Sleeping Nightmare!!

[Penji73]

Hi All,

I am hoping some of you can help. I am new to the site but I am having some real issues with my 2.5 yr old sleeping at night. She went into her own room about 2 months ago (late I know but shes been a nightmare since birth bless her). She goes off to sleep no problem at about 7.30pm and sleeps soundly until about midnight. Then she gets out of bed and comes to me in our room. I put her back into her bed and sit with her until she falls asleep but then shes up every 1-2 hrs until morning and it's killing me! I have tried so many things, I have spoken to the health visitors who are useless! I am hoping some of you may have advice from experience with this. Its not the room she has a problem with, it's being apart from me and her dad. HELP!!

Was she previously cosleeping or was she in a cot in your room?

She was sleeping in her own cotbed and then her own toddler bed. Only did co-sleeping for the 1st 3 weeks of her being born and even then only occasionally

That's good, cosleeping at this age is very hard to stop until the child grows out of it.

I would do some tough love in your situation, in the form of rapid return.

If she gets out of bed, return to bed immediately have a quick mantra you say (sleep time now, we lie quietly in bed at sleep time. Nan night), leave. No messing around, no additional conversation, no requests for anything else.

Back to bed immediately, say mantra, leave quickly. Repeat over and over and over again. Stay calm. Don't get angry or shout, just maintain absolute and unwaivering consistency - every wake up, every time, all the time until asleep.

I'll try it but when we have done it before she just sits in bed and screams the house down to the point where she projectile vomits

Gate on her bedroom door. .
No chat straight back to bed.

If she is sick, quick clean up, no fuss, no chat, back to bed.

Be assertive.