Wtf happened last night, and what do we do tonight?

[numberthirtytwoWindsorGardens]

DS is 19 months and generally a good sleeper. Last night, he woke up at about midnight (not unheard of, though he hasn't done it for a few weeks) and needed a cuddle to resettle. Usually he then goes straight back down. Last night, however, he screamed and sobbed hysterically every time I left him. We tried various things (sitting on the floor beside the cot, telling him to lie down every time he got up; absolutely fine until I tried to leave, when I foolishly thought he was asleep!; rocking him; cuddling him on the sofa): all the time he was absolutely fine as long as I sas in the room, but suddenly hysterical when I left. He's never been like that before.

Finally, DH went to sleep in there on the floor. I really don't want that to become a pattern!

Background context: he's clearly going through some sort of a leap/growth spurt: his language is exploding and he's become suddenly very clingy to me. We're also moving house at the weekend, so he may be unsettled by all the change.

Any advice on what we should do tonight? I really don't want to get him into the habit of needing someone in the room to go to sleep, but I also don't want to let him cry!

Many thanks for any advice!

Do you think he had a bad dream? I would try explaining to him a bit more. "Did you you have a bad dream" "don't worry, it wasn't real" - that kind of thing. I would also talk to him about it during the day.

Personally, I have always brought DCs into bed in that scenario, as I always just want to go back to sleep. It does become a habit, but I don't think there's anything wrong with that.

I would bring him into bed, but he rolls and crawls around so much he would fall out! (I can't imagine how we're ever going to get him out of a cot!) He has never been much of a fan of co sleeping.

It could have been a bad dream; it's just weird that he was absolutely fine if someone was there with him. He didn't seem scared, really.

Thank you for the advice!

I have always done the same as Velvian. Ear infection, teething, worms? All possibilities for random wakings up.

I had to spend A LOT of time sleeping on the floor. Like your little boy, mine would roll out of bed (from 5 months) and actually really liked his cot! At various points I had airbeds/cushions/blankets/duvets etc because I had to sleep there so much. Now he is seven and sleeps like a log for ten hours a night and has done for years.

I think at different stages they become aware of the world around them in different ways and so it becomes a bit scarier.

I'd do the normal routine tonight in the hope that it was a one off- a horrible dream or similar. I'm not strict about sleep locations and am always happy to have a dc in with us or snuggle down with them if that's what it takes to get us all sleep, and all but one of mine have needed someone with them to go to sleep, so it wouldn't be an issue for me if he did need either.

Night terrors?

I will say one of mine went like this around 2, this time of year.

Turned out she was terrified of “the man coming through the roof” while she was asleep.

Christmas can be scary when they’re old enough to half understand....

Mine was 20 months old and did the exact same thing. I think it was the 18 month sleep regression.

We have a bed guard on one side of our bed and me on the other to co-sleep. It lasted two weeks and she has gone back to normal.

Thank you all so much for your reassuring words!

I'm worried about creating an unhealthy sleep habit (his needing one of us in with him when he never has before). Am I wrong to be concerned about this?

I always think of the sentence 'remember, it is only a phase' with sleep. He'll go back to his normal sleep but for now he needs the comfort of you being there.