We are currently transitioning our 2 year-old daughter into a "Big Girl" bed from her crib. The first couple of nights we sat with her (probably our first mistake) and now she wants us in there all the time. Before we moved her, she was having some issues with not wanting to go to bed, but it's escalated once we moved to the new bed. She just screams if you leave her in there by herself, which she kind of did in her crib, but would finally fall asleep. Now she just screams to the point she can barely breathe and almost makes herself sick. I got one good night out of her in the past week and that's it. It's only been a week, but am seeking some advice as to how to get her to go to sleep by herself. I've tried bribery with a sucker if she does a good job, but she doesn't seem to care. We have baby 2 due in less than 2 months and I really need her in a good pattern before she gets here. She'll take naps in there without a problem. It's just nighttime we are having issues. Any advice would be greatly appreciated.
Hi,
We have a 2 1/2 year old and a 4 year old. What we do is always make sure nap time and sleep time are in their room. Ours also try to cry here and there, but we have a routine now. Shower, read a few books, and then bed. Really they are so used to it by now, sometimes they fall asleep as they are reading. Good luck to you, the key is to be consistent.
I'd love to hear what advice you receive. I will be trying to conquer this same issue in the next few months.
thanks!
When I transitioned my 2-year-old son into a big boy bed, he did not like it at all. He cried and screamed. Then, I decided to place his crib bumpers around his big boy bed (his bed has the safety railings on each side) to make it feel more cozy. He loved it. I took them off after he got used to sleeping in his bed. It seemed to help. Another friend of mine tried the same and it worked for her too. Good luck!
G.,
We have a two year old daughter too and we went threw the same thing. We just had to do the same thing every night and stay consistant. We learned that the longer we stayed in there with her the worse it got. So, we would read a story then say ok good night and just let her fuss it out. The crying became less and less every night. Hang in there! We also have a baby due in September.
Good Luck!
H.
I had to do this when my second one was 18 months cause we were expecting our 3rd one. We let her help build the bed and we let her play with it for awhile. The first couple of nights she did not like it but I would give her a favorite toy to take with her to bed. We kept the same routine with her. I did keep her room door open at night so that if she need something she can get up herself and look for us. We would just walk her back to her room and tuck her in. Eventually she stayed in bed and didnt have any problems.Good Luck!
Stick to your guns... it'll pass... I know it seems like forever now because the screaming to the point of almost making themselves sick and such but what worked for me is that I told my son that he did NOT have to go to sleep but he DID have to stay in bed. As silly as that sounds, it worked. But you can't be expected to sit there every night.. just keep your routine the same as you always did when she was in a crib. A lot of parents, from what my pediatrician has said, is that there is a trend to keep them in the crib until 3 years of age when they understand the transition into a bigger bed.
Best of luck with you. IT's hard especially when you really need the sleep!
My daughter started wanting me to sit by her door too in her rom. I did for a few nights just so she would see me doing it. Then I told her Im going to shut the door and I'll be sitting on the ground outside of it for you. She has a smallgap under her door si I put a long pillow at the door so she cant see out. I stand there for a second and then I go do wnat I need to get done. I keep her moniter on and I run to her door if I hear her so she will think I was there all along. It seems to work and now if she wants me to read a million books ans try to stall going to bed I just tell her I wont sit by your door if you dont go to sleep. The first couple of nights she fussed and asked for me but I was sitting in the floor and just opened her door and said see mommy is still out here while you sleep and that seemed to satisfy her. Well I hope this helps a little bit.
