1 1/2 year old son is still waking up in the middle of the night...
By tmariebell1
@tmariebell1 (4)
United States
April 5, 2012 10:32pm CST
I'm sure that this is something all new parents deal with when their babies are younger. It seems that the baby wants to sleep all day and keep us up all night! My son did that, but then he started sleeping well at around 10 months. Lately, he has been waking up SCREAMING at 2 and 3am! The routine is the same; he just won't stay asleep! We pat him back to sleep, but I want to get to the root of the problem.
Any suggestions? Is anyone else dealing with this?
4 responses
@olydove (1209)
• United States
6 Apr 12
How long has this been happening? The only thing I can think of is he's having night mares or maybe some sort of pain that's waking him up if he slept well before.
Does he have a little night light in his room? How about leaving on some soft music for him while he's sleeping?
My oldest boy didn't sleep through the night until he was 3 years old so I can truly sympathize and I did try everything suggested to me,.. he just wouldn't sleep.
@tmariebell1 (4)
• United States
6 Apr 12
It's been over the last 2 weeks. Last night, it got even worse. He woke up around 3 and literally screamed until 5:30am. I feel like I did when he was a few months old. I'm at my wits end! I thought it could be nightmares too. He hasn't had a night light in several months...maybe we could do the music again.
1 person likes this
@olydove (1209)
• United States
7 Apr 12
It sounds like it's probably night mares to me. I would for now put a night light in and play some soft music for at least 3 or 4 days,.. see if it relaxes him enough that he'll sleep. If all else fails call your pediatrician. Sometimes they can pint point the problem much faster than we can. :)
@olydove (1209)
• United States
7 Apr 12
I just found this good article. Some of the comments people posted on it are quite informing as well. If you've got some time I think it would be worth a look :)
http://www.babycenter.com/404_why-is-my-toddler-suddenly-waking-up-hysterical-at-night_1292621.bc
@ottona (141)
• China
6 Apr 12
LOL! Welcome to my life!
My son is almost 2 and has never, ever, slept through the night. In fact he has never, ever woken up less than twice, and often much more than that!
We do get through nights without screaming (screaming perhaps once a week), mostly he wakes up and just wants to talk, he'll chat away for as long as a few hours before dropping off again!
BUT..... things are getting better. We have make several changes - if he sleeps too long in the day, we wake him up, we increased the amount of exercise he gets, and increased the amount of calcium (I have no idea if this does anything, but all Chinese people seem to think it does!). The result - he still wakes up twice most nights, but only for a moment, drinks a mouthful of water and drops back to sleep. And sanity for my wife and me!
@olydove (1209)
• United States
7 Apr 12
tmariebell I think that might be the connection,.. shorter naps 3 weeks ago and just over two weeks he's been having the night episodes. I think you've got the right idea,.. I would try to put him to bed a little earlier or even nap a little earlier to balance his sleep amount back to where it was. :)
@tmariebell1 (4)
• United States
6 Apr 12
Wow. My son actually started taking shorter naps on his own about 3 weeks ago...I just don't know. I'll try to put him to bed earlier and see if that helps. Heck, I'll even try the water! Thanks!
@GemmaR (8517)
•
7 Apr 12
I think that a lot of people have to deal with things like that and it is just part of being a parent. I think that getting your child into a routine is very important because children respond to things like that. Making bedtime a regular time is helpful, and making sure that you behave the same way each time your child wakes up is important too. If they are waking for a nappy change then simply change the nappy and put your child back to bed. Make sure never to engage in proper conversation or play with your child as you need them to stay as sleepy as possible.
@myg2012 (28)
• Philippines
6 Apr 12
I have experienced that with my daughter. To avoid sleepless nights, I put her to sleep between 9 to 11 in the morning, and at 1 to 2 in the afternoon. When she didn't sleep on those hours, we're really going to have a sleepless night. I always do my best to keep her awake between 4 to 7 in the evening so that she will sleep continuously and will surely wake up at 7 in the morning with a good night sleep both for m daughter and me.
