altogether around 2 🫣😬

Thank you all for your replies. I’m going to try some of your suggestions, and starting to cut the nap to see how it goes x