[Vent/ advice] Sleep regression at 24 months

[Calluna]

Anyone else going through or been through this?

DS has never been a great sleeper. Not terrible, but not that good either. He normally goes to bed at about 6:30pm and wakes at 4am, when he comes into our bed and generally resettles for a few more hours, not great but at least we get a bit more sleep and can function the next day. I've tried to put him to bed later but he still wakes at 4ish and is just extra tired.

When he was 12 months old it would take 3 hours to get him to sleep, then one day he just stopped. Had a 10 min feed and went to sleep.

The last few weeks we've had various issues, it's just one thing after another- waking in the middle of the night and wanting to play, waking and wriggling and not settling for hours, issues getting him to sleep at bedtime (which has been easy for months, what only took 10mins or so now takes an hour+ of wriggling, kicking, talking, crying).

Please tell me we can get back to nice booby snuggles and gentle cuddles before bed. I hate fighting with him and I feel so, so horrible when he finally is asleep because I have usually gotten so frustrated that I have somehow made him cry at least once. I should be more tolerant, he's only a baby still, he doesn't understand. But i can't help it, at the time I just snap. Then feel like such a s***ty mummy for being mean to him.

Please tell me I'm not alone and this is a SHORT phase!

P.S Sorry if this is jumbled. I'm all over the place ATM.

(And now we have the landlord's dad here chopping down the trees outside our front window with a chainsaw.... It's ok we didn't want any privacy anyway )

[CrazyLady]

You're not the only one. DD started this about a month ago and it's driving me batty. She'll have a 3 hour block of sleep and then wiggle/wake/jump around the bed/grizzle every 20-40 minutes until 5ish. I even took her to the dr to make sure she didn't have an ear infection or something of the like. We did have a few nights of growing pains combined with 2 year old molars busting through and had to administer pain stop (I hate administering ANY medication). Panadol just didn't cut it but she still stirred with the pains in her legs.

You're not alone and now DD only seems to have it every few nights rather than every night. I think it's passing. So much happens at 2 and I just remember that it won't last forever!

[berrme]

Similar story here too. I had put it down to DS2 being upset about the new baby as it coincided with that, but maybe it is just because he is 2. He is a pest to get to sleep and then wakes during the night. He only wants mummy to settle him when he does wake. It is frustrating and I often feel like a bad mum because he ends up in tears, but it would be worse if he was awake for another few hours (for him too, not just me and DH).
Thinking back DS1 was an absolute pain to get to bed at around this age. We used to lie with him in his bed to get him to sleep. Now he is a dream... read him some stories and then he climbs into his bed and goes to sleep, we don't hear from him again for nearly 12 hours. He hasn't been a problem for a long time, so rest assured it does get better, though it might take a while.

[Miss E]

Definately not alone hun.

We've always had the 4.30-5.30am start to the day, but over the last few weeks the 1am or 2am wake up is happening more and more frequently. And he just can't get back to sleep, we bring him in bed with us and wiggles and giggles and mucks around for at least a couple of hours. the other night I rolled over to see if ignoring him helped at all and he sat on top of me and started doing horsey rides!!!!

So I'm not much help... Our solution for the time being has been to buy a bigger bed... It comes next Tues and I can't wait. At least DH and I might have some room while we're being climbed over at 2am.

I just read Toddler Tactics by Pinky and found that great. I tend to think that there is so much neurological development going on at the moment that that is probably what is effecting sleep... As the brain makes new connections abd neural pathways, I guess they're thinking more and more iykwim? So I think, like us when we're stressed or worried, when they wake in the night their little minds start going a million miles an hour and they're unable to go back to sleep. At least that's todays theory... I'm sure I'll have a new one for you tomorrow LOL!

Hope it comes to an end for you soon

[Taurean]

We are going through a similar thing with DD right now but she's 21 (almost 22) months. My heat goes out to you

DD has always been a good sleeper but suddenly she's quite difficult to settle for the night and she's waking at least once a night and taking up to 2 hours to settle (we've even had longer stints ). I'm going slowly insane.

DD screams until I get her out of bed (she gags and almost vomits she's that upset) then she settles immediately (I feel like she's playing me) and then I have to wait until she's in a deep sleep before I put her back in the cot but she still wakes and screams but I manage to resettle her in the cot by patting her bum. This whole episode is taking 1-2 hours though with lots of tanties from DD when I keep trying to put her back to bed. I'm finding it really upsetting and very stressful.

I have no idea what's going on hon so I'm hoping someone might post some ideas in here for all of us

[Taurean]

the other night I rolled over to see if ignoring him helped at all and he sat on top of me and started doing horsey rides!!!!

PMSL! I tried the same thing but DD just leaned over me and tried to pull my eyelids open then she stuck her fingers up my nose and proudly announced they were 'nostrils'!

Maybe it is just their little minds working overtime. DD's speech has gone into overdrive lately so that could be it

[Yas]

babe. My DS went through this at various stages, and it is VERY frustrating. TBH some night's after trying to get him to sleep for HOURS id lose it and yell like a banshee at him Of course that helped alot (that was sarcasm lol)
All i can suggest, and i still do this with my DS, who has long grown out of that now (thank god) is to talk about what you did that day while your settling him in bed, and what your going to have for breakfast/do the next day when he wakes up. Have the same routine every night.
This is what we do every night
*clean teeth, wash face and put nappy on
*turn light off and night light on (he does both) and daddy gives him a kiss goodnight and leaves room
*I take him in and tell him what a good boy he was today and what we are going to do tomorrow, like bake a cake if he is a good boy and does his chores, mummy has to pay bills etc
*I give him a kiss and reassure him im leaving the door partially open (he has recently become scared of the dark ) and leave the room.

We seriously do that every night and it works. I hope i didn't sound patronising! Just trying to tell ya what worked for us Good luck babe, i hope he settles down soon, i know what its like to dread the evening because of the whole drama filled saga bedtime becomes!
Lots of love xxxx

[CrazyLady]

I just read Toddler Tactics by Pinky and found that great. I tend to think that there is so much neurological development going on at the moment that that is probably what is effecting sleep... As the brain makes new connections abd neural pathways, I guess they're thinking more and more iykwim? So I think, like us when we're stressed or worried, when they wake in the night their little minds start going a million miles an hour and they're unable to go back to sleep. At least that's todays theory... I'm sure I'll have a new one for you tomorrow LOL!

Hope it comes to an end for you soon

I just realised our's coincided with Pixie being a word sponge and putting 2/3/4 words together at a time too! She figured out there was a baby in my tummy too and that might be worrying her on top of it.

ETA: Yas, I have found DD's initial settling period is shorter if we don't forget a step in her routine, go over her day events and have a brief discussion about the following day's stuff to do

[berrme]

I think with my DS2 it is also about time for him to drop his daytime sleep. He hasn't had one for about a week and he has been much easier to get to sleep at night. The first couple of days he was horrible in the evening but he has been less ratty without the daytime sleep as time goes on as he is getting better sleep at night.

How are your day sleeps going? DS was being really painful about going down for those too.