Sleeping Problems

I had a very similar problem with my daughter when she turned 2. I made it about 2 months of that and was desperate for help and I called the pediatrician and she told me to give her 1 mg of melatonin at night. I was leery at first cause I am not a fan of just giving my children anything but the Dr. said that Melatonin is naturally produced by the brain but alot of times children's brains do not produce enough of it yet, it's what helps regulate their "clocks". So we tried it and it worked amazingly. In fact she is 3 now and still takes it before bed, We have tried to quit giving it to her and the night issues come right back! You can get Melatonin at any health food store. They are cherry flavored and she just chews them up. Goodluck! I know how stressful it is!!

I think there is probably a physical reason for his waking. When he wakes up at midnight, does he need to pee? And something else to consider is that undiagnosed food allergies/sensitivities are one of the biggest reasons for unexplained night waking and sleep issues. Here's a great primer on tracking down food allergies by a well-known and respected pediatrician:
http://www.askdrsears.com/html/4/t041800.asp

I totally appreciate what you're going through. Our son had similar issues and it turned out to be cow's milk causing the problem, so we removed all cow's milk products from his (and our) diets to see if it had any effect... lo and behold, he started sleeping really well, even napping. We were shocked, especially because we were family who ate a lot of cow's milk products (milk, yogurt, cheese, ice cream, etc.). The change took a few weeks to really get used to, but the results were REALLY worth it for our son and for our entire family. Your son may not have an issue with cow's milk, but it's worth considering a food allergy in general. That link I provided above should give you a good starting point, and by keeping a food diary, you might be able to start suspecting certain foods.

Best of luck!

Maybe you should invest in a REAL door...to sound proof his room and darken it. My children have always slept with "white noise", such as a fan or humidifier going during sleeping hours. It sort of lulls them and blocks out the house noises.

Your son needs to learn that his bedroom is for sleeping, so maybe your Dr. was right about taking ALL of his toys out until he has mastered a full nights sleep. You could use bringing one toy at a time back into the room as an incentive...or try a sticker chart. He is 3, so maybe he can earn a sticker for each good restful night that he stays in his bed and after earning 3, take him to the dollar store, or give him a special treat like a lollipop, or m&ms. Something exciting to reward his efforts!

Do you give him attention when he comes out of his room? You shouldn't be. Just scoop him up and say the necessary "goodnight, you need to stay in your bed and go to sleep". Is he overtired? Do you have a quiet bedtime routine that you follow each night. I know that children strive to be on a routine so that they always know what is coming next in their day. This makes for an easy transition into sleep as well.

Good Luck with your little guy!

Our daughter is the same way, (3) years old and a ball of fire. If anyone out there has good advice, we'll try anything. We have moved several times and I thought that maybe the transition was what was causing her to not sleep through the night....but we've been at our current home for over six months now and she still wakes up intermittently throughout the nights. I know what you're going through and fully sympathize, it's so tough having to go to work in the mornings, too, without getting a good night's rest myself, that's for sure.

My niece had that problem, and what worked for my sister was to buy a music CD and play it on repeat all night. For some reason, even when she woke up during the night the music cued her brain that it was still sleeping time. I also agree that a sticker chart is a good idea. My son has accomplished lots of miraculous habits withe goal setting.

have you looked into his sugar/caffiene comsumption. if he is eating too much of these things during the day, they might overloading his system so he can't sleep at night. you have to read ingredient lists very carefully because sugar and caffiene can show up in strange things under some pretty strange titles. also do you have a set bedtime routine...you know, bath at 7:30, story & 8, kisses and lights out at 8:15, etc. consistancy is a big factor in getting kids into a healthy sleep patern.

A friend gave me this tip and it worked wonders for us. Use a digital clock and cover up all the minute numbers with tape so that he can only see the hour. Tell him he can't get out of bed until he sees the 7 in the morning. Believe it or not it actually works and at least you'll be able to sleep until 7:00. I think it helps them distinguish sleeping time from waking/playing time. We also had to put a lock on his door so that he wouldn't wander around the house and get hurt in any way. We only had to lock it a few times before he learned to stay in his room. I know it sounds terrible but better safe than sorry and our pediatrician said that is what she would do. Aside from that, make sure there is nothing waking him such as traffic noise or light coming in his room, if that's the case then blackout curtains and a white noise machine work great. Best of luck!

at night my boys does this. i just ingnore him. i made sure everything in his room cannot hurt him . he is four and half now. he may not need to sleep as much as you think he does. i know he is a toddler and dr say then need more sleep. my son does not take a nap and he does not go to bed till about 830 he gets up at 730 or 8 in the morning. some nights he sleep through others he does not. but if you yell back go to sleep you are giving him attenion he wants. if i was you i would move his bed time back an hour. and see what happens. it may just have to run its course.we had to switch his door lock around so it locks on the outside. he figured out the child saftey thing on the door. and we had a barn door on( we sawed his door off like a barn door) he figured out how to climb over so we had to put the top back on and fix a lock for it so it made an actual door. now that it is locked on the outside. he still sleeps a lot on the floor by the door. but good luck it suck. also are dr put my son on meletonian. it is an over the counter sleep aid for sometimes to give him when he just won't go to sleep. we have had this problem since he was a baby so that is why they did that last year. he would stay up till two in the morning no matter what we did and later somethimes. it was killing us. with no sleep

I would look at his sleep schedule. If he's not napping, then he should be going to bed around 7-8pm, waking up around 7-8am. A 3yo needs 12-14 hours of TOTAL sleep. Overtiredness can cause night wakings. The fatigue builds up over time, and your child will start sleeping less and less.

I've also heard about parents giving melatonin to kids. You might want to consult your doctor about that.

Food allergies suggestion is great. As well as darkening the room and having white noise. You can buy blackout curtain material at a fabric store for very cheap instead of buying real curtains with blackout liners.

You might want to think about co-sleeping. Maybe he just needs a little security.

Other than that, I would consult a different doctor as there may be physical issues. Good luck!