Sleep Training a Toddler??

Am I crazy to think this is even possible?

DD will be 2 in June. As an infant she was an excellent sleeper. I was able to lay her down in her crib and walk out of the room and she would drift off to sleep on her own for both naps and night time. She even slept through the night at 2.5 months up until she was 1 (with a few teething mishaps here and there).

Well now, thanks to a few vacations and DH and I making the mistake of bringing her into our bed in the middle of the night, going to sleep is not so easy. Basically, I have to rock her to sleep for both naps and bed time and then put her in her crib. Napping is fine, she sleeps 2.5-3 hours, but at night she wakes up in the middle of the night screaming.

I never minded rocking her bc it usually only took a few minutes and honestly, I loved that time with her. But now that she is getting older and bigger she takes longer to get comfortable in my lap and to fall asleep. Sometimes our bedtime routine can take up to an hour and by the time I have her down in her crib I'm too mellowed out to do anything else. Ideally, I'd like to get her to go to sleep on her own so that I can have a little more time at night for myself and to spend with DH.

Any advice?

Re: Sleep Training a Toddler??

Bump

Anyone? I'll take any advice I can get on sleep training a toddler. I'm going insane.

Re: Sleep Training a Toddler??

I would just start a new routine with her. Just do your bedtime thing, then explain that it is time for sleep, put her down and say good night and walk out the door. But I guess I'm a mean mommy bc I never go back in to DD's room.

I think that she will catch on pretty quickly and soon she will be going to sleep on her own.

Good luck!!!!

Re: Sleep Training a Toddler??

I am in the same boat,

my two year old (25 months) slept in our bed when he had coxsackie last summer and we successfully transistioned him into a big boy bed soon after, but he had so many ear infections pre-tubes and so we were so I began sleeping in his full size bed with him when he would scream for me in middle of the night.

I want to stop this habit, but he screams and cries, and pukes when I try to leave him alone in there... im just not sure what to do either

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I could have written this word for word... Would love some advice!

Re: Sleep Training a Toddler??

This was exactly us also my dd will be 2 in July....Last Friday I set up her toddler bed and made a huge deal about it, stressed the fact that she was a big girl just like her older cousin, it made her really excited and shes been in the bed ever since, she tells me now at night when shes tired and she'll pull me to her "big girl bed". I just keep stressing the big girl part and I think thats the only thing thats working for us, so if she has an older sibling, cousin or friend kept telling her shes a big girl just like them. Not really the best advice...but hope it helps.

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The only advice I have is letting her cry and sooth herself back to sleep. DD was a terrible sleeper since day 1, and one day I had enough, she was about 2.5 and would constantly wake in the night screaming or come running to our bed and she started the habit with my DS who was a rockstar sleeper. Well it took about 3 nights but she has been a great sleeper since! Goodluck, I know it sux, but its so much better for them to have a good nights sleep, as well as u!

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we had issues when DD climbed out of her crib and went into a regular bed at 16 months. It has taken three months and a lot of strong will but we can finally put her in her bed and leave and have her remain in the bed and not cry. I'm cringing though because I'm going away this weekend to my aunts house (she will be sleeping with me) and then home for a day and then away to stay in a hotel for three nights)

So this is what we did...I'd put her in her bed and stand fairly close to her bed with my back to her. She'd climb out, I'd put her back in without saying a word. This would go on and on, for up to an hour. As nights went by, I'd mover further and further away with my back to her. Then to the doorway, then to the floor outside her door. As you can see, this was a long drawn out process. Some nights I felt really in control and it didn't bother me. Other nights, I had a million other things to do and DS to tend to so I'd get frustrated but regardless I always stuck to to my guns. I didn't want all my previous work to go out the window. So, three months later, here we are, and Im praying we dont go back to square one after our two trips

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As hard as it is- you have to let them cry/scream it out.
We are going through this now.
DD used to be a great sleeper -and now all of a sudden she fights us tooth and nail on bedtime.
Screams bloody murder.
If it was up to her she'd stay awake until 10 pm or later!
At first we were giving in and bringing her back out to the couch or our bed but we realized we were just reinforcing a very bad habit.
We need our adult time at night and this habit of hers was really starting to cut into any alone time we had.
So we started telling her that she had to sleep in her crib- at 9 pm.
And she would scream her head off.
But after a few nights she realized we were not coming back in to get her out and she started falling asleep faster and faster.
We never had to do CIO as an infant- it stinks to have to do it as a toddler- because she screams worse than any infant could!
But it was a necessary evil for all of us!

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I recently had to let DS cry it out he was always a good night time sleeper and then he was sick for a little bit wake up and we took him into our bed and then he was waking up crying in the middle of the night for no reason. I knew he was getting spoiled. The first night was horrible. He cried for 2 hours. It was the hardest thing on me. I did it when my husband wasn't home because I knew he would cave in and go to him. I didn't do cio with checks cause that always upset him more in the past. He finally fell asleep standing up. The next night he cried for 15 minutes and again fell asleep standing up. Last night cried for about 2 minutes laid down and went to sleep. Ever since then I have my good sleeper back. It was rough and I cried with him that first night for the 2 hours but it worked. This was about a month or so ago when DS was 22 months.

Sleep Training a Toddler??

Oh god, I don't think I am strong enough to do CIO with him... Possibly I will just wait til kindergarten for him to sleep???

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Thanks for all the replies. Since I posted this, DD has been making it through the night again However, getting her to sleep is still a huge task. Last night it took over an hour to get her to bed and by the time she did, I was exhausted myself and barely had the energy to say goodnight to DH.

I've been toying with the idea of switching her to the toddler bed although I am hesitant to do so bc 1. I'm not totally convinced it will work and 2. Mentally and emotionally, I am not prepared to move her out of a crib.

On the plus side, she has been napping better too during the day.

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I am SO glad I just read this. I just went through over an hour of my kid SCREAMING it out (cry it out my ass). He finally went to sleep. This post reassures me I did the right thing.

This age is awful!!!!!!

Re: Sleep Training a Toddler??

You are NOT alone!
DD has been the worst sleeper from day one.
Last month I actually called a sleep coach for help.
When I first herd of them, I thought it was the most ridiculous thing & a waste of $ but when I was at the end of my rope, I was willing to try anything.
She gave me a huge discount because I was referred by a friend.
Anyway, her advice is really working.
She suggests a strict, consistent routine to make DC feel secure & realize you are in charge.
It's kinda like the ferber method where you go in every few minutes.
I never thought it would work but it did & I don't dread bedtime as much.
It does still take almost an hour so it's no quick thing but at least I don't rock her for an hour, put her in the crib & rock her another hour because the second I put her in she pops up screaming
FM me if you want to hear details on some things she told me.
Naptime is our next battle because I still drive DD around!