20 month old refuses to go to sleep!

[sammietee79]

any advice would be welcome!
my 20 month old takes hours to go to sleep. She goes up to bed but wants to play so i let her for five minutes then make it clear it is bedtime - sing songs, book etc but once i stop she screams and screams refusing to get into bed. I have tried the "tough love" of leaving her safely in her room to cry herself to sleep but she gets in such a state that she coughs until she is nearly sick. I am on my own and each night is taking at least an hour to get her to bed and its wearing me out!

anyone have any suggestions???

Sammie - One of my sons wouldn't go to bed, kept getting out all the time, at 2 yrs old.
I sat with him in his room reading my book he goes to be at 7pm so its still light enough for me to see, let him chatter and fidget but not get out of bed, then gradually I moved further away from his bed, sat in the doorway, sat at the top of the stairs. It has taken a couple of months but he is finally staying in there now without needing to see me there with him.

Patience and persevernace is the key. we don't have a bath every night, but do have the same routine apart from bath nights.

she'll get there eventually.

My DS has started to do this on some nights. I have noticed that the nights when he doesn't settle are the nights where he plays up until he goes to sleep. It is like he is so wound up, he can't relax and unwind. We have now made it a rule that after bathtime it is quiet time only: so he has his milk and can watch ITNG or he can choose some books for me to read. As a result, he now settles as soon as I put him in his cot and is out cold!

I hope things start to improve

Thanks i think i am going to try after bath turn TV off, lights down and settle her down that way. She has too much energy I think!!