Trouble going to bed
Mrs.RockyM
member
Lately DD doesn't want to go to bed. She'll scream, cry, tell me how scared she is (but won't say what she's afraid of), tell me she has to go potty, cry for more hugs and kisses, scream how she misses her grandmas (who are 3 and 5 hours away!), and tell me how she has one more thing to tell me before going to bed. Or, she'll go through her drawers, pick out clothes to wear, rearrange her stuffed animals, take out all the books from her bookshelf.
I know it's a stall tactic, but I'm at a loss for how to handle it. We've tried bribery, we've taken away her stuffed animals, even threatened to put her back in the crib. It's a nightmare getting her to bed, and she's been an absolute mess the past couple of mornings becuase she's been so tired!
Help!
Re: Trouble going to bed
I'm eager to hear the responses. We're going through this too and I feel I have exhausted so many options.
Help me too!
We went through this with DD. One thing that helped was we bought her a digital clock and told her what time she had to be asleep by. If she wasn't she had to stay in bed X minutes later the next day, in 15 minute increments (this obviously only works if your child already knows her numbers). It took a while, but she learned.
Has her routine changed at all? If she's doing this all before getting in bed, it sounds like there needs to be a set routine that she knows exactly what is supposed to happen next. Maybe even make a picture chart so she can see.
She may actually be scared. She's getting into the age where nighttime is scary, so try a night light--DD became scared of the shadows her nightlight made, so we stopped using it for a while and left her closet door open with the light on. Also, try sitting by her bed for a set amount of time, but make sure she knows she has to lay down quietly or you'll leave. If she talks a certain number of times or gets up, you leave (it helps to have your back to her). You can gradually reduce how long you stay or move farther away from her.
We still use the white noise machine we used when DD was a baby--it plays lullabyes set on a timer, so even after we leave, she doesn't feel so alone. It's the Homedics SoundSpa.
Hope this helps. Good luck!
Look to see what the Super Nanny does. We tried a variation of it and it has worked great!
We have a very set nighttime routine. 7:30pm we go upstairs, brush and floss. Then go to her room and change her into her PJs. We give her a very small glass of water and we read two books and then turn on her music. Then we do a "checklist" for her (Natalie in bed, check...under covers, check...with stuffed animals...check).
as with other PPs, we give her a chance to tell us everything she needs before we leave the room. If she cries, she knows she gets one "visit" from us to calm her down and pat her back for only about a minute. After that, we ignore her (unless her concern/stall is really valid) and the only response she gets from us is "go to bed". Keep it up and after a week or so we could really tell a difference.
It has worked really well!