How do I make my 5 yr old step daughter go to bed on time ?

Question

My daughter ( step ) is 5 yrs old and tries to stay up all night every night :( I have been raising her since she was 8 months old soo this is part my fault !! Anyways how do I stop it ?? i want her to have a 9 pm bedtime have tried this sevral times and it does not work !!! (shes up in her bed crying still and its almost 11 pm) what do I do ??? I need help

Omg I have tried the making her stay in the room and not sleep and that night she was still up when my hubby went to work at 6 am !

Answer 1

Make her get up at the same time every morning. Tell her she has to stay in her room and she can go to sleep if she wants but she's up at whatever time in the a.m. She'll learn to go to sleep!

Answer 2

Well, first of all, try not to let her in her room or on her bed before bedtime. That way when it's time for bed, her body knows that this means "I sleep here". Also, if she takes naps, you may just want to let her sleep with a blanket and pillow somewhere other then her room. You should also, about an hour before bedtime, make sure she's calm. Let her know that it's time to settle down, maybe give her some warm milk? When you put her to bed, make sure all lights [except night lights] and sounds are off. Try to sit in there with her until she falls asleep. Just say "You don't have to sleep, but I want you in bed, okay? Now lay down" and if she resists just say "I'm not making you go to sleep, I just want you to lay down- it's late" or maybe offer her something for the next day if she sleeps now. Like a cookie or extra TV time.

Answer 3

I know its hard to listen to a child scream like she's being hurt but your gonna have to deal with this for about a week first start with a warm bath then a warm glass of milk and her favorite bedtime story in her bed, when the story is over say your good nights and shut the light out and close the door DO NOT GO IN DO NOT RESPOND TO THE CRYING whatever you do, I myself had the same problem, if she leaves her room put her back in her bed and say good night again no stries no drink just bed be firm and hold your ground you will do just fine

Answer 4

wake up should be earlier than normal.. then at bed time you have to stick to the same time... whether or not she sleeps when its that time or not..
no naps if at all possible.. that is what had to do .. if i let my children who are 11 /8/ and 4 sleep during the day ' bedtime was a disaster... so if she is allowed to take naps at school try to see if she can be exculded in that .. talk to the teacher and tell what is happening at home and what it is you are trying to do .. and most will understand and try to work with you there... as for spanking that doesnt always work .. all it does is make more crying and adds to the stress of an already tired five yr old.. and adds to your stress level as well..
or you can try to calm her down way before bed time like and hour or so more before she is supposeto go to bed..
make it a routine of some sorts that she knows its time to settle down for the night .i.e. getting her bed ready to be slept in .. reading... coloring in her bed ..and so on .... all in all no matter what route you take.. its going to take a little time from any where to week or more.. but you have been dealing with this so far .. soo go the extra mile and try . try try ... eventually she will get it .. but stick to your guns about what the time is.. no matter what ..
naturally she will try to get out of it .. she is 5 after all.. soo just stick it out ...
best of luck with this..

Answer 5

well I have raised 4 children... and the last one is my grandson (3 years old) we went through the same thing. Put the child in bed and do the few ritual things she wants like read a book sing a song say a prayer etc. cover her up and say good night. When she cries DO NOT GO INTO THE ROOM and DO NOT TALK TO HER. She'll wind down in about a week I promise and you will be alot happier. DON'T GIVE IN!!!

Answer 6

okay; it's school hols - I would still do the make her stay in her room whether or not she sleeps. You can't actually force a child to sleep - just set up the environment to be suitable for sleeping. Trust me - she wont stay awake all night every night - she'll soon figure it out.

My advice is to start the routine earlier. My 6 year old went through this at about 4 - we'd put him to bed at 8:30, and he'd be up a dozen times before 10:30 - by which stage we'd be dragging ourselves off to bed with no adults only time - only to find him popping his head into our room half an hour later. Now we start the winding down for bed at 6:30 (though this is easier in winter, when it's actually dark by then) We make sure he's bathed and fed before then, then at 6:30 we sit down in the lounge with a book, read a story, then take him to the bathroom where he brushes his teeth, goes to the toilet, washes face and hands, has a drink (and anything else he can think of to delay bed time) By 7 - 7:15 he's in bed. He gets until 7:30 with the lights on and a book - so if he delays too long, he gets no reading time - and he has a clock next to his bed that has texta marks at 7:30 - so he knows when this is.
If he gets out of bed more than once we put him in time out (the bathroom) for two minutes, then back into bed. No more drinks, etc. after 7:30.
If he chooses to stay awake, that's his business, but it's in his bed, lights out. Pretty boring really.
The key for my DS was knowing exactly what to expect and having LOADS of warning, he knows that 6:30 is an hour before his lights go out, and if he wants a story, etc. then he has to work with us. Also we left the choice as to whether he'd sleep or not in his hands which he seemed to respond well to. He did try the staying awake all night thing - managed one night, next night was asleep by 7:35.

oh, and my kids are woken at 7:30am, no matter what time they go to bed. If they go to bed on time, they wake by themselves, otherwise I wake them. Daytime is for being awake, night time is for sleeping.
Sorry for the long reply; hope it helps.

Answer 7

I know one sleep expert whose answer to every sleep problem is to put the child to bed earlier. That might work if your step daughter is staying awake because she is too tired to go to sleep. Another answer to sleep problems that my sister swears by is making sure your child gets enough physical activity during the day so she's tired out by bedtime. You might need to do both.

You can also try to discover why she resists bed so much. Does she feel like she's missing out on the fun or is she lonely? If you can discover any emotional reasons for her reluctance to go to bed you can then find ways to reassure her. Good luck.

Answer 8

"have tried this sevral times and it does not work !!! " Of course it's not going to work, she's 5 years old, YOU have allowed this since she was 8 MONHTS old...It's going to take MONTHS to break her of this habit! You are just going to have to allow her to cry it out when you put her to bed until she gets so tired she sleeps. The fact that your husband has to be up at 6:00 am is just too damned bad...YOU perpetuated this problem for almost 5 years it's no going away overnight.

Answer 9

she may not need much sleep. continue to turn the TV off an hour before bed and keep the home subdued. as long as her room is a safe environment, let her be. put a night light in the room so she can read and give her lots of love. visit the pediatrician if you need to find a medical cause.

Answer 10

Start putting her to bed by 8 pm for one. Nine is to late for a 5 year old. If she refuses start taking away certian toys or privileges until she does for the next day. Tell her you are taking things away until she listens to you and goes to bed without arguement. Make sure to reward her when she does even if it's just recogignizing to her that your proud of her for listening to you.