2 year old still not sleeping through

[NiftyTurtle]

Im at my wits end as my 2 year old (3 in
April) just doesn’t sleep. I am lucky if I get 3 hours sleep a night. We also have a 4yo but she sleeps with no issues.

He has his own room and bed and we’ve tried everything from quiet and dark room to night light, white noise and different variations.

activity wise he is very active and goes to nursery for 2 consecutive days a week. we can go to softplay for hours and he still won’t sleep through.

At home he eats loads and at nursery (often has seconds!) but still wakes up hungry? he naps around an hour a day from 13:00 - 14:00.

He has never slept through and whilst the health visitors and GP are aware, I just get told there’s nothing wrong.

Its like his mind just doesn’t switch off?

I guess im looking for solidarity or advice or just someone saying he will eventually sleep through? 😭 thank you so much if you've read this.

Does he still need his nap? My eldest dropped hers at 2yrs 4months - could you reduce / cut out see if it helps?
What do you currently do when he wakes? Is it every few hours? Have you tried sleep training it might be the answer depends how you feel about it

No advice, but solidarity here! I'm up holding my 21 month old who NEVER sleeps longer than 4 hours in a row. My eldest is a great sleeper, but this one is a whole different ball game. GP was no help either, and only those who have experienced it really understand the impact of long term sleep deprivation. I hope it improves for you soon !

Oh sorry and yes he will eventually sleep through!

I haven’t done sleep training as he screams the place down. I honestly just give in and get him food but im so exhausted I cant keep fighting him. I know im not helping myself!

I have tried dropping his nap but he then just sleeps for an hour at 7 and wakes up energized.

I hope it improves for you too! Im sure the 2nd child is sent to test us 🤣

Oh bless you I used to give my toddler food in the middle of the night too ! Your the only other person I have heard say that
I sleep trained at 2 years for my eldest and they did say at the time that the older the baby the more they will protest, if you and your partner are off for the weekend perhaps you could agree to give it a go Friday and Saturday night? So it doesn't impact work sleep too much? Pick a method and stick to it, might work quicker than you think especially if baby is still in a cot.. easier to implement

He isn’t in a cot as he climbed out at 13 months so we had to switch it to a toddler bed, we have had to remove his baby gate too as he just climbs over it.

I think we all just try our best, I know a few other mums that have given food at night too! I might try tonight and tomorrow to see what happens.

Oh OP it's so much harder when they are in a bed, I really feel for you, we had rubbish sleep when eldest went in a bed :( they are too free to cause havoc. We do all try our best, and babies are mad - why don't they sleep?! Hopefully your feeling a bit better I always find I feel better in the morning, 5 year old is currently sleeping worse than 7 month old :(

I’m sure you’ve tried this but our now 3 year old went through a phase of waking and saying he was hungry in the night, so now we make sure we give him a carby snack like crackers while he has his cup of milk and has his stories at bedtime. We explained to him that this is his last snack and he can’t have anything else overnight and he understood and hasn’t asked since.

he is probably waking for a snack because he just is bored or wants to be with you out of habit. Ours literally used to call us into his room and just make something up like ‘I’m hungry’ or ‘the nightlight light is too bright’ etc.

do you still use the white noise? It might be worth doing sleep training and before you do try explaining it to him first so he’s prepared for it. Also it could be helpful to do a little gentle bribery - so a sticker chart for each time he stays in bed and if he does it for a week he gets a toy. It could help break the habit.

does he only wake once in the night for food? How long is he awake for? Do you think it could be for attention/out of habit?

Sometimes he just wanders into our room, cuddles up and sleeps but then I end up with a foot in my face 🤣

once he’s decided he’s hungry he’s up for hours. Definitely going to try a snack before bed though and explain he needs to stay in.