This is probably my fiftieth post about my sleep-averse DD..
Now 20mo, never been a great sleeper but for a while managed to sleep through the night from about 8:15 - 6:15. Is now waking up 3 times a night on average, usually uses the potty and goes back to bed without much fuss.
We have a pretty good nighttime routine, right up until the 'falling asleep' bit.
She's absolutely fine if there's someone in the room, sitting in the dark beside the cot but not interacting in any way; in which case she'll turn over and go to sleep.
If she is still awake, even slightly, when we leave, she'll start screaming. We tried CC; however she will scream the house down until someone comes to see her. If we go back to 'check' after a few minutes she gets even more distressed at the 'departure' and the screaming can go on for hours as she winds herself up more and more.
DH favours CIO, however while she will scream until exhausted (it can take half an hour or more), it seems to make her night wakings worse and more frequent. CC seems to make things worse too rather than making her feel more secure, and unless one of us tends to her immediately when she wakes at night she'll scream for a long time, which with paper-thin walls and neighbours doesn't make us popular at 2am.
So, the only option seems to be to stay sitting in the room until she is 'properly' asleep, each time she wakes. This isn't something either of us want to carry on infinitely, but attempts to 'teach' her to fall asleep on her own haven't seemed to work. Has anyone else found CC/ CIO to make things worse rather than better, and if so, what did work for you? Co-sleeping isn't really an option as she's an epic wriggler..