My 2 year old son does NOT sleep at night ... help please.?

Question

My 2 year old son does not sleep at night, when we put him to bed at about 9 oclock he sleeps for about 2 or 3 hours sometimes, then he will wake up jump out of his bed, jump on either me or my wife, or he will leave the room which scares me because on night he might do something he's not supposed to. What do I do?

Answer 1

Leave his door open, put up a safety gate. Explain to him if he needs to get out of bed he has a few (quiet) toys or a book and a soft light, then he goes back to bed. It's the first step towards self-soothing which is the key to a full night's sleep.

Answer 2

First off install a swing gate in his doorway that has a locking bar that is hard for young kids to open. That way if he gets up at night he has no where to go and will be safe. From there you need to just wear him out before bed, set up a bed time routine and if he wakes up at night put him back to bed right away and do not reward him for his behavior by letting him sleep with you! It may take some time, but should work out nicely.

Answer 3

It might sound funny, but he's probably not getting enough exercise. Kids are so full of energy that they need to burn off all the excess so they can sleep at night. Play time at the park, or in the backyard, followed by dinner and a nice bath should put him out for the night. To prevent him from leaving his room, I would put in a half door. That way you can leave the top half of the door open and the bottom half locked so if he does wake up, he can play with his toys or whatever and you can still hear him if he cries.

Answer 4

Wear him out more during the day. If he's taking naps (some parents use naps just to get a break) reduce them. No caffeine or sugar or fluids right before bed. Dont put him to bed until he's ready, (some parents think kids shouldn't be up late, but up late is better that up in the middle of the night unsupervised) Enjoy spending time with him at night to make up for time spent away from him during the day at work.

Answer 5

Firstly, a nap for an hour or 2 mid afternoon will actually help a toddler sleep better at night. Just make sure they're not sleeping too late. When he comes into your bed, you need to pick him up and take him straight back to his own bed. Don't make a big deal of it. The more attention he gets, the harder it will be to set a routine. Letting him stay with you gives him no incentive to sleep properly in his own bed.
If you need to close his bedroom door, install a baby monitor so you can hear him if he needs you.
My son wouldn't sleep in his own bed for months. I had him sleeping through the night in his own bed in 3 nights!

Answer 6

I would make sure there is a gate up so he cannot go to far, make sure you have secured all areas that he can get hurt, light sockets, closets, anything near or around the bedstands that he could possibly get hurt on. I don't know if this will work for you or not but I made sure my kids started out in their own bed. I didn't want them getting up in the middle of the night and feel they needed to stay in their beds and cry so I put up a gate that blocked off everything but their room and mine. If they got up I allowed them to come in my room and cuddle for a while. sometimes they stayed there all night other times I would put them back into their room after the situation was taken care of and let them know they could come get me if they needed me. As they got older it became less frequent until it stopped all together and they felt comfortable knowing they could always get to me. It worked well for me. Hope it helps some.

Answer 7

if your son takes a nap later in the day put an end to that, don't allow him to have a snack after 7pm, maybe he needs to be more active during the day,there are alot of things you can try. but about him getting out of bed and maybe doing something he should not do. there are alarms out there that can be put on a door.when the door is closed set the alarm and when the connection is broken when the door has been opened the alarm will go off, alerting you that he is out of bed and out of his room. but when he does get up don't allow him to start playing make him go back to bed.

Answer 8

Locking him in his room sounds so extreme to me. What I would do is set up a routine. Drink milk, brush teeth, read bedtime story that kind of thing. Tell him that he needs to sleep in his room tonight and do it every night you put him to bed. If he wakes up, tell him the same thing and just walk him back to his room. It's going to take a while for him to learn that it's NOT acceptable for him to sleep with you, but he will learn eventually.

Answer 9

Move him back to the crib or playpen, he is not yet ready for a regular bed. You need to keep him "penned" until he learns to remain in his own bed. If he has previously slept in your bed you are going to have a bit of trouble making the change so the "pen" method will be very helpful You will not have to do it for long but you will have to be consitant in making him remain in his bed at night. You will loose some sleep because you should return him to his bed the moment he "jumps"out of it. Be firm, continue to explain what is expected emphasising the fact that "big boys" sleep in their own beds.
Get a nightlight, at age 2 many children develope a fear of the dark or begin to have nightmares or night terrors that make them fear sleep or sleeping alone. If they are used to sleeping in your bed that is one of the hardest habits to break but if you reman firm and keep at it you will win out in the end.

Answer 10

I got a 2 year old myself. Yes he does still sleep with us. I suggest shorter naps during the day. No sugars before bed time. and have what ever he needs next to him such as a cup of water and what not to keep him in his room.