My now 3 year old has been having sleep problems for about 6 months. She has always been a great sleeper, but suddenly is up at night a lot. We have a structured routine, she goes to bed at 8, she goes down without a fight, she does not sleep with us, etc.... We have tried the thing where you put her to bed over and over in the middle of the night without saying a word to her--doesn't work (keeps getting up over and over for up to 2 hours), we have sat with her, slept on her floor, put her back and kissed her once, talked to her about it, etc....... Basically --some nights she gets up once, some nights she actually sleeps, and some nights she is up 5 or 6 times and stays awake most of the night. We have done Melatonin too with no difference at all!!!! At nap time she is no problem. We have a night light in her room too. Any thoughts!!!!!
between ages 18 months - 4 years... the reality of what may or may not be in the dark/dim room when they are all alone without Mommy's comfort and security is heightened during this time. I co-sleep so this has never been a n issue where we lose sleep over it.
Both of my kids, now 12 and 9, went thru this around the same age. Instead of fighting them all night and keeping us and them up, I just let them come in and sleep on the floor on my side of the bed. I did NOT make it comfortable for them, they would just bring their blanket, pillow and/or stuffed animal. And it was usually early morning, around 3am or later, so it was not for most of the night. Then they just stopped. I think the kids get to an age where they "know" they are alone and just need some reassurance. I was NEVER a co sleeper, I had my kids in their cribs from day one and to this day they have always put themselves to sleep and have been great sleepers. So maybe try that. Let me know if you have any other questions. good luck!!
OMG, I have no answers, but I'll be watching this. My 3yo has started doing this as well. Only he usually wakes up around 1:30, turns on the light in his room and plays/jumps on the bed for an hour+ before eventually going back to sleep.
Sometimes he wakes us up, sometimes no. But the loss sleep is affecting his personality.
Hopefully you get some answers. I'm baffled and frustrated with how to handle this.
Perhaps she is ready to give up her daytime nap? She's about that age. It could be that the sleep she doesn't need during the day is affecting her sleep habits during the night. But, the night-time fears thing is a good candidate too. I hope you figure it out! Good luck!
