2 Year Old will not stay in Bed--Help!

[Mathguy]

Originally Posted by findinghope

what if you could put the siblings together? it might be rough at fist, but i bet your son would like the company, and probably would not leave the room if he knew someone was already there.

Awesome advice, you beat me to it.

Started letting my 2yo sleep in the same room as his brother and it helped BOTH of them immensely. They still share the same room and are now 9 and 11. (There are 2 empty bedrooms next to them lol)

Also, make it sound like a treat that they get to sleep there, make it like a reward that they get to keep if they stay in bed etc.

[shoegal4]

I am going through the exact same thing with my two year old daughter right now. She climbed out of her crib a couple of weeks ago right before we were out of town for a couple of weeks. When we were OOT, we coslept bc the transition back to a crib wasn't that bed. But now that we are putting her in her own bed, it has been terrible. I am trying to strike that balance of letting her know that I am here for her and getting her to sleep on her own (cosleeping for us isn't an option).
I am going to try using stickers when she sleeps through the night-- we are using then for potty training so she's kind of used to them.
But I am glad to hear that this is normal for kids. All I know is that I am exhausted

[luv80s]

Have you thought about leaving a cd player in his room with soothing sounds or classical music? I have a friend who pops in one of those books on tape in the cassette player for her son and he liked falling asleep to that. She'd read him a real story at night but he also liked the tapes. I guess it made him feel like there was someone else in the room after mommy and daddy left. You could try that.

[Winter01]

Second night in a row he slept all night! Yippee!! The two weeks of diligence have paid off I hope

[aquastone]

My suggestions are some of what has already been said:
~Sharing rooms (my boys shared a room in bunk beds until just about 2 years ago when they were 13 and 15)
~Night light
~Put the baby gate at the door, that way he can still see outside his room, but can't get over - maybe, some kids, you just can't hold them in anywhere, they can be so creative.
Sounds like things may be under control now, best of luck!!

[shoegal4]

I hope things are working out for you. We had a total revelation today and that was our daughter would freak out--- not bc we left-- but bc we closed the door. So we are going to put a gate up instead so she doesn't feel so closed in. Just another thought

[Tzaphkiel]

mine went from crib to bed, but he didn't like the bed so he'd sleep on the floor on the rug. He would either lie down by the heat vent or by the crack at the bottom of the door. I think he liked to hear our voices. I didn't care where he slept really, the rug was soft and we put a pillow there for him.

One figured out how to do doors, and i worried about that one climbing over the gate at the top of the stairs so we locked the door from the outside, which felt really barbaric, but it worked. He too slept on the floor on the rug at the bottom of the door.

[mlilyjmichelle]

my son will be 2 soon and he went thruogh the same thing with the cot most of the time he would go to sleep in his cot but he would start playin up for a few days or weeks criein for up to 4 hours and now hes got his own bedroom and a bed hes criein every night for hours iv tried everything puttin him back in bed so many times and we have left him crie hes got a gate on his door and hes got a tv he has cried so much hes got a husky voice in the mornings me and my partner dont know what to do we need help

[nana053]

Originally Posted by mlilyjmichelle

my son will be 2 soon and he went thruogh the same thing with the cot most of the time he would go to sleep in his cot but he would start playin up for a few days or weeks criein for up to 4 hours and now hes got his own bedroom and a bed hes criein every night for hours iv tried everything puttin him back in bed so many times and we have left him crie hes got a gate on his door and hes got a tv he has cried so much hes got a husky voice in the mornings me and my partner dont know what to do we need help

This is not uncommon (you answered a 2 year old post though).

1. You may want to keep a log of your daily routine. Does he wake up at the same time every day? Does he have meals and naps at about the same time most days? What activities does he do during the day. Children who are active usually sleep better.

2. You probably should have a regular bedtime routine. For us, it was bath, teeth brushing, two stories, then a lullaby and sleep. My granddaughter is now conditioned to being asleep when her lullaby is over (and she is 8 years old) - she's been doing this since she was about 18 months old. If he has a lovey, he can sleep with that too. Start the unwinding and routine about an hour before his bedtime.

3. Naptime should probably not be too late in the day and might need to be limited to 2 hours if he usually sleeps more.

4. As counterintuitive as it sounds, an earlier bedtime can make a difference. Later bedtimes may mean that he is overtired and he might be unable to fall asleep easily.

5. Limit tv especially close to bedtime. I would take the tv out of his room entirely. If you must try something to soothe him, try white noise or perhaps music. If he is afraid of the dark, try a toy that has a light and turns off after a period of time.

6. When and if he gets up out of bed:

The first time he gets up, remind him that it’s bedtime, lead him back to bed, give him a kiss and a cuddle, and leave the bedroom.
The second time, do the same but use a firmer voice and make the kiss and cuddle brief.
The third and any subsequent times, say nothing at all as you lead him back to bed, tuck him in, and leave the room. This is the hard part, and it’s very tempting to give a cuddle. Remember that a gentle, consistent approach will convince your child that you’re there for him, but that you insist he sleeps in his own bed.

7. You can try a sticker chart for staying in bed. I don't especially like this, but as a last resort, it might be helpful. You give stickers for the nights he stays in bed and focus on that. If he stays in bed for several nights, he might get a small car or something else he likes and then if he is staying in bed and sleeping through the night, you could give a larger reward.

8. If falling asleep is a big problem, you might try melantonin at a low dosage. It's natural and once his routine is established, you can wean him off it.

Good luck!

Kids tucked in with a dose of melatonin - USATODAY.com