My 20 month old toddler won't sleep through the night?

I'm a single mum, and as you can imagine it's all go. So when it comes to night time i'm pretty exhausted. But i can't remember the last time i had a decent nights kip. My little man will not sleep through, he'll go to bed between 7 and 7.30pm and be awake at 10, i'll then take him back through to his bed where he'll moan about it for a few mins then go back off, this will repeat throughout the night. Some nights he'll be crafty and quiet and i'd wake up with him snoozing beside me. Any tips on how to resolve this? Thanks guys. xx

Answer:
Heres some ideas..

1. That you put him down for a nap at the same time every day. Even if he does not actually sleep, at least have him go down for his nap. And the nap should be in his own bed.
2. Establish a night-time bedtime and stick to it. Go through the same pre-sleep routine every night. This routine can include a bath, brushing his teeth, getting into his pajamas and being read a story. Again this routine should take place in the same way every night and at the same time. The reading and saying goodnight should take place in his own room and bed.
3. When he cries, you allow him to cry. When he gets up, then you return him to his bed without saying anything to him until he is back in bed and then you can go through a mini bedtime routine (tucking him in and kissing him goodnight and leaving). Be prepared the first few nights to do this as many times as it requires. Since you're not getting sleep anyway, you won't be out much. But it will show him that he does not get to sleep in your bed and he must eventually go to sleep in his own bed.
4. Give him lots of praise and attention during the day for having gone to sleep in his own bed (I assume he will eventually do this).

Good Luck
You just have to keep putting him straight back in bed. Don't talk to him, don't give him hugs and kisses, don't do anything except pick him up and lay him down again.

He's a persistant little boy and that means you have to be persistant too. If you have to put him back in his bed 20 times then do it. If you aren't persistant, then there's no telling how long this will go on.
7-730 is pretty early. I would try 8-830. I have a 16 month old and if I put her to be between 8-830 she sleeps all throught night but any earlier and she is up too. Granted she cant come in our bed as she is still in a crib but then we have to go in there and clam her down again.
Maybe some nice warm milk and 15-30 minutes of quiet time, reading or looking at pictures.
Good luck.
try making baby watch Jonathan Ross. that would probably do the trick. it works for me everytime!
ok from one single mum to another. you need
1) a stairgate
2) earplugs
I am not a mean mum i have 2 gorgeous little boys- 33mnths and 3 months- this is obviously in ref to the older one
If he is warm, clean and has been fed then you close that stairgate say goodnight and put the earplugs in. Kids have you sussed from an early age if they know they can get away with something they will!!
he might be getting too much sleep during the day and dosent need it try keeping him awake or just letting him have half the time then he will be too tired to get up during the night
Putting him to bed at 7-7.30pm sounds about right.
We found that the secret to a good night's sleep is to make sure that the afternoon sleep doesn't go past 3.30pm(4pm at very latest). This means by 7 he'll be knackered and is ready for a good sleep. Hope this helps; were on baby #2 now and the lessons learnt with our first is making it so much easier this time around.
Hi.
Motzart, play it on rpt all night long.
1.give him some warm milk before bed
2.try putting him to sleep a little late say 8:30 kinds if that suits you
3.make the room dark
4.talk about all good things in life and god has given us before bed
5.tell him everything in the world goes to sleep at 8:30 stars,moon,all his toys,mom n everybody else
6,play some nice lullabies after you've given him a nice warm bath
i'm sure this will work IF NOT then do not lift him up after you put him in bed nomatte how much he cries just let him cry out,he'll get exhausted and go to sleep on his own. it really works i've tried that
dont let him sleep much during the day again taking him to bed at 7 its to early.feed him around 8 and bath him he will sleep for about 8-9 hours good luck
You said it Mommy. You are his woman! His and his alone. He is always going to have a crush on you but it is real strong when little boys are young. I am usually the first to say, don't let them sleep in your bed with you. You said you are a single Mom. So that he doesn't feel all alone, you maybe should give in once in awhile so that he knows he is your main squeeze. And, if you can, try to wear him out by running at the park or long walks and try putting him to bed later. Make sure he has a nice warm bath after dinner, read to him, cup of warm milk. See how that works. I think he is so used to it being just you and him, he doesn't want to be away from you ever, nevertheless, waking up all alone at night. He is at the age of separation anxiety. If he cannot see you, to him, you are gone. So, he gets up to check on you to make sure you are still around. Then he sees it as convenient to just crawl in with you. Oh, the love of a Mother's little boy. If you really need to sleep Mommy? I say cuddle up with him. He will probably sleep all night and so will you. You can read all of those parenting books and all, but sometimes, our littles ones just cannot control their undying love for us, so enjoy and cuddle up! LOL! One day, they probably won't want to be seen with us and then we will long for the days when they would cuddle with us. :)
my son is 22 months and he did sleep through until a few weeks ago when he decided he didn't want to anymore!!
he now wakes at 12, 4:30, and 6am, his dad works nights and i also wake up to my son sleeping in my bed with me!!
i have started taking him back to bed and not talking to him and it seems to be working as when i put him down last night he only woke up once! I've only been doing this for about a week and he did cry a little at first but now he runs back to bed before I'm even out of my bed!! it could be that your son is thirsty, i would keep a drink in your bedroom so when he wakes up you can try him with a drink and then send him back to bed! my son goes to bed between 8 and 8:30 and will sleep until 7:30-8am so try sending you son to bed a little later after a long bath with Johnson's bedtime bubble bath and a story, i found that if my son stayed upstairs after his bath and i took his bedtime bottle up for him to drink while listening to his story then he fell asleep quicker because he isn't thinking about whats going on downstairs!!

i hope I've helped! at least you know someone else is int the same position as you!!
my 26 month old toddler still gets up through the night at varying times, sometimes I put her back to bed if I've got the energy if not I generally put her in with me and my other half. I did the same with my 5 year old until she was about 3. When she was attending pre-school 5 days a week she was more worn out and slept though really well.
If you watch Super nanny Jo Frost she recommends putting them back to bed every time they get out, you have to stay outside their room all night long for a few nights until they just stay there.
It depends on you being on your own how much you can cope with. If you are on your own with just him could you catch up on some sleep during the day? Have you got family who can help you out at all and give you a break?
Good luck and happy sleeping.
get him a special duvet cover and tell him he is a big boy. When he wakes up put him straight back in his bed, do not give in. Good luck

The answers post by the user, for information only, FeelBaby.com does not guarantee the right.

  • I am looking for some cool t-shirt ideas for preschoolers to do at their Valentine Party...any ideas??
  • It's hard to potty train my son when both my husband and I work full time jobs.?
  • Can a 13 month old..?
  • Do you remember at what age your kids went through seperation anxiety and how long it lasted?
  • What are some childrens songs that 4-5 year olds will know?
  • What's for Dinner?
  • My 3 year old doesn't use the back of his throat to speak?
  • 13 month old with only 2 teeth?
  • My kids don't like their grandpa (my dad). What should I do?
  • how do i find someone to make a old blanket for me?