apond Posted January 23, 2008 Share Posted January 23, 2008 I need advice suggestions or a miricle. I will take anything. I have a set of two year old twins that started not sleeping at night weeks ago. Up to that point they never had a problem. I have tried everything but am at my wits end and not a very nice mommy. I am so exhausted after getting up with them every hour or two and then trying to homeschool my other 3 kids. It is affecting everything. I don't know where to go or what to do. If you have had an experience like this what worked. Annmarie Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
cherryblossom Posted January 23, 2008 Share Posted January 23, 2008 Our 10mo had been sleeping through the night from 8 weeks old until 6 mos. Now for the past 4 months, she has consistently awakened between midnight - 2:30 timeframe. We've tried letting her cry it out for a few nights. But she has cried for nearly two hours before I caved in and nursed her. It is hard on our entire family as she is quite loud. So for the past several weeks, I've just gone in and nursed her when she wakes up and she'll go back to sleep quickly. I really need to break this habit right away as my intentions are to wean her at 1yo or shortly thereafter. Please pass along any advice or successful methods you have found to help your children sleep through the night. Thanks so much! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Lolly Posted January 23, 2008 Share Posted January 23, 2008 I feel for you! At 2 you are almost at their mercy. Mine pulled this one at 3. They were old enough that a nice talk actually solved my problem. I told them that it was mean that they were making Mommy wake up in the middle of the night. They stopped waking me up. I'm not sure that they actually slept all night, but at least they were quiet in their rooms. Good luck. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Brigitte Posted January 23, 2008 Share Posted January 23, 2008 What has changed during the day? Is there a major source of stress in your home right now? Think back and you might find a cause of the change in sleep pattern. Do they nap during the day? What is your bedtime routine? What are you doing to get them back to sleep? Are they still in cribs? My twins have gone through phases of not sleeping well and I have usually been able to find a cause. Frequently it happened/happens when they are over tired. Making bedtime earlier has solved the problem or "forcing" them to nap (ie. long car ride) after they "gave up" naps helps, too. Brigitte Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Lolly Posted January 23, 2008 Share Posted January 23, 2008 Is there a room where you could put a pack n play and let her cry it out where she wouldn't be quite as disturbing to the other family members? I would probably be getting up and doing a quick nursing like you are. You could try the check on her, pat on the back, leave the room. This has worked for me before, but basically you do end up with a screaming baby for quite a few days. The fastest way I've found has been to tough out the long crying. That is really hard when they are waking everyone up. Good luck to you. It is so hard not getting a straight through night of sleep. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
cherryblossom Posted January 23, 2008 Share Posted January 23, 2008 I've tried just going in to pat her back and playing a lullaby cd, but it only makes it worse. I've sent in my dh to do the same and have the same results. We do not have an extra room to put a pack and play in w/o being able to hear the crying and it is really loud. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Andie Posted January 23, 2008 Share Posted January 23, 2008 No advice, but a truckload of sympathy. My 4yo ds and 2yo dd haven't been sleeping well. With ds it's been ..... oh, heck, a year now?! I'm about to go stark raving mad. Caffeine, I love thee. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Mx5 Posted January 23, 2008 Share Posted January 23, 2008 I need advice suggestions or a miricle. I will take anything. I have a set of two year old twins that started not sleeping at night weeks ago. Up to that point they never had a problem. Annmarie Something has changed, or they may be teething. Time for 2 year molars, isn't it? Could you give them a little Tylenol or Advil before bed time for a day or 2? Have they been sick recently (within the past 2 weeks)? You might want to run them in to the clinic and have their ears checked for infection or for fluid buildup. Cut back on their latest nap, too. I know they might be grumpy about it, but it's easier for me to deal with grumpiness during the day when I get to sleep at night. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Mx5 Posted January 23, 2008 Share Posted January 23, 2008 Our 10mo had been sleeping through the night from 8 weeks old until 6 mos. Now for the past 4 months, she has consistently awakened between midnight - 2:30 timeframe. I wouldn't call nursing a toddler in the middle of the night "caving in". Before you know it she will be asking for the car keys and staying out too late for your liking :rolleyes: Here are some great tips to help you and your baby to get some sleep: Sleep Issues Why do you want to wean her at 1 year? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
yvonne Posted January 23, 2008 Share Posted January 23, 2008 Hi, You might check out twinslist.org. There are some faq pages about twins and sleeping. Also, their list is active and full of moms of twins who've btdt and are happy to share what's worked for them. I have 7 year old twins and found twinslist to be the best source of information and suggestions. yvonne Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
apond Posted January 23, 2008 Author Share Posted January 23, 2008 Thanks for all the suggestions. To answer the questions there has been some stress as we moved during this although they started doing this before we moved. We moved over 2 months ago and things have calmed down. I kept thinking it would get better. I have tried to give them lots of tlc and one on one time during the day hoping that would help. No Luck. They have been sick twice during this and both times the ears have been checked out okay. They are not in cribs and havent been for 4 months. This started long after the change. I also know that it is one twin waking up the other. It started with one being the problem and has now switched to the other. They do worse when seperated as we tried that. I have tried having them sleep with me and neither of us sleep well. I tried having them sleep in the floor in our room and it was a horrible. I guess it's a matter of wills and they are winning. It is so frustrating because they are such good toddlers ( typical in everyway, but better then any of my other children) except for nighttime. Annmarie Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
mooooom Posted January 23, 2008 Share Posted January 23, 2008 I'm not sure if this would work at their age. Mine used to have - I don't even know what to call it - it was a nightlight type thing that lit up and turned and made star lights go slowly round the room and it played music. They would turn it on themselves. A toddler's taperecorder with lullabys might also do the trick. Even if you had to go in their room and turn it on for them... I feel for you, my twins used to get night terrors and that was a solid hour minimum for them to calm down and go back to sleep. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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