Sleeping Problems - Hayward,CA

hi
have you tried dimming ALL the lights around the house (including the t.v.) about an hour before bedtime? this will give him a chance to internally relax and begin producing seratonin which in turn, will help him sleep. Often, some people try and put their kids (let alone themselves) to bed without first giving their bodies/minds a moment to truly unwind. with all the lights on and the noise IF any, it's just too much stimuli. Also, maybe a warm bath and then dimming the lights. give it a try. it might work.

I am going to sound tough. Establish a routine and stick to it every night and you have to be firm. Brush teeth, read a book, go potty and then get in bed. If he gets up and comes out, do not talk to him or make eye contact. Put him back to bed and leave. Or you can tell him that if he gets up again, he will lose (fill in the blank). Let him cry it out if he wants to.

He is procrastinating and he is manipulating you. Be the firm parents. He can only get away with what you allow him to. Do not start something you do not want to continue like driving him in the car. He is 2 years old and he is playing you.

Good luck.

What if you let him fall asleep with your daughter?? Then you could move him to his own bed after he's asleep.
I have a 2 and 8 year old. They sleep together when there is a lot of excitement and its hard to fall asleep or if we are somewhere new. My 2 year old has a hard time falling asleep when she's had a nap too. Your son may be ready to give up naps. I've also found that I can't be strict about bedtime with my kids when they are toddlers. (The 8 year old is easier of course; once he started school and had a routine his sleep pattern followed) but when he was a toddler it was the same. I can struggle to get her to bed on a schedule or I can wait till she is tired (if she skips the nap then thats a more reasonable time) and then she fall asleep so much easier.
Him asking to use the potty is a way to get out of bed (my 8 year old always needs a quesadilla right at bedtime too - he knows it will prolong his bedtime) I anticipate it and make the snack before bedtime now.

We had the same problem once our daughter went to a toddler bed before she was 2. We just stuck to our routine and it got better. We added new bedtime books about sleeping and sing goodnight songs. I had to tell her everyone was sleeping, we have an 11 month old too, and if she wasn't sleepy she had to still stay in bed and have quiet time. She would sing to her dolls or look at a book buy eventually went to sleep. Just let him know you mean business. I will go in onceto make sure everything is ok but then tell her I wasn't coming in again and would let her yell for a little. Maybe adjust the nap time so heis really tired . Good luck, I know it is toigh but it will get better.

Does he fall asleep in a moving car? As a baby did he fall asleep in a swing? For my kids, motion always relaxed them enough to fall asleep. Sounds strange, but my kids liked to be spun on a chair before falling asleep. Be careful, though -- if you see their eyes spinning (like a dizzy cartoon character) its too much for them. . .

This may seem harsh but our 2 year old can outlast anythign and we have finally found that the only way to get her to sleep at a reasonable hour is to put her in her bed and walk out of the room and shut the door behind us and no going back until morning (unless it's obvious she is sick). We have one of the door knob covers that she cannot open (but her 6 year old sister who shares the room with her can). We give her a cup of pediasure (docotr's orders) a cup of water and all her pals and shut the door. The first couple nights she stood at the door and screamed for over an hour but after 3 nights she realized sleeping on the floor wasn't fun and now she goes to sleep in her bed and rarely yells at the door. She is also much more pleasant suring the day since she is getting good sleep at night. She is the 4th out of 5 and the only one we have had to leave alone but she just would not go to sleep otherwise. I meant to write earlier but I will add now that you could put a potty chair in his room at night so that you are not worried about him truly needing to use the bathroom.