2 Year Old Son Has Sudden Change in Sleep Habits

Your wind down process may be too interesting & may be causing him more excitement. My youngest loved school & had trouble going off to sleep on her own. Reading her books & singing songs was too stimulating. We learned to bore her to sleep. Here's what worked for us: avoiding any stimulants like sugar & of course caffiene, darkening the room as much as possible, making sure no sounds were distracting her (like TV on in another room) and humming a simple tune over & over.

If his diet has remained similar, I'd say perhaps he is ready to abandon his nap? Although somewhat sad for the parents, that might be what the case is. It is worth a try.

I know several kids who quit napping shortly after 2 although my son hung on until 3 1/2 but he stayed up until 9:30 at night and that doesn't work for all families.

AE

My daughter did the same thing at 2 years old and we tried everything. Then I eliminated her nap and she went right back to her 7:30pm to 7:30am sleeping routine. We had to endure some crabby afternoons but it was worth it. I don't know if this is a possible solution being in daycare though. Not sure how flexible they are about naps. Good luck!

The first thing that comes to mind is noise level. What is the noise level in his current room when the kids are settling down? Does he actually sleep during nap? or does he look around at the other kids. Is he the first to go to sleep or the last?

It may just be that he's just to the room having more noise while he's trying to go to sleep now.

M.

He may be very happy and that could keep him awake, on the other hand maybe the books are not always right.Sometimes all that adds extra stress because we are thinking our little ones are supposed to act a certain way. Is this disrupting your lives a lot? Give him a nice warm bath or something earlier, I am all for doing whatever it takes to get everyone asleep. Perhaps the bottle temporarily is not so bad. And put that book on a shelf somewhere.

I've heard similar reports from dozens of moms, and have seen this kind of change in my own grandson. I suspect it's common around 2, and based on the excitement he feels. I know when something new, interesting, or challenging is going on in my own life, I don't sleep as well for awhile.

Your son may simply be processing all the new input. He could be a bit overstimulated by activity in his new classroom. Tough for you, though. Just continue with a quiet, non-stimulating wind-down routine, try a white noise machine or some soft music, give him a good snuggle and lay him in his bed. If he keeps popping up, keep laying him down with a brief explanation that it's time to sleep. Avoid conversation or new stimuli, though you might wish to try gentle hair stroking or back thumping. It may take another week or two, but things will probably get relaxingly "routine" for him again.