How on earth do I get my son to sleep through the night again? Preferably in his own bed. I don't remember the last time he slept through the night, and it has probably been a month since he was in his bed all night (since switching to the toddler bed). Any suggestions to retrain his sleep patters would be greatly appreciated!
Moms need to watch "Supernanny". She teaches moms and dads everything that our kids put us through. This is a very popular problem with most families. Thursday or Friday evening, channel 7 (a.b.c.) Merry Xmas
my guess is that he was not developmentally ready yet for the freedom that a toddler bed gives him. if you have the option of putting him back in the crib at least until the baby is out of a bassinet id try that. under two is pretty young to be out of the crib. good luck!
Mom C. has given you some very good advice. You need to get him out of your bed. My sister let her son sleep in her bed and finally my brother in law went to sleeping in their son bed with him so he would get out of their bed. My brother in law slept in there sons room til he was in fifth grade. It was truly a night mare for my sister who was not firm about, "YOU CAN'T SLEEP IN MOM AND DADS BED ANY MORE. Stand firm.
Best of Luck
Read Healthy Sleep Habits, Happy Child by Dr. Marc Weissbluth to learn how you can get your kid sleeping in his own bed, through the night.
Even if you hate the techniques and choose to never use them, no matter WHAT technique you go with you will need to stick with it and be consistent 100% all of the time. If that means no more coming into mom's bed, then he is not allowed in your bed no matter how tired, frustrated, irritated you are. You also have to understand that, as a two year old, he isn't going to be like "Oh, so mommy wants to do something new? Excellent...I'll abide by these new guidelines from the get-go." It may take a few days to a week. Be patient and painstakingly consistent with whatever you choose to do.
The best thing to do if he is in the toddler bed is to make sure you are doing the same pre-bed routine every night and when it is time to go to bed, that's it. No getting out of bed, no "one more hug" for the 100th time. If he gets out of bed take him by the hand, lead him back to bed, say "night night" and back in he goes. If he gets out of the bed, repeat, repeat, repeat. Be prepared to make several return trips. Avoid eye contact, do not justify or rationalize why he needs to go back to bed, just calmly and silently (although you might want to rip out your hair), take him back to bed. You want to make these return trips as boring as possible. And yes, when he does this at 3 AM, you do the exact same thing and return him to his bed. It's convenient to let him come into your bed because you're tired but it won't do anything to change the habit (which is what you are seeking to change).
Good luck to you and happy sleeping!
Hi there, A friend of mine just went through the same thing with her2 1/2 year old bay. He did not want to sleep after she took away the bed rails. The minute she put them back he went back to sleeping through the night. I agree with the previous user that it might be a security thing. Try putting one of these removable bed rails on the toddler bed. Good Luck.
We had this issue with both our girls. We made a bed on the floor in our room where they could sleep so that our bed wasn't theirs. They could come in, lie there and sleep. We all got sleep then. My youngest asked for a guard on her bed to help her feel safe. Once we did that, she hasn't been in our room. I know it is a toddler bed, but sometimes that security is helpful.
L., Your problem is the most common one. Tell your two year old no more bed with Mommy. He has to stay in his bed. Put him to bed and sit outside his room and as he gets up go in without alarm or anger and very matter of factly put him back in bed. Once he stays there, let him cry it out until he falls asleep. You can do it gradually by looking in on him after 5, then 10, then15 minutes. No talking, just pop in your head. When he wakes up in the middle of the night do the same thing over. You will miss out on sleep one or two nights, that is all and then it will be over. What is that compared to three more years of him in bed with you (like when he is getting potty trained?) Also, follow the same procedure for his daytime nap, and actually, start with the nap, not at nightime, because then Dad won't be moaning about all the crying and sabotaging your efforts, and sonny will be ready for it at bedtime. You mean business, put that in your voice and stick to your guns (where did that expression come from?) Also, it is not cruel or unheard of for you to hold the door shut when he does the getting out of bed thing. My grandson is finally persuaded that I mean business when I do that.
