My toddler sleeps on the floor?

Question

My 20 month old recently started climbling out of his crib, so I took the rail off. I was putting the baby gate in front of his door to keep him in his room at night (we have stairs), but he began climbing over that as well. My only option was to lock him in his room (his room is baby-proof).

Every night when I put him to bed, we have a routine. He stays in bed as long as I am in the room, but once I leave, he gets out and cries (briefly) at the door. Then he falls asleep in front of the door and that's where he sleeps ALL NIGHT--no blanket, no pillow.

Moving him into his bed once he is asleep is not an option because I would awaken him by trying to open the door, and I would do nothing but disturb his sleep, as I'm sure he'd lay back down in front of the door.

Any thoughts on how to keep him tucked in his bed for sleeping? I feel terribly guilty allowing him to sleep on the cold, scratchy floor
:(

to littleluv--no, I'm not a "completer moron" like yourself. I have a toddler bed. He CAN use the stairs. I have taken the fire issue into consideration and I feel he is safer in his room than wandering around my housse unattended...get a grip

I turned his door knob around so the lock is facing out. I had to do that because he has also mastered locks!!

I think I am having more issues with this than him...he cries for maybe 2 minutes at the most, honestly. It's not like he's wailing at the door all night, thank goodness!

Answer 1

Wow! Some of these people crack me up! This question is hilarious to me, because I have four young sons, and I went through this with all of them. My 18 month old will be doing it soon, I'm sure. We went from cribs to toddler beds, to twin beds with rails, to baby gats, to baby gates wiped down with baby oil, to two baby gates atop each other, to shutting the door, then locking the door, to almost giving up. We now, lock the door with a hook/eye lock, and he usually falls asleep before we do, so we unlock the door. Even when he doesnt fall asleep first, we know that he is safe in his child proof room. My aunt purchased a net that zips over her child's crib, but I thought that was weird. I think that whatever works, and keeps him safe, is what ever you should do. In order to be a good parent, you have to get a little sleep:)

mamaofthesweetest4


p.s. Hey- turning the door knob around was a great idea! I cant believe after all thee kids, we have yet to think of that one!

Answer 2

Move the bed closer to the door to remind her that she should be in it. Tell her 2-3 times to get in her big girl bed and put her in it. If she refuses then don't ask or tell just continue to put her in it 10-12 times if need be during the night. If this goes on too long then maybe you need to wonder if her bed is uncomfortable for her and maybe try another mattress or something. But I am with you on one thing, at least she is getting sleep, but after trying other things use the floor as a totally last resort and maybe make her a pallet of get her a sleeping bag for the floor, but I would do anything possible to keep from doing that though. I am 26 and still prefer to sleep on the floor sometimes, so I understand the kid lol

Answer 3

This is a pretty common problem. The reason he does this is because he has separation issues. He doesn't yet really know how to put himself to sleep unless you're there. Adults wake up during the night and have different ways of getting back to sleep, like reading, counting, or just finding a different position. But imagine a 2 year olds horror when he wakes up, wants to go back to sleep, but you're not there. So consequently he just doesn't want to sleep at all.

My son is 23 months and we're going through the same thing.We don't want to put him in our room because that would fuel his dependence, and that goes against our parenting style. I don't think there's anything wrong with letting a child sleep in your room or bed, it's just not what we wanted.

We tried a few different things, but I couldn't stand just letting him cry in his room or fighting with him for an hour. We eventually got him one of those kids couches that fold out into a padded sleeping bag. He loves it so much more than his crib or bed, and there's no chance of him falling out. We put it in a place in his room where he could look out the door and see that I was sitting there, reading. Eventually, I eased myself away from the door little by little, and now he doesn't need me to stand there. We were even able to move his bed to where he doesn't see anything outside of his room, and he's ok with that now.

You need to establish a routine that does not take place in his room. For example, we read to our son for about 15 minutes in the living room, without TV or music on, until he starts to really get sleepy. Before he actually goes to sleep, we finish the book and I tell him it's time to lay down in his room. I make sure he has a few comfort things, like a sippy cup with water, a binky, and his choice of stuffed animal. i put the blankets on him, tell him I love him, say "night-night," and walk away. It also seems to help if I leave the hall light on.

Establish your routine over time, maybe a week or two, and be consistent. You'll find what works for you and your son. if something is too difficult for either of you, or just not working, then see what else might work. Think about why your son is upset. Remember that bedtime should not be an emotionallly upsetting time, it should be a time of rest for both of you. Find a way to accomplish bedtime with little or no tears, and you'll both be happier.

Answer 4

I have twin daughters and one of them would always climb out of her bed and be sleeping on the floor the next morning. She never climbed over the gate, so I don't know what to tell you about that. What I did though was to put a mattress on the floor. They both slept on it just fine. They couldn't hurt themselves if they fell off. If I were you, I would lock the door to his room and I would put a mattress on the floor by the door...kind of over to the side. Maybe he'd start sleeping there.

As far as locking the door, you could lock it with that hook lock (like for screen doors) and that way there wouldn't be an issue of you getting to him if there was a fire.

Answer 5

my 2 y/o daughter does the same thing. Well she had a toddler bed and I always found her sleeping on the floor so I figured she either falls out or its to small for her. So we got her a twin bed, and now she is fine, once in awhile I will find her by the door. she started sleeping in her toddler bed at about 14 months and did great in it up until about a month ago, and then we got the new bed. so maybe try getting him a new big boy bed and big boy sheets. I just keep my daughters door shut so she cant roam around the house. good luck

Answer 6

Noah used to do that, but he would CRY and CRY so we moved his toddler bed into our room. After about 6 months, he was fine and we moved him back to his bed. Before we did that though, he too would end up sleeping on the floor. It is so sad, isn't it?

I know you said you didn't want to do this, but why don't you move him back to his bed? Once they are in a deep sleep, they are usually out. We used to do that with our son. And we would tell him if he woke up, "honey we don't sleep on the floor!" If he moves again, at least you tried.

Or leave some blankets and pillows on the floor for him.

Answer 7

Well, you don't want to lock him in his room. As far as safety is concerned, I have 2 suggestions: get a taller gate (I had one that was 3 feet high and impossible to climb) and put it at the head of the stairs instead of at his door. Also, get a baby monitor for his room, so you can hear him if he gets up in the middle of the night. If he gets out of bed before you go to bed, put him back in bed, and keep doing that till he gets tired of fighting about it. If he gets up in the middle of the night, you'll hear him and can put him back to bed. Eventually, he'll get it and sleep the night in his comfy bed. Good luck--

Answer 8

I used to work with guy that had a 2 year old daughter that would not sleep in her bed unless he was in it.. At the time we worked 3rd shift... He would go home and have to find her in the morning and put her in the bed.. He said sometimes she would be on the couch but that he sometimes found her under the kitchen table or in his bedroom floor.. I think that it is normal.. mine did it at that age for a while.. but we could get in to put her in her bed.. I finally let my daughter fall asleep in a playpen and then moved her to the bed..

Answer 9

are you a completer moron? you do not by anymeans ever lock a child in its room. what if there was to be a fire and you could not get to him. do you know how long it would take the firefighter to unlock that door just to get to him? get the kid a toddler bed. keep the door open and teach him how to use the stairs.

Answer 10

lett him sleep in your room