Reception DD struggling to sleep. Anyone else?

[sapphirestar]

Just that really. Dd started school a few weeks ago and I've had real problems getting her to sleep at night.
I figured at first she's maybe just overtired/over-stimulated but getting nowhere.

Today we've had a nice chilled out day; she's done some drawing/colouring, played with her dolls, rode her bike to the shops, watched a dvd but tonight she's being a nightmare.

Got her up to bed at 7pm, at half past she came down saying she'd had a bad dream (she hadn't even been to sleep yet!) 8pm she shouted that she wanted a cuddle, I said she should be asleep by now! And just now she started shouting that she was going to be sick, I went up with a bowl but she's absolutely fine!

This has only started since she started school, she was always in bed at 7pm and not a peep 'til the following morning. She has been creeping in to sleep with me the last few weeks, but I don't mind that, school is a big change for a 4yo! But it's 9pm and she's still bloody awake, which equals tired and grumpy tomorrow!

Anyone else having problems/got solutions?

Mine is exactly the same tonight. She's four. But only part time so no school tomorrow.

Tonight we've had:

endless requests for stories and long discussions (or attempts anyway, I refused) about the pictures.

Her pyjamas 'fell off' and she couldn't put them back on.

Lost toys.

Needed cuddles.

Lonely.

Poo.

A noise in the dollshouse.

Couldn't find xxx book.

It might be quiet now. I'm going to bed myself soon. Baby DS wakes me frequently. But never wakes DD.

She's so much nicer when she has more sleep. I guess if she had school tomorrow I'd put it down to anxiety - but no school till Wednesday. Hope your little girl sleeps soon.

I'm having the same problem since she started school 3 weeks ago. Daughter has same bedtime routine she has always had but after her story I say it is time to go to sleep and she won't. She keeps thinking of things to tell me and then makes every excuse under the sun not to go to sleep. I get more and more stressed thinking she is going to be really tired the next day. I have started sticker chart today hoping that might work and she was asleep by 7 tonight. Part of me hopes it is just the new school routine and she'll settle down. Best of luck to you! Xx

Glad it's not just me - must be down to starting school.

Judy - my dd is also nicer after a full nights sleep. I haven't heard any noises for 10 mins or so, fingers crossed.

One of her favourite excuses is that she has an itch on her back she can't reach so I have to help her!

Karlee - I may have to go back to a sticker chart, it's going on 3 years since I've had to use one of those!

I think it's safe to go upstairs now...

DS1 goes through phases where he makes 20 excuses to come downstairs again after bedtime. I suspect it is a form of separation anxiety so wonder if that it is why it is appearing just after your DC started school perhaps.
I usually tackle it the supernanny way - I avoid engaging with his rather random excuses, the first time I tell him it's bedtime, take him back and tuck him in. After that it's just being returned to bed with no/ minimal discussion. Sometimes I might tell him I'll pop back in and check on him in 5 mins and gradually space out the time before I go back to check until he's asleep.

My dd was a nightmare for this - one excuse after another. I don't think she was playing me up - she just genuinely couldn't sleep.

We started using Chritiane Kerr's CD - Bedtime Meditations. It transformed bedtimes pretty much over night. Over a year later and we still put it on almost every night.

I think it gives her something to focus on - but it isn't too stimulating.

Hope that helps!

Yes, we've had this trouble since DS started P1 a few weeks back. It's not helped by the fact he often poos in the evening and he won't sleep til he's been (DH wants to give him laxatives to change the timing, but there is no way that's happening!).
We did get into a habit of either letting him come down stairs til we went to bed, or leaving his lamp on and letting him play quietly, but that was just making things worse. Now I'm making sure he's had some additional exercise after school and that he stays in his bed with dim light from the hall so that he isn't being over stimulated. He's not necessarily getting to sleep faster, but he's not bouncing all over the place either.

I HATED being told to rest when I couldn't sleep as a young child and now I'm saying to my child.

Thank goodness it isn't just me then! I've had a fucker of a weekend trying to get the right mix of stimulation and relaxation. All I've had is strops and tantrums afterwards, pushing boundaries. I'm pretty fed up and tired by all of it and struggling hard not to fling my toys out of my pram.

Dd has just started (only four at the end of August) and is SO unsettled at home. Bedtime has become really disrupted, she keeps trying to have her little brother in with her, asking to sleep in our bed, wanting to come downstairs. I know we're a bit spoiled, but she's always just gone to bed and gone to sleep. I have to read a story three or four times to calm her down enough to go to sleep. Tried letting her stay up later, she got even worse. Lots more tantrums than normal too.

I think she finds reception quite stressful tbh. She has a speech/development delay and so can't really tell us how she is feeling about it all. She's also really clingy. I hope this settles down, it makes me feel so sad for her.

Phew! So nice to know it's not just DS! He's terrible at going to sleep since starting school. And so naughty! Bolshy and tantrummy and generally horrid!
I've been laying with him to try and get him to sleep earlier than 8, it's a nightmare!

My dd has just tarted reception but I woukdn't even attempt to get her to bed until 9pm.

Well, it's lights out at 9pm anyway. Sometimes she's awake for a bit but usually goes off okay.

My son was the same when he started Reception. He is in Year 1 now and sleeping nicely. He went to bed and within 2-3 mins told me he had a bad dream, he need another cuddle, he is afraid, etc... There is lots of stimulating in school and also they can miss time with parents too. And I think that is why the children says they need one more cuddle or had a bad dream (when they think about somthing happened in that day).

I just went to bed with him and stayed with him until he fallen asleep. I also told him that I will leave when he fallen asleep and I also told him to close his eyes and if he opens it I will leave the room. But I hold his hand, I cuddled him, I told him I love him and he is safe, etc… He was fallen asleep under 10 mins most of the time. He did not even recognise when I left the room. He just needed a bit of love to feel that I love him so much. And I do not blame him. Imagine kids in Reception in the first 2-3 weeks or more spend 5 hours their time every weekdays with “strangers”, no mummy or daddy who can protect them and next to this they receive lots of stimulating. I think in the evening they just want to know that nothing changed between them and us. They are still our little kids who we love unconditionally.

I went to bed with him for 3-4 weeks and since then he sleeps nicely. Some evenings when he has a bad day or just need reassurance that I love him, I still go to bed with him, but not too often. Friday evening we hold our “chatty” nights when we go to his bad and chat about what happened in the week but I leave the room before he go to sleep. He is 5 years old now.

Glad there's light at the end of the tunnel! Dd's been fine at going to bed the last 2 nights so fingers crossed!
She still sneaks into my bed in the middle of the night but I don't mind that at all, the separation anxiety thing makes sense. Plus it's her birthday next week so think there's some excitement there!

I don't go to bed with her, or indulge her playing up though as I want to keep our routine as it is. Before bed we sit and have cuddles and talk about our days, story in bed, cuddle and then I leave her.

I've definitely been spoiled, she's always been so good and well-behaved!

my dd has given up sleep since starting pre-school.
shares with ds
sometimes I can hear her talking to her toys because ds has fallen asleep.
I leave her to it as long as she is doing it quietly and she seems happy enough. I think it is just too much stimulation during the day and she is offloading.
when I try to make her be quiet or tell her to go to sleep that's when I get the trips downstairs for water etc
its less frustrating if she goes to sleep in her own time, better than checking on her all the time.

The thing that changes most when they start school is activity levels. Suddenly they are on the go all day, often walking more and charging about the playground for at east an hour. They burn up a heck of a lot more calories. Try increasing her calorie intake in the evening.

You could also try using childrens story CD's. It is probably a bit of (normal) new school anxiety and giving her something to listen to and relax to (make it quite quiet so she really has to listen and it isn't too intrusive if she does drop off to sleep) might help. I used to listen to them when I was a child (I always had trouble going to sleep). Just make sure they are long enough so you don't have to keep changing the CD though. My reception daughter LOVES the My Naughty Little Sister books (and the good thing about them is there is nothing scary in them at all).

Same problem here. My dd is old (nov birthday) and I figure she is getting a lot less physical activity (something wehave always had a lot of) but perhaps it's overstimulation? She doeasn't make excuses. Just "reads" and "reads". I'm thinking it will be better when she can really read? Oh and she is waking early also. She used to go to sleep in 20 mins but now it's overan hour.