My 2 year old son (will be 2 next week) is not sleeping through the night. We have a regular bedtime routine and he usually falls asleep with no problems. He wakes up between 1:30am and 3:30am and wants to play. Once he is up, he will not go back to sleep. We live in a one bedroom condo and his crib is in the living room. We were thinking of putting him in a toddler bed, but he does not stay asleep. Any suggetions?
Thank you everyone. We have put him to bed an hour later than normal and he has been sleeping.
My guess is that it is because he sleeps in the living room rather than a bedroom. The living room is also his play room when he is awake so when he wakes up he thinks it is time to play.
Sorry. We had 3 children who all slept very well at night, and then child #4 came along. #4 didn't sleep through the night until she was 4 or 5, I really can't remember. We didn't do much of anything, but bring her into our bed, between us, where she could lay there, and we could sleep in spite of her.
She is 13 now, and still doesn't need as much sleep as her older sister does. It's just the way she is, I guess. :-)
er.
L.,
I would NOT move him to a toddler bed--believe me--it will be a gazillion times worse until this is over. Actually, if he's not climbing out of his crib, leave him in there til he's 3.
It's probably just a phase. When he wakes up, I wouldn't engage him in ANY conversation except "time for sleep" and put him back in there. Let him listen to some soft music. Good luck. It will probably pass. What time does he go to bed? Believe it or not moving him bedtime earlier 30 or 60 minutes may result in sounder sleep!
L.,
Does your son have any other unusual behaviors or quirks???
Is he bothered by tags in clothing?? Will he only wear certain types of clothing??? Is his diet self-limited??? Is he bothered by loud noises?? These things as well as interrupted sleep cycles can point to Sensory Processing Disorder.
Does he snore loudly? Does he clear his throat a lot? Does he have irregular bowel movements? Is his belly distended? Does he have a lot of gas? These things can point to food allergies which can also disrupt the sleep cycle.
What is his diet like? Does he eat a lot of sugar? Drink a lot of juice? Is he getting caffeine any where (like, chocolate or tea)? Stimulants can affect his sleep cycle as well.
I just wanted to throw these ideas into the pot incase any of the other suggestions aren't working out for you. Sometimes it is just a behavioral thing and sometimes it's something more.
Hope you get some sleep soon!!!
This is going to sound really strange, but putting my oldest son into a toddler bed when he was 22 months solved all the sleep issues we had with him. Our problem was that we could no longer get him into his crib once he was asleep and then he would wake up in the middle of the night (which happened a lot) and same problem over again. Now, we made the mistake of rocking him to sleep (I didn't repeat this mistake with my twins). Anyway, one of us would just lie beside him until he went to sleep and then slip out of the bed. Around when he turned 2 he started going to sleep on his own (I just asked him one night, do you want to go to sleep on your own and he said yes!). I know every kid is different, but this is what worked for us.
L. - Bring your boy into your room. This is the best fix possible. You will sleep better.
J.
L.,
I have not read the other responses and I don't want to come across the wrong way but, he needs his own space. His own room. I know times are tough and such but he really needs to understand that his bed/crib in his room, is for sleeping and the living room is for living in when he is not alseep. He is probably having trouble associating the 2 apart he is too young to understand the difference. He sees it as play time cause he sees the livingroom when he wakes up. The only way I will move my son who is 20 months to a toddler bed is when he can climb out of his crib; and he is sleeping very well in his crib still with no issues. Don't put him in a toddler bed unless his is in danger of falling out of his crib but he needs his own personal space. There are plenty of 2 bedroom apts that are affordable and nice you just have to look. Good luck!
Christina
Sometimes kids just go through a transition phase. Something triggers it and their system goes haywire.
If she takes a nap in the mornings make sure its never longer than 1-2 hours and not after 3-4pm that will ensure she gets most her sleep at night cause by this age their body clock starts changing.
Hi, L..
I think my daughter went though that for a very short period around that age. I think they are young, they don't want to waste any time, but play and explore as much as they can. Can we blame them. I do have to say, it was harder for me to deal with it then her. I was not happy up late at night trying to have her go back to sleep.
We put out daughter on a toddler bed when she was about 2 as well, and it worked out pretty well so we actually changed her bed to a regular twin bed when she was about 27 months and she loves it. I don't know if beds make any difference, but like some moms mentioned, he might be thinking that his sleeping area is also his playing area, that might make him want to play more when he's up late at night.
I;m sure you are doing a great job handling the situation and I hope whatever you decide to do, works out for all of you.
And good luck a job search. I'm also getting laid off soon and I'm in the same situation as you are and it's touch. Hang in there and let's hope that things will work out soon.
L.,
My son is 4 now, but he went through a phase of waking up in the middle of the night. He used to wake up around 3 AM which was the same time that he woke up as an infant. It will pass. You can try putting him to sleep a little later, making sure his bladder is empty and eliminating sugar a couple of hours before bedtime. This phase will quickly pass.
Hiya,
I don't have any advice... but my 32 mo old has been crawling in bed with us since about that period--2 yrs--and he will just go right back to sleep. It does sometimes (although not most of the time) wake us up--but we go back to sleep, too (my son will crawl between me and my husband). I think it's pretty common, from moms I've talked to. And he's outgrowing it at this stage--maybe just 2-3 nights a week now (though he does crawl into bed now at 6:30AM and god bless him sleep until 8).
So, maybe try having him bunk with mom and dad when he wakes up?
Best, R
Eek! This is a phase that will pass, but STILL, here are all the things I can think of to help.
Create a cute cubby of some sort to section off his crib from the room. A screen or barrier of some sort that blocks his view of the room and feels cute, comforting and cozy.
Be sure he eats A LOT during the day. Heatlhy of course. If he is full and satisfied, he'll be less likely to wake at all. NO SUGAR!!!!!
Be sure he exercises A LOT physically during the day, and gets some sun rays for a few minutes when it's sunny out. He needs to be tired form physical activity.
Skip his naps if you have to.
GOOD LUCK!!!!
