Does Anyone Believe ????

Oh yeah! At 15 months they know.

It's possible he's seeing you as his security blanket, so-to-speak. My daughter never really gave me too much of a problem with sleeping at night, but she has always clung to me throughout the day, since day one. Once she was passed down my blanket(one that my mother made for me when I was around 5 years old), she let up on me a little bit. Even at 9 yrs. old, she has her moments, but alot of that has to do with her father's job taking him in and out of state so often, so all she has all the time is me. I hope this helped a little bit....

T., I have childeren of my own and can sympathize with your situation,we had a similar problem with my youngest daughter. I heard and read about this technique,it was difficult in the begining but it does and did work. Try to have a set routine for bed time (like giving him warm bath followed by some warm milk and most importantly a bed time story) after the story put him down as usual (like the way your Brother does?) Make sure he has fav. blankie,toy or what ever he likes to sleep with,is dry and everything is in place. Tell him you love him and now it's time to go to bed. Leave the room. If he cries (this is the hardest part BUT if you ALL hang in there this will subside and all should be well but it may take up to a week) let him for about 15 min. Go in assure him he's o.k and that it's time to go to sleep. (DO NOT pick him up,stay in his room or linger,a quick reassurance and out you go) This may take a while but I swear it will work just hang in there. Wait a little longer than the last time if he's still crying and go in and do the same. Let more and more time go before going back into his room if he is crying. He needs to learn how to sooth himself to sleep ( and as aweful as it sounds to hear him crying (as long as it's not a cry that he's wet,hungry etc..)he needs to do so until he falls asleep on his own (which he will ). Beleive me in the long run you all will be happier. He knows to get your attention all he has to do is cry. He knows he can get what he wants. It's not fair to you or the rest of your family. If there is no reaction to his action any longer,he loses the power. He might feel more secure with a routine bed time and specific ritual whether it's a story or just cuddling with him for a while (not to put him to sleep though). He will come to expect bed time and maybe won't be such a big ordeal. I'm not sure what your schedule for him is and if he takes a nap or not but the time or the length of the nap could make a difference in his sleeping pattern (waking up at 4). Also when he does wake up is it because he's hungry,wet or can't sleep. If he's wet,try going in,(no lights if you can manage) don't talk or look him in they eyes (I know this sounds silly but try to keep your eyes sort of closed,he'll associate this with sleep and there is no unspoken communication between you to stimulate him) change him without talking to him,put him back into bed,cover him up and leave the room.(all kids are different but I would do this and she would go right back to sleep). If he wakes up hungry,try maybe feeding him a little something at night or maybe some milk to make him feel full longer. This may also be temporary change in his sleeping pattern and not much you can do about that except maybe later nap and later bed time.
This is so simple to recomend but difficult to do. It will disrupt things for a while and everyone will probably lose some sleep for a few days BUT you will eventually have the upper hand and bed time will be much more peaceful. I hope this helps you and works for you. What ever you do try not to feel guilty,you are actually helping your son learn something that is essential in his developement and you both will be happier and healthier in the long run.

They can relize much younger than 15mo old if they feel like they want more of mommy or daddy time.

Around 15 months separation anxiety sets in and alot of children become clingy. It is not because you are not giving him enough attention. It is just a stage they grow through. My son used to get up in the middle of the night and want to sleep with us to. If I put him in bed with me he would go right back to sleep, if I tried to put him back to bed he would scream. Part of it is just a comfort thing and I think however you decide to handle it is fine. I liked cuddling with mine so I often just brought him in to bed with me. We recently (he is now 3) stopped this because 1. I am pregnant and 2. our pediatrician told us he needs to develop his independence. He still is a Momma's boy and gets clingy from time to time.

At 15 months they are really still so little. Get the cuddling in while you can-- but no need to feel guilty like he isn't getting enough attention.

Yeah, they know, and this is the prime age for it. Probably just learning to walk and all that. But I also think that they get trained to certain schedules. Also, children go through light and deep sleep cycles, if you are always letting the child into your bed, then they will always want to be there. Probalby will outgrow this eventually, but it's interrupting your sleep and that's not good. Also, not getting enough sleep will cause children to not sleep through the night... counterintuitive I know but it's true, good luck.

Hello T.-
I do think that children want just a little extra time on occasion. Especially if one evening you were a little more busy than others. My daughter (turns 3 in November) does this on occasion. Her father and I are divorced and have been since she was 6 months old and I am her primary parent. Occasionally, she will stay at her dads house on Wednesday nights (usually only on Fri. nights then back to me on Sat. afternoon)Anyway, on those rare occasions that she is there on Wed. when she comes home on Thursday she cannot get enough of me. This has been going on since she turned one. I usually lay her down for bed between 8-8:30pm. Normally she goes right to sleep, but if she was not with me as much that evening because I was distracted or whatever, she will not. I will then go in there, explain to her that she can get up and cuddle with me, not play, for 10 minutes and then we are going back to bed. So far, so good. She accepts it and goes along with it.

Now your other issue, I STRONGLY believe that children, even as young as yours, know exactly who they can get away with stuff with. Actually, I noticed my daughter doing this a little after her 1st bday. My daughter used to do similar things like that to me and never to my mom who watches her daily for me to work. I finally asked my mom why she does this to me and not to her and her answer was "Because you let her!" I thought my mom was crazy and finally tried to just let her cry it out and at first it was so hard, for ME, that I would step outside for a few minutes at a time so that I would not cave in and get her. After only 3 nights, it stopped and she slept through the night again! I know it is hard, it is your baby. Keep in mind, as moms, we know are childrens cries, we know the difference between a wet diaper, bad dream, and hunger cries. It is a gift that moms have. Use that motherly instanct, if you know nothing is wrong then just let him cry it out. Eventually he will cry himself to sleep. Let me know if you need anymore help! Good Luck!

Not getting enough alone time with mom and dad is definately a good reason to get up in the middle of night for some cuddle time! When my second son was born 12 months and 1 day after his big brother, he would sleep 8 hours straight - through the day! I would have to force him to get up to nurse and he would literally eat while he slept. But come 10:00 at night he was wide awake for hours and hours and IF he slept it was for maybe 15 minues at a time. My pediatrician, who is also chief of Pediatrics at a local hospital, laughed when I complained about this! She asked me what I had expected since the boys were so close in age and were still both babies who needed all of mom's attention. The baby had sensed I was way too preoccupied with his brother to give him all the adoration he craved so he fixed the problem himself. So for 7 months I slept on 15 minute intervals until I figured out a schedule that worked for both of them, giving them both enough one on one time and allowing me to sleep for several hour stretches at night.