Help. Ds2 hates his cot.

[stainesmassif]

In brief (am feeding to sleep and on iPhone) ds2 is 15 months. I've gone with the flow, co slept, fed to sleep, anything to give me an easy life. He's had a nap every day in his cot - lovely long ones - and has always started the night in it.
Now he's teething or poorly or something but if he wakes even a tiny bit going down, he yells. If he's wide awake, good mood, put him in the cot, he yells. The moment his back hits the bed he spins round, stands up and yells. For aaaaaages. And not in a tired way, he's furious. How can I persuade him his cot is a good place to be?

Oh dear.... But at least he did the start himself?

Yes. Did a couple of loooooong stretches in the night. He's hoarse now, bless him. They say it takes three days, don't they. My face literally looks like a cross between and for colour.

Oh youpoor knackered thing :( but you're through the worst.

No advice but i feel your pain. Dd is 18 months. She always loved her cot, went in awake and lay down and went to sleep herself. Since sunday shes started screaming (and puking) when she goes in. :( of course we're staying in a fancy hotel with the kids this weekend - so dreading it now!

Well done for plucking up the courage to go for it. I hate that period when you're so shagged you can't think straight but know you need to do something which you dread in order to make progress. Looking back though (twins are 2.3) I've never regretted making a change to the way we do things.

I did wonder whether shifting his daytime nap to be a bit later might help - mine are harder to settle if they're overtired. Also, at about the same age we went through similar and I was at the end of my tether but realised I should have faith that if I just TOLD them to go to sleep because it was bedtime they would understand (a bit - that tactic was surprisingly successful). Mine would just keep throwing everything out of the cot and crying until someone went in to retrieve over and over again. Be strong and keep the faith. It helps (IMO) if deep down you don't believe yourself that there's anything wrong with them being left in a cot. Mine love theirs, although we never co-slept (they would never drop off that way) and now clamber in willingly as to them it is 'their' space and they are as possessive over it as they are every other thing there is to fight over!

They know.

And yes, we're aiming for afternoon nap today - I may end up with two sleeping children - who knows...

Good luck

well. dare i speak too soon? ds2 went down into his cot, eyes open, not a peep. have i broken him?? is he just storing himself up for tonight?

Interesting. He has a new technique. Cry out, pitifully (voice so hoarse) til I go in , lie him down and he seems ok for about twenty minutes (long enough to think he will be ok) and then we start again. How fiendishly intelligent is this baby?? There is nothing about handling this approach in the cc page on mn.