Washington Babies
Help!Have you CIO with a toddler (19 months) or is it cruel at that age?
N was a great sleeper, but now two days in a row, he screams at naptime and bedtime. Last night DH went in and told he it's bedtime, laid him down and he was OK, but it's not working for me and DH is on a business trip :-/ I checked on him after 10 mins and then again after 15 mins and he's still crying.
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Re: Help!Have you CIO with a toddler (19 months) or is it cruel at that age?
I'm so much more willing to let an older child cry than a younger one that you can't communicate with.
Do you think something's wrong though? LIke he's not feeling well or getting teeth? To suddenly make a change seems like something must be wrong. Can he tell you if something hurts or if something's scaring him or something?
I know around 17-18 months is when we made some pretty drastic sleep changes around here, and they went pretty easily b/c I was able to talk to Ben and prepare him for the changes. Sometimes he cried, but at least he wasn't shocked by the changes. It's tougher in some ways because they can actually say things like "mommy don't leave me" and that kills you.
Anyway, I'd go in and assess again and see if he seems sick or if he's getting teeth. You could try giving him some tylenol and a drink and cuddling him for a bit and then explaining that it's bed time and that mommy is tired too and that everyone has to go to sleep now. And then try again.
Good luck. Sleep is a roller coaster I think. Just when you have it nailed something else comes up.
He has happy all day and eating really well so I don't think he's sick. Doesn't appear to be teething either. Wow 1 hour 20 mintes, I think he's asleep. He keeps sayng "up" 'cause he wants me to lift him out of the crib, so I think I have a rebelious toddler on my hands :-)
If he cries again, I'll try some tylenol. Thanks for the advice!
On a different note, was Ben talking in full sentences at 17-18 months? Nathan isn't even using two work sentences yet!! Yikes!
Evie has never been a great sleeper. One of the things we've done that has worked really well is to put books in her crib. She loves books, and when she has trouble falling asleep (or even sometimes when she wakes up early) she sits in bed and looks at her books. It lets her wind down and have some quiet time, which makes it easier for her to fall asleep on her own. Sometimes she will be awake in bed for 45 minutes to an hour before she goes to sleep. She doesn't fuss or cry; she just looks at her books.
It also sometimes buys us extra sleep in the mornings...I've woken up several mornings to find Evie quiet and perfectly content in her crib, flipping through her books. We rotate the books every week or two so she doesn't get bored.
I haven't read any of the above replies yet.
I hate CIO. I just see no need to torture the kid at any age.
When it's a rare occasion such as this, I go ahead and coddle. There's usually a trigger, even if i can't figure out what it is at the time. So, I put off the dishes, set the tivo, and curl up next to DD and hold her, cuddle her, and even let her sleep in my bed. It rarely lasts more than 3 or 4 nights and only happens every few months.
Since this is unusal behavior, I'd give him what he's asking for - your extra attention and love.
That is a good point Dana - since it's not some big bad habit your'e trying to change, and it's just started happening, maybe just some cuddles to make him feel happy and then he'll go back to normal in a few days whenever this phase is done?
The book idea is a good one though too. It takes Ben FOREVER to fall asleep - he usually spends an hour from when we leave the room til he's asleep. And if he had a long nap, then it can be longer. When he was littler, he used to just talk and sing and talk to his 8 zillion animals in his bed and it was HILARIOUS. Now he's usually quiet, or spends some time rearranging his blankets or animals or whatever. But still, he has figured out how to wind down. In his crib, he'd also just wake up and hang out, but now that he's in the big boy bed, he gets up in the morning and comes into our room to snuggle. I miss getting that extra 1/2 hour or more of sleep while he just sat around!