Help! 2 year old refuses to go to sleep!

kollerse

My 2 1/2 year old refuses to go to bed. She screams hysterically to the point that she makes herself sick, despite being exhausted. Hours of fighting with her to fall asleep are then followed by her inevitably waking up 2-3 times a night also screaming. We’ve had a routine her whole life that now seems to not matter. I resorted to melatonin that helped a few days but has not solved the problem as I am told not to use it long term. 
We need help. My husband and I are exhausted. My 5 year old thinks we are crazy. And number 3 is on the way.... 

nackie

How long has this been going on?  My 2 year old recently did something similar for a couple of weeks and then went back to his normal sleep routine. I have no  idea what was going on with him, but it was exhausting. 

bulldozer15

My little girl is the same way , honestly I just lay down with her at 9:30 pm and we watch Clifford every night until she falls asleep. Probably not the best thing to do but it works lol and we both get rest 

ashleyorm

Good to know I'm not alone.  My 2 year old is the same right now.  Crying it out results in her puking.  Same routine means nothing.  Lavender baths and creams do nothing. Watching some tv before bed slows her down but doesnt make her sleepy so no point in doing that.  Hoping it is just a phase...it always is...right????

mommaSG

Omg i am not alone. My daughter is 26 months and she has never slept good after she turned 1. Naps are generally easy. Ut bedtime is like she was replaced with a monster. She wakes up anywhere between 7 and 8 am naps around noon for 1 hr to 2 hrs. Then refuses to fall asleep before 930 at night. We tried to get her to sleep around 8 830 but she makes those another nap. My hubby has to hold her to get her to sleep at night bc she is physically to strong for me to hold and if she is in bed she talks and gets hyper again. Then its like a few nights a week she will wake maybe 2 times a night but all the others its like 5 or 6 some or night terrors. Others she just needs me to walk dow. The stairs and then back to her room with her. Ots so bad i end up falling asleep in her room. Dr. Wont do anything bc they don't recommened melatonin til age 3

elliew006

Just lay some time with her, or let her sleep with you for some period. Spend more time together before going to bed, then watch videos or cartoons. These tips always help me, probably it will work with your kid too

melinalovessam

In our case, my son always fell asleep only with his favorite toys!
Together we came up with names for them, I always said that they want to sleep, but they fall asleep at the same time with him :) He hugged them all and also fell asleep, so cute :)