HFClassicalAcademy Posted July 22, 2008 Share Posted July 22, 2008 My ds will be 3 in a couple of months. I've had it with him!! He is great, but bedtime and nap time leave me so worn out and stressed that I just want to tear my hair out and jump out the window!! He is sooooo, soooo tired. But he will not nap or sleep. He gives me a thousand excuses, "I'm scared" "I'm thirsty" "I need to go potty" "I'm hungry".....every line in the book. He shares a room with older dd and ds. He wakes them up with his talking, playing, whining, and crying at night. I don't know what to do. I have tried everything. His bedtime is 8pm and he usually doesn't fall asleep until 10pm. It's a constant getting up and being put back to bed. I just want to lock him up in a room!! During nap I struggle with him for 30-45 minutes before he finally stays in his room. I don't care if he sleeps...I just want him to have a little quiet time to himself. He used to be so good about napping and sleeping. I understand he might be outgrowing his nap, but I REFUSE to give up quiet time. My 4yo dd still does quiet time as does my 6yo ds. I seriously am so stressed right now! I can't focus this much of my time to putting him to bed...I have an 11 month old to take care of! On top of that, I have school to do with ds and sometimes I just need some quiet time for myself. Someone please give me some suggestions as I am about to go jump in front of a train!!....well, not literally. Liz in NC Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Jacquelyn in NC Posted July 22, 2008 Share Posted July 22, 2008 One thing that worked for us was that they both LOVED to sleep with their doors open. As long as they stayed in their rooms, they got to have the door open. If they came out, we would shut their door, which had the child-proof door openers on them so the doors had to stay shut. I know some kids figure out how to open them anyway, but mine never did...:001_smile: It only took once or twice for them to realize the consequence was much worse than the fun of getting out of bed. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
mktkcb Posted July 22, 2008 Share Posted July 22, 2008 Ok, here's a really good youtube of supernanny dealing with this. My approach when my kids were little was pretty similar. It takes gut-it-out consistency. For *awhile* while you are training, you HAVE to take the time. Plan on it. Plan FOR it. Or give it up altogether. If your other kids can sleep elsewhere while you are in training with this one, that might be good. And trust me, I have had 2 kids that ranked up there with "World's most challenging", so I've been there. http://youtube.com/watch?v=X--dq2JzK_s hth, Kayleen Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
LKMN Posted July 22, 2008 Share Posted July 22, 2008 Have you tried playing music in his room? Sometimes kids need white noise or music to help settle them in. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
PeterPan Posted July 22, 2008 Share Posted July 22, 2008 There's an herbal formula at the health food store called Calm Child, works like a charm. ;) If he's not falling asleep at night, maybe he really doesn't need the nap? Tell him he has to be in his bed (position doesn't matter) during quiet time, and give him a tape player with headphones. That way he's quiet, you get rest, everyone is happy. If he drops the nap, maybe he'll fall asleep better come evening. When my dd was that age, I needed my rest, and the tape/cd player was how I got it. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
nakitty Posted July 22, 2008 Share Posted July 22, 2008 All of my children are that way....our Ped told us to use Melatonin....it has been a LIFE SAVER.....well, for them anyhow....a sanity saver for us! LOL Some tips: Be sure you get straight Melatonin....some brands have other stuff in them that may or may not be safe for kids. Give him one 3mg pill about 15 min before bedtime and make sure you do this at the same time every night....at least in the beginning. Put him to bed in as dark a room as he will be comfortable....read him a story and that should do the trick. If, after a few days, it isn't working....try 2 3mg pills. We get ours through www.swansonvitamins.com they are an exceptionally good value there. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
clwcain Posted July 22, 2008 Share Posted July 22, 2008 Our oldest was like this. We gave up and let him run with our schedule. It worked out fine. No naps. Goes to bed when we go to bed. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Jen500 Posted July 22, 2008 Share Posted July 22, 2008 My ds3 falls asleep much faster when he a) doesn't take a nap and 2) has some good exercise during the day. If he takes a nap, he's up until 11pm. I just give up any afternoon quiet time to have some quiet time in the evening. Sometimes I let him watch some PBS, but he's not a big tv watcher. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Chris in VA Posted July 22, 2008 Share Posted July 22, 2008 I like Super Nanny's bed technique, too. The trick is to be persistent and not give in, and not talk. Also, could he be too tired? Sometimes there's a small window when a child is tired, but if the opportunity is missed, they become "wired" and can't calm down. Do you notice a time EARLIER than bedtime when you "need" him awake, but he seems pretty tired? Maybe he seems cranky, or starts pulling at his hair or rubbing his eyes a little, or starts to get whiny just a bit. How's your bedtime routine? It's harder with other kids in the room, for sure. Quiet time instead of nap is a great idea--but you may have to shorten the quiet time for a while so he won't fall asleep during that time. In other words, if you put him in his room for an hour (times are arbitrary here), it may be long enough for a nap--and the nap may be interfering with his sleep later. If you shorten it to .5 hour, he will get the idea of quiet time but not fall asleep. You can go longer, moving back up to an hour, when he doesn't fall asleep and can entertain himself for that hour or so. You'll have less of a break, but just think of it as a bigger break, just moved to his bedtime--he'll go to sleep easier and faster. Make sense? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Remudamom Posted July 22, 2008 Share Posted July 22, 2008 Oh, I love the the two to five stage. Tell you what, send him here and we will completely spoil him for a couple of years and then send him back to you. I've accused some friends of moving simply to save their younguns from being shamelessly spoiled by me and my dds. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
HFClassicalAcademy Posted July 24, 2008 Author Share Posted July 24, 2008 I am devising a plan to tackle our sleeping dilemma as we speak. I'm thinking a combination of everything suggested!! Yesterday was a little better and he only complained for 10 minutes before giving in to staying in his room. I really value your experience and advice! Liz in NC Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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