15 month old - sleeps for about 6 hours at night then up for 2-3 hours. Help!

[queensusan]

I think there have been a few threads along these lines recently but I really need help with my 15 month old. She settles quite well in the evening and sleeps for around 6 hours but then anytime between 12 and 2 she wakes up and there is nothing we can do to get her to settle again. She stays awake like this for a couple of hours and usually drops off after a mighty battle around 4am. I am at my wits end and not helping by alternately shouting/crying at her in the night. Has anyone got any suggestions? We have tried controlled crying - she cries it out for a couple of hours but things don't improve. We have tried co-sleeping - she wriggles and plays for a couple of hours. This has been going on for a couple of weeks' now and although she has always been a terrible sleeper, this new phase is far worse than anything we've had before.

She self-settles when I first put her to bed and naps for around 1 - 1.5 hours after lunch.

I fear she has just got over tired but I'm not sure how to get her back on track. Help!

I did the baby whisperer stuff with my kids at around that age, but they were frequent wakers rather than in for the long haul.

Basically it works by going in to your daughter while she is crying, and cuddling or stroking her while she is crying, but then putting her back in her cot the moment she stops. Walk out of the room, and then go straight back in again if she is crying. It is bloody hard work, and contrary to the claims it took me about two weeks to sort DD1, and about 3 days with DD2 (she was a bit younger, and generally less awkward).

I don't stay in the room at all unless she is crying. In the book it goes on about 'mantra cries' which is when they cry but it doesn't get any louder- they usually do it when they are just about to go to sleep. You can ignore that one, if you can work out which is which - I have to say I tend to go in most of the time for the first few days.

It means that you don't have to listen to her cry, and she isn't being rewarded for messing about. I also think if you are going to do it you have to keep going, so it depends how determined you are to sort it out. Good luck whatever you decide to do.

DD 14 months is also doing this, though thankfully not every night. Watching with interest as don;t really know what to do as I think sometimes she is hungry. sometimes she is overtired etc....