My almost 13 month old is a relatively good night sleeper. We go through our bedtime routine (bath, books, bottle, snuggles) and then put him awake in his crib. He falls asleep alone and stays asleep through the night 90% of the time. This works great.
Naps are different story. He will not fall asleep unless he is snuggled up next to me or my husband. I give him a bottle (until last month he was breastfed) and 30% of the time he will fall asleep lying next to me. (Once he is asleep I move him to his bed). The other 70% of the time he flips over and wants to crawl around. At this point I move him to his crib where he plays for a bit and then screams and wails at the edge of his crib. Typically after 10-15 minutes of this I go back in and pick him up and then he falls asleep snuggled next to me.
I desperately want to be break his dependency on his parents and want to be able to put him in his crib awake and have him fall asleep on his own. We’ve tried sitting with him in the room, patting his tummy, etc. We've tried the "cry it out" method. We’ve tried Ferber. None of these methods have worked. The only way that he goes down to sleep for naps without being snuggled next to one of his parents is a ride in the car....which is not an option.
Any suggestions of other things to try?
Thanks,
P.S. His older brother required some sleep training to go down for the night, so this is not new territory for us. (The Ferber method is what worked for him).
K.,
Have you tried putting him in his crib drowsy? That's what we had to do with my daughter. She is one that HAS to know what's going on at all times and would not sleep if she was fully awake and put in bed, but she'd wake up screaming if she woke up somewhere different than where she fell asleep.
Good luck,
Melissa
I feel your pain! I read a great book called "The No-Cry Sleep Solution for Toddlers and Preschoolers" by Elizabeth Pantley. She has some great practical solutions to all kinds of sleep problems. It has been working for our little guy, also one, who has not ever been a great sleeper.
Good Luck!
I am in sorta the same boat, with a 14 month old. So, I feel your pain. I am also a friend of a gal who has a 5 year old who is a cancer survivor. Your work is cut out for you! Cheers to you for being such a great mama! I have resorted to taking walks with my daughter and she falls asleep most of the time in the stroller. I want to hear the other folks' advice. :) Keep up the good work!
My son is exactly the same way so nap time is nap time for mommy too. it does make things harder because i cant get the house chores done while hes napping but i like the snuggle time. im sure they will grow out of it but i hope you find something that works if not just enjoy the snuggle time you have they grow out of it pretty fast.
Have you thought about the possibility that light in the room might be a problem? I was wondering what the difference is between naptime and bedtime. A couple of my kids are VERY sensitive to light. My daughter's room has a room darkening blind over the window, PLUS black out drapes. Even then, if the crack in the middle of the drapes comes barely open, she will wake up too early. They were never able to take naps at other places where we couldn't control the light. In addition, we use sound machines to block noise. Maybe he's just more sensitive to these environmental factors than his brother. Another thought might be that you are not winding down enough at naptime. It sounds like you have a long routine to prepare him for bed at night. Maybe make him do a half-hour of quiet time before nap, where he has to only sit on the couch and look at books, with no TV, no running around. Perhaps put on some soft music. I also have had great success with the Ferber method, so you might have to try going longer than the 10-15 mins. If you are willing to get him out of the crib that soon, he is willing to stick it out until you do. I know it's very difficult to have a child that won't nap without you--I've been there with one of mine who was constantly sick. But hang in there---this too shall pass! Good luck!
