15 month old only falls asleep in buggy need advice

[TheGoldSeal]

Hi, looking for some advice please.
Im a first time mother to a 15month old boy. He will not take naps or get into the cot for bedtime. I had him in a good routine from about 5-7months where he would have a bottle in my arms and drift off and I'd put him in the cot ( at bedtime). Hes always napped in his buggy. Ive tried multiple times to get him to sleep in the cot for naps and bedtime but he will literally scream and I just cannot watch him become panicked and upset. I've tried doing the gradual approach, I've tried the bath book bottle bed, I've tried to sing and sit with him and hold his hand, I've tried to reassure him and take him out and cuddle and put him back in, I've tried to let him have the bottle in the cot and leave the room and watched him on monitor - he drinks the bottle then messes then eventually starts crying. I know hes now associated sleep with his buggy and he likes the motion, but recently I've worked on transitioning him to 1 nap, so come bedtime he usually doesnt need to be pushed in the buggy he just gets in and falls asleep drinking his bottle because he is wrecked. I've recently tried again to wait until he is wrecked and let him drink the bottle in the cot, thinking he will drift off like he does in the buggy, but he just won't settle. He wakes 2 or 3 times at night and I've given him a 2oz bottle to fall back asleep - i wait until hes actually awake and not just whimpering. I feel I've gotten him into bad habits unknowingly at the time and now I feel awful and dont know what to do. The night wakings are tough, he is also an early riser and always has been - anytime from 5.30am. I use to try get him to sleep at bedtime between 7-8pm but noticed he still woke up early and someone suggested earlier bedtime so now it's usually between 6pm-7pm. His nap is usually 11am-1pm. As he wakes so early it can be a struggle to get him to 11am, sometimes he goes earlier. Family members kids have never been like this so their advice doesnt really help as they havent experienced it - their kids were all great sleepers and in routines etc. I feel i just can't get it right. My mother has said that all babies are different and my son is just the way he is and to let it be he will grow out of it. It's hard though. I really wish I could get him to sleep through the night. Ive recently started a home business and come the evenings I'm exhausted (when I'm suppose to have clients) I feel i need to go asleep when he goes asleep just so I actually get a few hours sleep!

•he is in a cotbed - the lowest height, should I change to toddler bed? He can't walk yet but is a very good climber. He is 84cm tall and the rails on the cot are definitely lower than armpit - for safety should I change it to the bed? He hasn't tried to climb out of the cot yet. Could it be the cot that he doesnt like? He often hits his head off the headboard (not on purpose just when hes moving around) and his feet end up between the rails and he just ends up horizontal during the night. I had him in a next to me until he was about 5 months.
I read online some people changed to a bed and a mesh side rail as their babies didn't like the cot? He sleeps in a sleep bag too.

If you've read this far thank you, sorry it was so long. Just needed to try reach out and see if theres anything I can do or if theres something obvious that I'm missing!

Thank you

It's hard, but I'm with your mum. He won't always he like this.
Personally I'd move him to a floor bed and put a baby gate on the door. Mine never slept in cots, just had a double mattress on the floor. Then I could lie with them and sleep if they needed me or roll away and leave them starfished across the bed if not. And then I just put the frame back up once they were a bit bigger. Also works with a single mattress if you don't have room for a double.
If he won't settle, I'd just sit or lie on the mattress and be really boring. He can crawl around and faff (we had very little in their room and all furniture was tied to the wall) and then once fully tired he will either fall asleep in some random place in the room (fine) or come and snuggle up and lie down with you on the bed and go to sleep. But you can at least rest while he's sorting himself.

Both mine napped in the buggy, one would sometimes nap on the sofa which was worse because they required constant supervision. Neither ever slept in the cot or on the cot bed.
They do grow out of it.

I remember when one of my DC would only nap in the sling with me bouncing on an exercise ball. It won't be like this forever, it's a phase that he will move on from. Personally, for your own well-being, I'd let him sleep in the push chair all he wants. Take him out when you go up. Waking up at night is completely developmentally normal and to be expected even at his age. Don't be so hard on yourself, it'll be ok x

Your replies have made me feel such a relief! I feel a weight has been lifted thank you so much. I kept thinking all sorts about the future like how he would fall asleep in a buggy for bed time when hes 5/6years old!

I do wonder if I changed the cot to a bed/floor bed would he be more comfortable ..he just always looks bet up against the rails!

Thank you all so much.