23 month old still yelling - have I traumatised him!

[fruitstick]

Help

DS2 has not wanted to go to bed recently. Has become more aware, wanting to be with us, realises DS1 stays up later.

Have had some success with DH putting him back to bed and eventually gives up.

In the mornings, he has been waking early and I have gone in and lay down with him until he's gone back to sleep.

This morning it didn't work and he wanted to get up at 5am. DH said my lying with him was making matters worse so we decided (rather foolishly at 5am) to try the rapid return then too.

We did it until 6:30 and then decided it was time to get up.

His naptime was all over the place today as he was so tired, so had half an hour this morning and then another half an hour at lunch.

But he's still shouting. He had usual routine which finished at 7:30 but he won't got to sleep. He doesn't seem upset, just in a rage! Keeps shouting my name (well Mummy). DH or I have gone up every 5 to 10 minutes to put him back but it doesn't seem to be working.

DH insists that we must be consistent and giving up now, lying down with him, singing more songs etc will just make things worth in the long run but I find it so hard.

I hate hearing him so upset and worry that by leaving him this morning he's traumatised and will never sleep again!

I saw you on the other thread. I'm close to needing to do something similar with DS2 so here's a nudge for me too.

With DS1, at 25 months we had a sleep consultant who saved our lives!! DS1 took ages to go to sleep in the evening, got up at night and was up for the day every morning before 6.

She told us to explain the rules to him, get his buy in and reward his achievements.

I couldn't believe that this would work but it did. I can't see it yet with DS2 who is 22 months.

We drew a picture for him with his bed and him in it saying that this was him staying in his bed on his own. He had a dim light on a timer and he had to stay in bed until the light came on (even if he went back to bed alot) and when he was going to sleep we told him he would have two stories, then we would go out of his bedroom because we had jobs to do. I remember DS1 saying "Mummy go landing", DS2 doesn't talk much yet.

DS1 got a smiley face drawn in one of five boxes every day and had a reward at the end - again, I can't see DS2 getting that concept yet but maybe I under estimate him.

She also said that we should tell him to go back to bed rather than putting him back to bed. Explain the rules the first time, say "back to bed" the second time and there after just lead him back to bed. Again, I didn't see that working but it did.

Good luck and let me know if it works and I wlll implement it here too!!

Thanks misty. In the end I gave him some calpol as DH decided he might be teething. He stopped yelling immediately. I put him back to bed but he was telling me to lie down. I stood in the room for a few minutes and he went to sleep.

I'm exhausted! Hopefully, as he didn't go to sleep til gone 9 he might sleep in tomorrow.

He has a sticker chart because DS1 benefits from the competition :o but he hasn't got a clue what it's for.