16Mo Old Sleeping Away from Home

You aren't doing anything wrong. I don't sleep as well in other beds either. Why should be be any different? :)

Some kids have a harder time sleeping away from home........just do what you normally do, except try to make sure he might be a little more active.......and I would introduce him to his room immediately. Let him see it, maybe play with him in it.....and let him know this is where he is going to sleep tonight, where you will be and so on....

Give him some time, he will be fine......just wear him out and then do the routine....

Good Luck and take care.

I agree that it's not unusual for a child to want the comfort of his usual surroundings. One possible suggestion is that you get some sort of portable bed or cot for him to take his daytime naps in at home. Then carry that bed with you when you go for an overnight visit. He may relate to having his own bed to sleep in that way. We purchased some fold up cots that work like the folding canvas chairs and they are easy to transport. If you'd like more information on those feel free to contact me.

I wouldn't assume that you are doing anything wrong, your son may just have been aware that he was in a new place and was a little nervous about it.

When we travel with our son (17 months) we bring his the stuffed animals he sleeps with, a couple of his favorite books and follow his regular bedtime routine. We also use our pak 'n play sheet instead of the hotel one, that way I know that it is washed in a baby safe detergent and it smells like our home. We try to get to our destination in plenty of time for him to play in the room where he will be sleeping, so that it isn't totally unfamiliar to him. Night wakings do happen a bit more, we tend to respond a little more quickly so that he doesn't become disoriented and scared, and on occasion I've had to nurse him back to sleep (which we haven't done at home in like six months).

Lastly, some people are more sensitive to not being in their own room/bed. Do your best to make things familiar for him and hopefully you'll have an easier time in the future.

The MORE you travel, the easier it gets!

You may not have done anything wrong, he is just not used to sleeping somewhere else - it doesn't feel, smell, or sound the same as home. Don't give up, the more you do this, the better it will go.

We travel ALOT, and here are the things we do to make it more like home, take their own sheets/blankets that they have already been sleeping on ( smells familiar) bring their favorite stuffed animal or blankie whatever security object they have, bring their own nightlight we use at home, and bring some soothing music or white noise to block out any unfamiliar noises. Also, make sure you get him lots of active play during the days, or he won't be tired out for bedtime. And do the bedtime routine same as at home, and react the same way if he wakes as you would at home.

Good Luck and keep trying!

jessie

Hi,

I agree with the other posts that your son might just not be used to sleeping anywhere but his own home. For adults, it can be very disorienting & for a young child, it must be very confusing & maybe even frightening.

Be patient, and maybe try what worked for me...both away & at home, when my son had trouble sleeping...just lay down with him, until he goes to sleep. You could read him a book, rub his tummy to soothe him, sing him lullabyes, or play some soft music...and if the sleeping arrangements don't let you lay down next to him, just bring a pillow & blanket to make yourself comfortable on the floor next to his crib, and lay down too, until he is asleep.

It doesn't take that long, & the result will be worth it. My son had a much easier time falling & staying asleep if he knew mom & /or dad were nearby, and if he woke, I kept a night light on so he could see. If possible, it sometimes helps for you to sleep in the same room (guest room?), so if he wakes you are right there, or at least he can hear you sleeping/breathing.

Good luck!

Your not doing anything wrong , but try and look at it from his perspective , he's in a strange house/room/crib whatever and you are putting him to bed and leaving the room , he has no idea why or if you are even going to come back. We have the same issue with my 2 yr old and while you are away you just need to do whatever to get them to sleep , even if that means putting them in the stroller and pushing them back and forth , last November we were away for the week in Mexico and my daughter was then 17 months , even though we were all in the same hotel room and she could see us , she screamed in the pac n play and I had to let her sleep in the bed with us , she literally clung onto me every night , as soon as we were home in her room and crib she went back to her normal routine with no issues.

C.,
Is not that you are doing something or anything wrong, it is simply that children are used to their ambiance and they know when they are else where things are not the same. I know it is frustrating, but you need to hang in there. He will eventually get used to it and you will have a great time in your future vacations. They get excited seeing new places, people and things, this is very normal. Just try to keep your routine as close as possible to the one at home. If you've done that, then you need to give him time to grow in to it. In to the situation, the place, the people, etc.
He is just a normal child :) Enjoy him!
Blessings :)

Hello C., I am sure that I will repeat some of what you have already gotten but as the mother of 5 and the Nana of several, I just had to answer this.
A child is secure at home-- just like an adult they know the sounds, smells, noise levals, and people talking but most important the enviroment they are used to- bed,linen, things on the wall - it all goes together.
Put any child into a starange envirment and they will flip. Not sure of thier security,where is my parents, what is that noise, whose voice is talking, am I missing out on something? It all runs together. Even my grandchildren who have been here since birth~ some have a harder time than others to fall asleep and often I will feel a 16 month old that has crawled out of the crib and come in with me( I keep the porta crib in my room), or a 18 month old that will only go to bed with Nana's blanket.. So it is the security leval that a child has that makes the differance. My own children were great about wanting to be apart of everythng and didn't want to go to bed for fear they'd miss something.
Good Luck

You're not doing anything wrong. Most people do not sleep as well away from home as they do in their own beds, and your little one is no exception. In the future, you can try bringing some of his bedding from home and other familiar items to help him feel more at home, but don't expect him to sleep like he's at home, because he's not. I'm almost 51 years old and still cannot get a good, full night's rest unless I'm in my own bed!

I wouldn't say YOU are doing anything wrong.

I think they get so used to their routine, THEIR bed, THEIR house etc that when they are away from it they aren't comfortable. It's a lot to them.

I took my son on a mini vacation. We spent 2 nights in a hotel and I could NOT get him to go to bed. He just kept thinking "LETS PLAY!"

Best bet is to make sure that when you do go on vacations, or whatever that you try and keep his routine as normal as you can. Otherwise, keep doing it :) If you stop taking him on vacas because of this he won't ever learn :)

Oh, I know this feeling! You're not doing anything wrong! To put it in perspective, many adults have trouble falling asleep or otherwise don't sleep well away from home, so I think it's only natural for the same to apply to a baby/child. It takes my 19-month-old 2-3 nights to get used to sleeping in a new place (this is unfortunate since most of our trips are just little weekend getaways!). A couple months ago (my daughter was 17 months) we took our first family vacation - a week in Maui. For the first 2 nights, I could only put her down after she was already asleep. She'd also wake in the middle of the night and not want to go back to sleep - the first night I rocked her back to sleep; the second night we let her sleep in our bed for the remainder of the night. On the 3rd and subsequent nights, I was able to put her in the pack n play awake and she slept there all night (even occasionally waking and going back to sleep on her own), just like at home.

We have this problem with our 2yr old. I've been so militant with his bedtime and routine from the very beginning. And it's served us so well at home. But on the few occasions where we travel or he has overnights elsewhere, we used to have a lot more problems. It backfired on us.

The others are right, the more you do it with him, the better he'll get at it.
I think it's really that simple. You just have to get him used to a few changes here and there.

Our last trip with DS a couple of weeks ago was the best experience we've had. I brought everything from his bed. Nightlight he knows, blankets (go everywhere with us anyway) and his pillow. No issues that time. Same with his last visit to grandma's. So I'm thinking maybe that's the key.

I don't know how well that would've worked before now, when he was too little to really understand, so it may not help at all. But that's my suggestion. Bring everything he knows from his crib. Also, if you can, make sure he's in a bedroom. We tried the basement (for dark and quiet) at my SILs house and it was just hysterical screaming with no sleep. When we moved him to their bedroom (for a nap), it went better. Less of a fight.