NEW Support thread for those non sleeping toddlers 18-24 months!!

[andyrobo237]

Just thought I would start a support thread -no hostility in here, jsut good old plain advice and friendly support for all us suffering with poor sleeping kiddies!

DS is 21 months and luckily I can get him to start the night in his cot, and he sleeps for 3-5 hours on his own, and then he wakes up asking for me, so for an easy life, and yes I like the snuggles, he comes in with us. He will then sleep until 7am when we get up. He eats ok and has one sort nap in the day (less than an hour), and has a run around after tea, and then we do the following (for we read I as DH is a waste of space!):

Between 6 - 6.30pm bath with big sister - lots of fun and splashing and have to prize him out

6.30 - 6.45 he is given his beaker of milk downstairs and he drinks what he likes

6.45 - 7pm he goes in his grobag on my knee and we read, he snuggles and has more of his milk - sometimes drinks it all, or leaves a bit

7pm - take him to his room - he happily goes. I put him in cot, kiss, and then sit in the chair in his room with low light, no speaking (I read a book) and within 10 mins he is asleep

7.10 or so - creep out, pull door to and go downstairs to DD who is 6

I used to have a bath around 9 to 9.30 but he would always wake after that, so I have a quick shower after their bath, so I dont disturb him!

He has been waking around 12am these past few days, previously it was 10.30 to 11 ish, so at least we have gained an hour of peace! He wakes up stands up in cot and shouts for me, which if you ignore becomes a cry and sobbing, which fortunately doesnt wake his sister usually. I then bring him into our bed and he settles until 6.30 to 7am, when we get up.

He is not tired when we get up and we get up the same time every day even weekends as DD has early morning activities. I just cant get him to stay in his own bed longer. Have tried the early evening routime again (without the milk) and he does appear to go back to sleep, but when I move he springs up!!!

THis is not as bas as what some people have to cope with, but it is not what we want, I needmy sleep and prefer to have half a kingsize bed not the corner!

We will support eachother and get these toddlers to sleep better!!!

So not feed him to sleep when I put him to bed but feed him to sleep during the night?

Should I not BF at all at bedtime then, or just give a bit and then say "night night" like I did when doing CC?

I don't think "gently rousing" is going to have that effect on him tbh.... I feel really useless. It is going to be a big cry fest no matter what I do .

I wouldn't BF at bedtime or in the night.

You'd be surprised about the gently rousing. I didn't think it would work with DS when i was doing the wake to sleep thing but it did. The only other thing you can do is put him in his cot awake but stay with him reassuring him til he goes to sleep and use the gradual withdrawal method where gradually you get closer to the door and then outside the door. If it works gently rousing is less traumatic.

Can I join in late as well please?! New to this site so don't know abbreviations (DD? DS? Not a clue!) so please excuse the long winded text. Daughter is 15 months old, and from 6 months was sleeping 7-6 nearly every night with occasional 'blips' for teething, being poorly etc. She has a 7oz bottle at night and used to go straight off after that, and then a 7oz xup in the morning when she wakes and has been fine on that for 8 months so I know she's not hungry (she's also massive 91st centile for weight and height so she's not a wee thing by any means). But over the past 3 weeks (since Christmas really - routine totally b*ggered) she has started to wake at any time between 10 and 2 and just screams ans screams untilwe go in and see her. she cna be 'shushed' and patted to quiet (not necessarily sleep) but then just cracks off as soon as we leave the room. the longest we've perservered with this is 4 hours, at which point I cracked and slept ont he floor of her room with the occassional pat to sned her off again when she woke up. However, this has no spiralled out of control so that when she wakes now the only way she'll sleep through is if I'm on the floor or she's in the spare bed with my husband, which is obvioulsy driving both of us insane. We both work, and are now really beginning to struggle with this. I think she's totally swinging the lead now - is that the case? I'm horrified at the thought but I think we're going to have to do a couple of nights of CC until she gets back into ther routine - any advice? the only other thing of note is that she is teething badly with her back teeth at the moment, which I think is what is waking her intitially.
Feel like a bit of a failure now to be honest - everything was going so well and it all appears to have gone pear shaped almost over night.....

Sorry, that was a bit epic wasn't it?