Help with Getting a 1 Year Old to Sleep Thru the Night

First of all the place you have him take a nap should be different then the place he goes to bed. This way he can begin to know the difference between napping and sleeping. Also maybe try to get him into a nightly routine, they say this helps the baby get ready for bed and should help them sleep throughout the night. Just before bed give him a bath, then massage him with lotion, and then bring him into bed and either red to him or put quiet lullabys on. Try this for a little while to see if anything changes.

you might have already tried this out... but we have tried the cry out method and it worked wonders ... it takes a few days ...the older the kid the longer it takes...I also read the dr. ferbers book( concord's main library has it) and it was very helpful.

Hi L.,
I don't know if this will help at all, or you might do it already....do you bathe him at night before bed? I bathe my baby before bedtime and use the soothing chamomile baby wash. It's worth a shot. Hang in there. My first son had about the same sleep pattern as your grandson, I was blessed with a great sleeper the second time around. Good luck to you all:)

Hi L.,

I put a similar post out about 2 weeks ago, and got great advice. I realized that my daughter, who turned 1 at the end of August, was not sleeping enough during the day, AND confused because we kept taking her in our bed when she would cry in the middle of the night...or anytime for that matter. When she was with us, she was sideways, upside down and all around and it was tough on all of us, although I must admit that snuggling with her in the morning while she was sleepy was wonderful. Still, we didn't want her in bed with us forever, so we stopped bringing her in two weeks ago and she's been sleeping in her own crib ever since, usually from 7:30-8PM to 6:30-7:30AM now. It was NOT easy, but for her own sake - and our sanity - she had to learn how to soothe herself and she has done just that. The first night she cried for a full hour when I put her to bed, but I went in after 5 minutes, kissed her, laid her back down and said it's nightnight and even though she popped back up, I left. Not much talking and I was in and out. After 10 minutes, same thing, then 15 minutes, and every 20 thereafter until she was sleeping. She woke up at 4 in the morning and I did the same thing, and it only took 15 minutes, and again at 5am for 10 minutes. Of course 15 minutes seems like an ETERNITY, especially in the middle of the night, but you have to tell yourself that he's in the safest place he can be, and that it's for all of your benefits that he learn to sleep on his own. Luckily I was on vacation, but it only took that night, and she learned quickly to get back to sleep and now she plays in her crib til she falls asleep. It's WONDERFUL! My only regret is that I didn't do it sooner. Our current schedule is this: she wakes about 6:30am: plays, eats, and then has a small bottle at 9:30: sleeps til 12. Plays, eats and takes a short nap (whenever I see her rub her eyes) from 3-4 or 4-5, and then she's in bed at 7:30-8. I brush her teeth, read her a story, give her another small bottle (weaning), give her a pacifier and she cries for a second, but has stopped before I have left the room. It's amazing! I'm sure her schedule will continue to change, especially since she starts day care twice a week next week, but I know that she was WAY overtired, which makes it much harder to go to bed at night, or anytime for that matter. Stick with it, I promise you it won't be more than a few days, babies are smart and will learn quickly! GOOD LUCK!

It sounds like he needs to learn how to soothe himself to sleep if he needs to be with others to sleep. Most babies and children move a lot when they sleep and will keep adults awake if they sleep with them (we've experienced that big time at our house, LOL!!). My daughter didn't nap either, but once bedtime came at night, she was ready. Even then though, her bedtime was around 8 p.m.(and she'd get up around 7-8 in the morning) since she wasn't tired until then. She just didn't need a lot of sleep as a baby. If we put her down when she was nice and tired, she'd sleep through the night...if we put her down too early, she'd be up at 11pm ready to party! This was also a child that rarely slept in the car, never slept in her stroller and the only time she would really nap was on the couch in the living room with me sitting next to her. She was soooo nosy and wanted to see and do so much, she didn't want to waste time sleeping, I guess...LOL!!

We had room darkening shades, and she had one of those pretend aquariums attached to her crib that had a nice low light, sounds (white noise/ocean sounds) and fish swimming around. It was a nice distraction for her as she would stay awake if she could hear us or the TV. We read to her in this nice cozy, darkened room, sang a little, then it was bed time. Once in the crib, she'd chatter to herself for a while, there might be some crying, but we didn't go in. The thing that we noticed is that she liked to sleep on soft things (like the couch), and once she was older, we put in a squishy quilt on her hard crib mattress and she was out light a light in a few minutes. I really think crib mattresses are HARD (I understand why they need to be, but once the baby is old enough to walk, I don't see anything wrong with softening things a bit). Its more safer and comfortable for all than sleeping in an adult bed, I think. Anyway, I would try really establishing a stronger bedtime routine that never changes, maybe try allowing him more time to digest a little before bed, he might be like my daughter and get energized after feeding then crash later. Let him cry a bit (if its too long, you might have to go in and check, but going in too much will have you in there forever),have some soft-crib books in there for him to look at, and hope for the best. He's at a good age to retrain his sleep habits...once in toddler hood, it gets more tricky. Good Luck!!

My daughter was very much like that when trying to sleep. She is now 2 1/2 years old and sleeps like a charm through the night. I bought the book "The Sleep Easy Solution" from Borders Books and it was a lifesaver. Within a week of reading the book, se was sleeping through the night soundly.

Good luck!

My son was also a horrible sleeper, especially when he was teething and breastfeeding for up to 10 and half months. At 10 and half months we finally put him in the crib to sleep. It was hard for the first week or so and then one night I had had it and decided to let him cry in the middle of the night without going to get him. He cried for only a couple of minutes and went back to sleep. After that it was much easier. He sleeps on his tummy and by the morning he is all switched around on his back. He is a restless sleeper but has finally learned how to put himself back to sleep. You don't mention if you let him cry at all during the night. Do you let him try to put himself back to sleep? I used to rub his back until he went to sleep, but this also stopped after a week or two. It seems that your grandson might not know how that he can put himself back to sleep. I am so thankful for the crib. If I try to sleep with him he is all over the place and can't get a good sleep. One night he got down from my bed and started to walk out of the room. I put him in the crib and he went right back to sleep. So there is hope, just a little "sleep training" might help. Don't always pick him up and put him in your bed. He has to know that his crib is his bed. Also, try putting down a comfortable baby quilt under him. The matress may be too hard, this helped my son. Good luck.

Hi L.,
My youngest son was the same way. Turned out it was a dairy allergy. It was upsetting his stomache making him very gassey and a terrible tummy ache that was keeping him from getting the sleep he needed. Allergies can present in alot of different ways you don't always get hives. Infact a dairy allergy is the leading cause of baby eczema which was how we found out my son had an allergy. His skin didn't break out until this past March. His skin flared up with eczema patches everywhere and nothing was helping to controle it so his pediatrican sent him to an allergist. A blood test later we had the cause and a much happier baby. He has been sleeping all night ever since except for when he's had an occassional tooth pop through his gums. Good luck with getting to the bottom of why he isn't sleeping well. If he's wanting to sleep on his belly and always had that urge it could be an underlying problem. My son always wanted to get in the fetal position on his belly because the dairy in formula was making him very very gassy.

Put him on his belly to sleep, he's old enough and it might just be enough!

That sounds very frustrating. What did his doctor say? Perhaps you should ask a different pediatrician for his or her advice. Would it help to feed him in the middle of the night? Is he active enough during the day? The more time my daughter spends outside, the more tired she seems to be. I think it is the frsh air. You could try being outdoors more. But maybe you have already tried that. I feel for you. Best of luck!

Every child is different and has different needs, I would say try to get him on some sort of schedule and try to stick to it. It's very important for them to have a routine. If he is happy on his belly than put him on his belly, the doctors only say that it is not safe when they are not able to lift there heads. Once they are mobile like Im sure he is, than you should be fine. Good luck with everything..

There is also a book called The Happiest Baby On The Block that helps with sleep issues..give it a look thru

Have you thought of food allergies? My youngest was always a good sleeper until I started him on solid food. It was only after several months of not sleeping through the night that I happened on an article about food allergies. I removed dairy from his diet and it was like a miracle. He started gaining weight and sleeping through the night.

My daughter was the same way and finally slept through the night at 11 months as well. We found the method of waiting to get her out of the crib overnight in progressive units (so the first time we waited 10 min. to go in and soothe her, then leave again and go back in after 15 more min., then 20 etc). The best thing we ever did was not get her out of the crib and "rescue" her. Just show him that he is not alone, rub his back while he's in the crib and then leave. You can try a bottle in the crib overnite too but some people don't like to start that habit. He may be hungry like my daughter was. Regardless, the more he can self soothe and get himself back to sleep on his own the better. He is used to getting in your bed now. It's not easy but your sleep is equally important....try shutting his door and yours as well so you don't hear him unless he's really loud and you hear the monitor. I know it sounds mean but he'll go back to sleep eventually!

Good luck!

HI, I heard of a child who has a rare disorder that doesn't allow him to sleep.here is the web site withthe story on it. Not sure if this will help.
http://www.baynews9.com/content/36/2008/5/8/346720.html?t...+

L.,

First I would say don't put cereal in the bottle. Secondly since he is 11 months, almost a year he can probably roll over. Try him on his stomach. If he doesn't like it he can roll over.

My daughter has the same MO for her naps but she sleeps at night. Do you have a consistant betime return? Bath, story time, cuddling, bottle then bed? My daughter sometimes wakes up 1/2 after putting her down put is able to get herself back to sleep without me going in at night. Unfortunately it's not the case during the day.

Good luck,
L. M

Hi L.,

My heart always goes out to the people who are struggling with this one because of my own experience when my son was a baby. I responded to this question once before, so rather than write another response, I've copied the responses I sent out previously. I hope it helps you...........

When my son was young, he didn't sleep through the night until he was 13 months old and then I discovered a book call "Solve Your Child's Sleep Problems" by Richard Ferber and it changed everything.

I used to nurse my son to sleep every night and then put him in his crib. I would NEVER let him cry so it was just a matter of time before he woke up and I'd have to start the process all over again. What I learned from Ferber is that I had taught my son to associate the breast with falling asleep. We all wake up several times a night at certain stages in our sleep cycles. We don't remember this in the morning if everything is in order. However, if we were to wake up and someone had taken our pillow or blankets away, somehow this message would get through and we'd slowly become more wide awake and begin to look for our blankets.

So when my son would wake up, instead of falling right back to sleep, he's notice the breast wasn't there and become wide awake and need the breast to get back to sleep. It's not only the breast that causes this problem, but anything else we leave in the crib, like pacifiers or water bottles. Ferber has a method to help your child fall asleep without an associated sleep aid. You must be willing to allow your child to cry (hopefully just a little). I didn't think I could do this but luckily my son only cried for the first 5 minutes and then fell asleep. Some have not been so lucky and I don't know what I would have done if it hadn't gone so easily.

Basically you put your child in the crib awake. Make them feel secure with hugs and kisses and goodnights and then leave the room. If your child cries you must wait it out beginning with 5 minutes. After 5 minutes, you return to comfort your child but you don't pick him or her up. Just provide reassurance and talk about going to sleep and then leave the room again. After this you extend the time you stay out of the room a little more each time. I don't remember the recommended increments.

My son screamed for the first 5 minutes while my husband and I sat outside looking at our watches so we could run back in. It was awful for me. After we went back in to comfort him we left the room again and he cried for 2 minutes and then it was quiet. We snuck back in and he was asleep with his arm around Curious George. As I said, we were lucky. After that I was able to put him down without nursing him to sleep and he finally began to take longer naps in the afternoon. I would suggest getting a copy of Ferbers book. He addresses many types of sleep problems and it was fascinating reading.

Hope this helps.

V. S, LICSW

I hear your pain. My daughter is 2 and half and is just sleeping through the night. We started a sticker chart and a reward system. your grandson might be a little young for that but you could try it. I started by talking to my daughter about it all day long and told her if she sleeps through the night she gets to put a sticker on that day. Then when she fills up a week she get a prize at the end of the week. the first week I had to go in every night and rock her back to sleep. The next week I told her she got a sticker if i did not have to come in her room. We have been doing this for a month and has worked great. The other things is doing the crying thing, which I could never really do. You have to be super consistent in what you do at night. Try to do a bed time routine and stick to the same thing every night. Does he go to bed ok? does he put him self to sleep, or are you rocking him to sleep? They say that if they put them selves to sleep they should be able to do it in the middle of the night too. I know how hard this is for you to go through. I hope this helps!