Hi, toddler (2.5years) is on pathway to be diagnosed with autism and Paediatrician has confirmed highly likely she is.
For the past 6months her sleep has gradually worsened. She currently falls asleep 6:30pm and will wake anytime from 11pm and often for the day (so does not go back to sleep). She no longer has a regular nap- but she often crashes on the sofa/in the buggy as she's so exhausted. She also cannot stay up after than 6:30pm no matter what we try (bath/walk/play).
She's been prescribed Melatonin which helps with the falling asleep but once she wakes in the night she struggles to go back to sleep. She's averaging 7hrs (broken) sleep a day.
We have tried black out blinds, white noise, no toys in her room, later bedtime, earlier bedtime, lots of rocking before bedtime but nothing has helped. Originally we had our 12mo sharing a room but that obviously didn't work so we're now sleeping in the living room so that they have separate rooms.
We've been advised by Portage and Paediatrician to not bring her down when she wakes, but she makes so much noise we're all awake anyway. She doesn't usually get upset- she's just running around and talking/shouting to herself.
We've tried getting her to nap regularly so that we can extend the time she goes to bed, but she resists. If she does happen to nap (eg out in the buggy) she then will not fall asleep until around 10pm and still wakes around 4am anyway.
She's non-verbal and has limited understanding (diagnosed global development delay at the moment) which makes things harder.
None of the professionals can offer any further advice other than what we're doing, but we cannot keep going as we are- we both work full time and am exhausted from constant wakes from 11pm onwards. It's also affecting her development as she's too tired to engage in the SALT and play therapies and has been sent home from nursery due to meltdowns, which are worse when she's tired.
Is anyone in a similar situation and does it get better with age even if child has ASD? Any tips that worked for you?
Thanks