16 Month Old Waking at Night

Is the paper being deliverd at that time, or is there neighbors leaving for work? My son was waking every morning at the same time and I couldn't figure out why. Eventually we figured out he could hear the paper delivery guys car outside, even though it was not loud. I ended up putting a fan in his room and although he continued to wake up for a few days, eventually he slept right through it. Could it be he's cutting his 2 year molars and they are hurting him?

Don't let him cry it out. You are the only person he can depend on and he, for whatever reason needs you. Read NightTime Parenting by Dr. Sears or go to Ask Dr Sears.com
The days (of nights in this case) are long but the years are short. This will pass, be patient and enjoy your little one.
Good Luck!
J.

I had this same problem when my son was around 7 months. It was so hard to handle waking up 5-8 times a night! Using the fan was a great way to block out sound. He is almost 14 months now and we never sleep in the same room as him. He still wakes up, but can usually fall back asleep unless we're in there too. Like you said, he thinks its time to play! Sorry, not really advice, just sympathy.

Hi K.,

Sounds like it has become a habit for him to wake-up at this time. Whatever you decide to do, you need to be consistent, and follow through. Do you put him to bed awake? Children seem to wake-up more in the middle of the night or during their nap if you don't put them to bed awake...sounds strange, but it is a proven fact. One thing about putting them to bed awake, they learn to put themselves to sleep. That makes it easier if they do wake-up in the middle of the night...they are able to put themselves back to sleep without thinking you will be there. Babies are are so smart, and it only takes something happening a time or two for them to figure it out. One of the best rules to follow is...don't do anything once or twice that you don't want to do everyday. It can become a habit that quick, but you can also change those bad habits just as quickly if you follow my first words of advice...be consistent and follow through. These words have helped me raise my family throughout the years. Your children will keep trying you, but if you are consistent and follow through, they will know that it probably isn't going to work, even before they try.

Good Luck!

C.

Hi K.! My daughter is the same way! We can't have her in our bed because then NO ONE sleeps! SO, I started going in to lay on her floor when she wakes and when she drifts off to sleep a few min. later I go back to my bed. You get alot more sleep than if you would let them come in your bed or cry for awhile!
I remember we did this with my son when he was older. After awhile he stopped waking at that time so I am hoping it works with my daughter!

We had similar problems with our first child and we got a book on sleep. We use the book Good Night, Sleep Tight by Kim West. It will help you get him to sleep through the night with a gentle approach. You can google her if you want to know more. But trust me it has worked wonders on our two kids and it was easy and gentle. We didn't have to let them cry it out.

i would try a few things.

white noise, night light, and a few nite time board books in bed with him. my son was waking at this odd hour too during the same period in his life, though sometimes he would try to talk to us when we laid him down in our bed, we would mostly ignore it and go back to sleep, and whether or not he did immediatly go to sleep, or eventually, we were all sleeping within 10-15 minutes i would say...
just dont respond at all to his attempts at playing.
also, if its possible to have his bed in your room ? you could try that for a while. our son seemed to take comfort in the fact that we were right there. and he doenst have to get very upset before we get to him either.

i dont know.. try some white noise. and experient with different kinds. classical music, fans, static on the radio, theres a cd out there called 'for crying out loud' that has 8 tracks of different white noises on it. its awesome. our son had to have the vacuum running for the first 2 months then we found this cd which has a vacuum track on it! :D it was too late to save our vacuum, but good enough to save our sleep! however, that was when he was just a baby.
but put some things in his bed with him so maybe he could read some books or something when he wakes up. some kids (like my son recently) just end up throwing those things around, so make sure there isnt anything breakable within throwing distance.. even try putting toys in bed. i dont know.
i think that in a month or 2 htis will change again. maybe there are some molars coming in. try some teething pain remedy - tylenol, etc..
check the temp in his room, any clothing discomforts, listen for any wierd noises (which wont matter if you do white noise), use a night light ... soft music? hmm...
check www.askdrsears.com for more info on sleep...

Some say this is good and some say it's bad; but you could try playing a video for him.My 5 year old always woke up, she never did sleep through the night until last year. Sometimes the T.V helped because she would lay there and watch til she fell back asleep but than sometimes she would yell for me and want me in there for comfort.