Dropped nap but overtured

[dycey]

Ds is just 2 and has not napped for the last 3 days - he shows no tiredness during the day but of course is exhausted by bedtime. Then conks out instantly at 7 and wakes in the night. But is getting up really early at 5ish.

Dh has washed his hands of it all as ds rejects him in the early morning because he wants me. I have also got into habit of sitting with ds while he falls asleep as he was ill at Christmas and on and off in January. Also I am pregnant and exhausted and can't face controlled crying - have had to do that twice since he was 18 months to get him to fall asleep alone and totally hate it.

He also has a cold which probably cobtributed to a bad night.

Obviously need to sleep train again but was hoping to figure out the nap versus no nap first.

If his night is only 10 hours without a nap then surely he is not getting enough rest. But he was often only sleeping 9 hours with a 1 hour rest anyway.

Feeling quite alone and exhausted with this one. DH would support me but feels I don't listen because I have not left ds to it.

Can't help with solid advice but this doesn't sound too unusual. My DD1 hasn't napped since she blew out two candles on a birthday cake. DD2 is 2.5 and still sleeps 1-1.5 hour every day.

Sad to break it to you but to me it sounds like he's just dropped his nap.... Some children need less sleep than others and 10 hours sounds OK. DD2 sleeps 10 hours a night (and is up at 5.30am!)

Oh thanks so much. Actually I don't mind hearing that at all. He has never wanted much sleep. It's the night waking that I find hard - sure that is overtiredness. Will that go as he gets used to it?

Any tips for getting him to settle alone? Should think that would help with the night waking.

Some nights DD insists I stay with her until she falls asleep, so I read her a story quietly.

Some nights I tell her I need to go downstairs (for some made-up reason) or pop to the toilet and she lets me go (and I don't come back until 15 minutes later, by which time she's usually asleep).

I saw on another thread someone suggested playing some calming music whilst they fall asleep.

Can you try leaving him for a few minutes if he wakes in the night to self-settle? I'm doing this more with DD now and it seems to work. She doesn't call for me so much any more.

My DD is 2.6 and we're just dropping the nap at the moment. I'm trying to get her to stay up until 7.30-8pm and then she doesn't wake until 6-6.30am. I've said it on some other threads but I've been giving her something sweet to eat (a square of chocolate or some banana) around 5pm to keep her going a bit longer. Seems to do the trick.

Thanks for tips - hoping that might work when he is a bit older. At the moment if I move away he gets wide awake and anxiously calls me back.

Some how I feel it would be wrong to be too tough at the moment. His understanding is growing minute by minute and he does believe I will come if he falls me. Don't want to break that. But your ideas are great once he will let me try them.

I had retreated to the next room before his last bout of sickness. Now I am patting him!

He is napping now - fell asleep in the car at eleven - so is clearly whacked.

Is it usual for the nap dropping to be this bumpy?

Good idea to keep up too 7.30 or 8. Will do that once possibility arises again.

Waking at 5am and not napping means it's practically impossible to get him to 7pm without real overtiredness. Then wakes easily at slightest opportunity.

Perhaps I should keep insisting on a nap for a few months? Using pushchair?

my ds dropped his naps at 15mo.

i moved his bedtime back to 5.30pm and he was sleeping through until 7am most days.

he's 3 now and his bedtime has slowly been creeping up nearer to 6pm now and he still slepps until 7ish, sometimes later.

forcing him to stay awake will only make him more overtired imo.

im not at home so i can't look in my whizzy sleep science book but its says something about not getting into a deep enough sleep for long enough, or something, if they are forced to stay up.

I am afraid though that he will insist on getting up at 3 or 4 if I did put him to bed earlier. I know that is what is said about overtired children. He has never had more than 11.5 hours in 24 and lately it's been 11 hours - since he was 18 months - that's including a 1.5 hr nap!

Feeling helpless in the face of this - settling and waking and napping and early rising issues all rolled into one. Being pregnant is just making me feel that I can't face sorting it out! Pathetic but tired.

Thank you all for tr advice and tips. V much appreciated indeed

Bamboobutton - I should probably try your idea though. It does sound right.

Tho early bed has ALWAYS backfired on me until now!

i was sceptical when i first read about putting to bed earlier but it does work, for ds it did anyway.