DD nearly 18 months - won't go to sleep suddenly

[Liskey]

DD is just a week off being 18 months. She's always been brillant at going to sleep in the evenings bedtime has always been around 19.00.

Then this week she's taken to screaming and crying - working herself up competely every night - last night was the worst she didn't finally stop crying till 20.00 when i was cuddling her. She's always been an early riser and if she's now going to start being bad at going to sleep as well my and DH will crack up totally!

Has anyone else been through this? And found any solution? I was wondering if it was separation anxiety as I've just gone back to work after having 2 weeks off 1 of which she spent in hospital with an infection.

Any advice gratefully received.

Bump - any ideas please?

We've had this too for the last two nights. Our 16mo has been settling like a dream at 7pm for months, but the past two nights she's worked herself into a frenzy.

Mil claims it's because I've been out at work all day [hmmm] (way to pile on the mother-guilt). I'm not sure I agree, though I think it is a combo of a little bout of separation anxiety- perhaps a developmental thing, overtiredness, and realising that when she goes to bed there is still life going on downstairs that she wants to be part of!

She's been working herself up into hysterics, but then yelling 'night night' when I pick her up and seeming to WANT to go to sleep. In the end, both nights we've just had to leave her after going in a few times to say gently but firmly that it was sleepy time. She's old enough to understand that, I think. It took a few mins but both nights she has settled on her own. I'm loathe to get into a pattern of her needing us to be there for her to go to sleep. I suppose that's what you'd call 'crying it out' which I've never been keen on, but nothing else worked so...

I think it could be the 18 month sleep regression, caused by a huge developmental spurt.

My nearly-18 month old didn't go to sleep till 11pm last night (tried for 7.30pm bedtime) despite having been up for the day at 5am.

However IME, the 18 month regression is usually characterised by frequent night waking / long spells awake in the middle of the night / early rising rather than difficulties going to sleep. But they're all different of course.

More on the regression here and here and here.

Shushbaby - that really does sound the same as DD she s really tired but wants me with her as well. Last night I did rub her back till her eyes started closing which I don't want to do but am very reluctant to leave her as she gets hysterical and can make herself sick - neither's a good choice really!

Angeldog - What 11pm!! You must have been shattered yesterday! So must they of course but that sounds painful.

I did wonder if it could be a developmental leap - we didn't seem to have any regressions earlier (she needed to be fed a lot in the night so we seemed to miss out on them) as she's trying to talk more and get her own way.