Getting Toddler to Stay in His Own Bed

my son's Dr was actually the one who gave me this advice. He said get into routine. THe best thing you can do is give a 15 minute warning that it is time to get ready for bed, and then follow the same routine every night. for example, brush your teeth, wash your face, read a book, tuck him in, then it is lights out. remain calm, and if he gives you a hard time and gets out of bed, quietly bring him back to his bed, tell him you love him and walk out.the 2nd time, no words, just put him back in his bed and leave and so on. But remaining calm and consistent is the key to this. It worked wonders for us! Good luck!

M.,
we had this issue too and used a small bed on our floor. we told our son he could come in if he was scared and he could sleep on the bed on the floor in our room. (we co-slept till i was so pregnant w/#2 we all couldn't fit.) he took well to it - making it fun of course for him. he then transitioned to his room on his terms and it really seemed to help him build his confidence!
good luck with everything, hope this helps!

Hi M., I highly recommend the book by Dr. Ferber. (I forget the exact title) but any book store would know it/have it. I have two girls, 5 and 1 and neither were good sleepers. I have many many books on the subject of getting kids to sleep through the night in their beds. There are many different approaches...what I learned is that the most important thing is consistancy. It doesn't matter which method you try,they all work if done consistantly. You and your husband have to make a plan of what you're going to do,and stick to the plan, and support each other in carrying it out! Your son is not going to like it -- trust me! But if you stay firm, it should only take a couple of nights! Good luck!

When we put our daughter in a toddler bed a few months ago, we also put a gate on her door to keep her in her room. I didn't want her able to wander into the bathroom at night or into our room or find any other unintentionally non-childproof spots in the upstairs. It works great. She doesn't stay in her bed when we put her down, but she can play in her room for a little while and soon puts herself back to bed. I would definately not resort to spanking, but that's just my own feelings about discipline.

I suggest you take your child to the toy store and let him pick out anything he wants (my son wanted sock 'em boppers) to have in his bed at bedtime. Make this toy only available in the bed. Make it a rule that if he doesn't get in & stay in bed he can't have the toy untill the next night. also remind him if he wakes up during the night he needs to keep his toy company & bring him back to his bed.
hope this helps
I also found it good to say the sun is sleeping you should be too. or if the sun isn't shining stay in bed.

We are having the same problem with my 2.5 year old daughter. We did up her bed "princess style" and she loves it.. but as soon as she goes to bed she pops right up. We have the added problem of having her sister in the same room (17 months old)
Well, after fighting it out for 2 weeks we have finally resorted to spankings. It seems to be the only thing that will keep her in that bed until she falls asleep. And even with THAT she generally will get 1 spanking before she stays in the bed for the night.
I'm with you. I have no idea what else to do. She also seems to be having a hard time falling asleep.
I will be interested to see what others post.

Hi M.,
We had the same problem with my son, and the one thing I can suggest is just being consistent. You are sending mixed messages to him if you let him sleep in your bed sometimes, but not all the time.

When my son would get up, we would walk him back to bed, give him a kiss, and then walk out.... even in the middle of the night... it's hard, and you're tired, and obviously the easiest thing to do would be to just let him crawl in with you, but you have to stick to your guns. He will probably cry, and give you a hard time, but it won't last long. Once he sees that you aren't giving in, he will stay in his bed and get a great nights sleep. And the best thing will be that you and your husband will also get a great night's sleep!