Has anyone found a successful solution to dealing with a 2.5-3 year old getting out of bed multiple times a night? My son will be 3 in September. For the past month he has been waking up multiple (2-5) times a night yelling for us (his room is upstairs, we are downstairs - he stands at the gate at the top of the stairs and cries for us.) When he used to get up at night, we could simply tuck him back in and he would fall back asleep. Now, he wimpers and cries whenever we leave the room. We tried to "eradicate the monsters and spiders" with a thorough search of his room before bed. We have given him a flashlight he can keep in bed. He has his water cup right there. He has his favorite toy and his blanket. Tried the door closed, tried the door open... We even tried letting him sleep in the guest room upstairs instead of his own room.
I would really like to avoid putting him in our room for two reasons. One, the only time my husband and I have for ourselves and each other is the precious few hours after the boys (Matthew - 2.5, Presley - 1) go to sleep and I don't want to compromise that time. Two, with our work schedules and commutes, our alarm is set at 4:45 AM and I do not want Matt to lose his last hour of sleep in the morning. I am not opposed to bringing him to our bed on an occasional basis, but I would really like to avoid making that a permanent or semi-permanent arrangement.
BTW - I don't think we are dealing with night terrors, as he is fully awake and alert when he gets up. He just seems really freaked out.
Any suggestions would be much appreciated. thank you!
thank you for your support and suggestions. I will keep trying things, the monster spray, for example and hope something works or the phase ends. Now, who can offer advice on how to nap at my desk with my eyes open?
You can also try "monster spray" ( a mini spray bottle with water and lavender essential oil in it). Also as part of the bedtime routine you can gently touch the eyelids as he is in his bed and tell his eyes to stay asleep until morning. And sometimes when our little kids are little they need us at night too. So maybe a sleeping bag on the floor in your room might help if he is waking up that many times a night. Good luck to you.
J. O
My kids went thru this. We put night lights in the room, were careful about evening activities, and made sure some reading & quiet time were before bed. Sometimes things on TV or movies can lead to bad dreams and rough sleep.
One of my sisters tried a fish tank in her daughter's room. The light and the soft noise really helped soothe her and made her feel much less alone. (Just don't keep the fish food where kids can get to it.) They don't understand the light feeding required in order to keep fish healthy and alive.
I wouldn't rule out nightmares yet. That is just around the age that my daughter started getting them. They were bad and she would wake up very upset and need comforting. It happened a lot for a couple of months but then seemed to taper off. She still gets nightmares (last night in fact she was up at 4:30 with a nasty one) but they are much fewer and far between at almost 4 years old . I would just go up and comfort him and ask him to tell you what the dream what about. I think it was really hard for her to tell the difference between a dream and reality. She would wake up sobbing that I was gone and she couldn't find me and I had to reassure her that it was a dream and that I was right there (she had other bad dreams but hearing about that one really shook me and sticks in my mind). It took her a while to be able to tell the difference but now she seems to have worked through it and is able to be consoled and put back to sleep pretty easily when she does have a bad dream. I would suggest that when this happens you go in and talk to him and ask him to tell you about his dream so you can help him work though it.
We put a soft light on in our daughters room (3.5) and also, I assure her that at night the angels sit on the edge of her bed to protect her. Both of those really helped. She still occassionally has a bad dream and when that happens she comes in bed with us until she falls asleep then we put her back in her bed.
I completely understand not wanting to share your bed but sometimes that little bit of comfort can be just enough to ease fears.
Good luck!
I think it's a phase. My son did this for a few months. We were just really consistent and always put him back in bed...although some nights he got cuddled in our bed for a few minutes first. Our son always told us he had bad dreams. So we told him to think happy thoughts. We did the flash lights, water, night light and door open. It helped a bit, but didn't solve the problem. We just kept putting him back to bed and it suddenly stopped. My friend's son who is younger than my son, just experienced the same thing. And he has finally stopped shortly before his third birthday. My theory is that my son would wake up...like we all do...and would just be aware he was awake. I don't know if I offered any advice or solutions for you, but maybe it helps to know you are not the only one.
All of the answers sound great and really helpful. One other thing that I learned is that it is important to be empathetic and for the child to feel heard about their fears BUT if you give into them by letting them sleep in your room or you sleeping with them etc. then you are telling the child that there IS something to be afraid of. It is normal for them to go through a long phase of bad dreams and waking up. Give them the skills to work through this but do not give them the message that they should be fearful by letting them sleep with you. You do need your time alone and your child needs to learn that they do have what it takes to make it alone.
I went through the longest phase of thinking there was a witch under my bed. It is something you learn to deal with.
Here are some suggestions by Dr. Kyle Pruett and more info at the link below. Good luck!
http://blogs.goddardsystems.com/Cedar-Park-TX/2010/01/09/...
sleep patterns mature over time just like other developmental skills.
* Polls tell us that one-third of American children and their parents sleep together some or most of the time before children start school. Co-sleeping varies hugely by culture and ethnicity. So think about what you want to do, and discuss the pros and cons with your pediatrician.
* Make sure your crib is safe (locking rails), that your older child’s ‘big bed’ has side rails, and if you are co-sleeping, that there is plenty of room.
* The human brain is active during sleep, but the deepest sleep is typically at the beginning of the night. Babies spend more time than older children in stimulating REM sleep, with eye movements and irregular breathing. Don’t worry about all that action in your child’s body – it too is growth.
* Start them young – do not ignore the importance of naps, watch for the yawn, and start bedtime early in the evening.
* The transition from crib to bed is also a time of sleep pattern changes, but most kids want it to work.
* To instill good sleep habits remember that consistency matters so much:
