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Original poster

Please help!! My 2 year old has never slept through the night...

12 replies

Rtuff · 04/02/2009 09:33

My 2.7 year old son has NEVER slept through the night, he wakes 2 or 3 times a night, does anyone have any suggestions to try and get him to sleep through the night? He's in a bed now as we thought it would help but doesn't.... I'm longing for a full night uninterrupted night sleep... Please help!

OP posts:
pamplemousse · 04/02/2009 09:37

Read the Millpond Sleep book. It has all the main methods explained with pros and cons on each. Good luck you must be permanently exhausted.

babypowder · 04/02/2009 09:40

I have no advice, but I'm in much the same position. My DD is still BF at night, and doesn't sleep through. We've tried her in her own bed, but have now resorted to co-sleeping so that I don't have to get up several times each night.

Will watch this thread with great interest!

(Sorry for being utterly useless )

MrsJoeMcIntyre · 04/02/2009 09:42

And me. My 21mo still doesn't sleep through the night. She is in her own bed, but only for a matter of hours.

LouieStrumpet · 04/02/2009 12:07

And me too! In fact I was just about to post on here about my 2yo and how he has slept through the night a handful of times and in the past couple of months has started waking three times a night again.

So help us please MNers!

It feels like we have tried every method too - going without bottles, letting him cry (although with these two he just crys until he vomits), he's in a bed, good routine, everything fine.

Help!

numum · 04/02/2009 17:21

My 26 month old daughter wakes every two and half hours, on a good night.
We co-sleep.
I am sorry to say it is a relief to see we are not alone, but I hate hearing success stories about other babies sleeping though when we have gone so.. so... long without one "through" night!!
My daughter still nurses, I think this is a big factor...

pamplemousse · 04/02/2009 18:58

Seriously read the book I suggested its very good and helped me and many of my friends with our now 2 year olds and their younger siblings.
[[ Teach Your Child to Sleep: Solving Sleep Problems from Newborn Through Childhood (Hamlyn Health) by Millpond Sleep Clinic (Paperback - 15 Sep 2005)
Buy new: £9.99
11 Used & new from £6.27]]
I don't work for them or have any association other than the fact that it has many different useful helpful interesting approaches.

pamplemousse · 04/02/2009 18:59

I clearly can't do links, but at least thats given you the title.

Panda40 · 05/02/2009 11:16

It is really hard I know, and what works for one doesnt always work for yours!! My 18mnth wont go to sleep..some nights it can take me 4 hours and I am not joking to get her to finally stay in her bed and sleep by which time I am knackered and so is she...which is why she falls asleep. I have read books, spoken to other mums, doctors you name it. Get a routine I was told, I have been trying that and doesnt make any difference . She will get into bed and want to play!! She is in her own bed and has been for about 3 weeks now as she was climbing out of her cot constantly and we thought that a big bed might help...makes no difference, still a pantomine each night. The sleep deprivation things for you must be hell as you can cope with many things but when you dont get sleep even small things seem like a mountain to deal with. I dont think there are any answers except trial and error. You need to work with your partner and every time your little one gets up take him right back to bed. Stay with him if you have to and stroke his head, tell him it is sleepy time and everyone is in bed...you might be doing this for several weeks but eventaully it will click. Till then it is bloody hard on you and if you have a partner who is willing to take his share, then it is hard on him too but it will be worth it in the end. Your wee one has been used to not sleeping for 2.7 years so this is not going to be a habit which can be broken over night so dont expect miracles too soon. Even an extra hour he sleeps is a step in the right direction.

patmum · 06/02/2009 16:01

Our 2 yr 3mth old son is not a great sleeper and, consequently, we haven't really had many whole nights sleep since he came along. Just when we think we've sussed it he goes and gets another cold or something.

I'll outline one main change that seemed to help.

He went into a bed when he was about 19 mnts. We had to give the cot back to the friend we borrowed it off so we thought we may as well go for a bed. We also moved him to a duvet rather than a sleepsack.

However, he'd get too hot and throw the duvet off (or crawl out of it - we use one of those elastic bands that hold the duvet in place) then get too cold and wake up. We tried all combinations of pyjamas/sleepsuits/vests to try to get over it but he just wriggles so much that it didn't work.

Now we've gone back to a sleep sack but a light weight one with the duvet on top. This seems to pretty much do the trick unless he's got a cold and coughs himself awake.

Of course this might not be an issue for you but figuring out temperatures seemed to be our main issue. I have no idea what we do as it gets warmer though. Maybe he'll just learn that sleeping is a good thing. Two or more years of being awake two or three times a night is NOT funny. Especially with a full time job and number two on the way!

RooBear2308 · 14/10/2021 09:02

Hey Lovelies! My 2 year old Toddler has never slept through and I am just constantly like a walking Zombie. He has such. Loud cry and a very stubborn character that I can't just let him cry due to my 7 year old. He doesn't have a dummy but loved his Tommee Tippee bottles and sometimes the only thing to settle him is give him a bottle with either milk or water.
Just don't know what to do anymore and any advice would be massively appreciated x x

Thank you Daffodil

LGBirmingham · 14/10/2021 15:48

I'm no expert as ds is just ten months. But I shared this advice for night weaning very gently that a friend did when her daughter was 2.5 and it seems to have helped this other poster. Good luck! www.mumsnet.com/Talk/sleep/4365224-2-5-year-old-never-slept-through?msgid=111318038

mummato2boys · 15/10/2021 08:39

@numum definitely due to breastfeeding. My son was 11/2 and still waking 2-3 times to breast feed. So started co sleeping to get some proper sleep. I was to tired to even bother to try weaning him. Found out I was pregnant and when I was 6 weeks I had him off the boob in three days, first night was obviously hell but the second and third night was soooo easy !! Two of my friends have used the same way I did after I told them. So I put large plasters over my boobs and told him there was a ouchy there , he gave up pretty fast and it seems to have worked with my friends children's to.

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