Pleas Help, my 18 month old won't sleep in crib & won't sleep thru night...any good advice?

Question

HELP!!! My 18 month old absolutely hates his crib. We beleive he has a fear of it because for the past 2 months, he screams and screams until he vomits everytime we put him in there. There is no crying it out with this child....trust me we have tried. So, my husband and I have been taking turns sleeping on the sofa with him. On top of that, he doesn't sleep thru the night. he is up between 1:30-2:30am everyn night. We are going out of our minds. HELP!!!!! Thanks

Answer 1

Best Answer - Chosen by Voters

I recommend the book Healthy Sleep Habits, Happy Child by Dr. Marc Weissbluth

Answer 2

dont sleep on the couch...have him sleep in your bed, between the two of you...yes, im feeding into the behavior i know that, but drastic times cause for drastic measures! so many things could be causing it. he needs his diaper changed, he could need water, he could be lonely etc.

Answer 3

put him in his bed and let him cry right now he is controlling you. hes the parent not you. take control. when he pukes clean him and the bed up and leave him in there he will wear out and go to sleep, a few nights of this and it will be broken

Answer 4

Does he not have naps in the crib? if so, maybe he's sleeping too long durring the day? Maybe there is some thing in the room itself that seems scary for him... like a picture on the wall, or a certain stuffed toy? or maybe even the curtains are in a way that appears to be scary from his point of view. ?? Has something happened to him that may have made him afraid? You said that for 2 months... so was he sleeping fine before? maybe try to think what is new in the room or maybe he had a bad tumble in his room 2 months ago... other than that I am out of suggestions?? Hope you all gets more sleep soon.... good luck

Answer 5

Have you tried transitioning him to a "big boy bed" since he has decided he hates his crib?

Our son is 18 months and he sleeps in a twin bed that is right down on the floor, with a bed-rail on the sides to keep him from rolling out and a safety gate in his doorway to prevent any midnight wandering :)

It took us about a week to transition him out of his crib. The first night we spent two hours putting him back to bed every 3 minutes or so lol...by the fourth night he only needed to be put back in bed once.

I would recommend choosing a place for your son to sleep and sticking to it no matter what. If he cries, go in and rub his back for a minute or so, give him a kiss, tell him goodnight and leave again. If he keeps crying, repeat! Even if it means a few sleepless nights for mommy and daddy, in the long run it will be worth it!!

Also- make sure you have a firm bedtime routine in place! We do 7:30 bath, brush teeth, comb hair, lotion up, diaper, PJ's, bedtime story, bedtime song, 8:00 lights out. It really seems to help our son "mentally prepare" for bed :)

Good luck!

Source(s):

mommy of an 18 month old boy :)

Answer 6

It sounds like he needs extra comforting at night. Their is nothing wrong with co-sleeping and their are safe ways to do so. It may help to do this. If my son was vomiting before bed on a nightly basis we would co-sleep with him. Some babies need and want space as they get older while many need to be close to their parents. If you are not comfortable with putting him in bed with you, why not put his crib or even a toddler bed (if he hates his crib) in your room for awhile until he is going to bed without vomiting. You can slowly move the bed further and further away until it is back in his room.

He may sleep all night once he begins to feel secure again.

Other things that may help him sleep better at night: make sure he has plenty of activity during the day and make sure his little belly is full before you put him down at night.

Have you tried rocking or snuggling with him right before bed and letting him get to the point where he almost falls asleep in your arms and then transition him to the crib?

I hope this helps you. Good luck with you and your son.

Source(s):

Mom of a 20 month old.

Answer 7

wow, this is a tough one. its gonna take some meds and alcohol for the parents along with saintly patience but we have a 12 month old we called damien until we ferberized him at about 8 months old. the home and everyone in it got no sleep. we had to get him conditioned quickly before we lost our minds, it seems you have reached this peak. baby is got alot of power since he knows you guys will eventually give in it is going to take dedication. try setting a routine which everyone can adhere to religiously. we did the following: 730-830pm bath time, massage time ,soothing music time last bottle or sippy cup, reading time, anything that will unwind. next 830 place him in the crib(yes it will require major crying,dont give in whatever you do) leave the room, we checked on him in five min. intervals, we made sure he did not poop from the crying, nothing was bothering him in the crib, hushing shooching is ok nightie night, is too, keep the talking to a minimum, wait five minutes do it again. he will eventually get the picture if you are consistent. changing his bedding to something he really likes. it will take you guys about 4-6 days of pure unadulterated hell before you see the magical results, and they will come you just have to tough it out for real!!!. you have to give him a set structure so that he can follow it, speak to your pediatrician and see if this is something that would be good for your son. you can also look it up online the ferber method. maybe you can paint the crib another color, or get a co sleeper if he is terrified of the crib, that can also be creating stress on him. good luck and god bless

Source(s):

mum to Aidan "Damien"

Answer 8

This is a tough one to call -- did he sleep in the crib before? Is he taking naps in it now? If the former is true, he might have had something scary happen (such as a bad dream or a conked head) that effected his perception of the crib... however, if the latter is true, he's manipulating you in order to get what he wants.

The problem is, you want to be tough and fair. He's old enough that he shouldn't be sleeping with you and you have to resist his manipulations otherwise... but as a good mom, you want him to enjoy his bed and want to go to it willingly. What a catch-22, huh? I don't have any hard and fast answers but...

#1: Establish a firm and enjoyable bedtime routine that lasts anywhere from 15 to 30 minutes. This allows your son to realize it's time for bed with ample opportunity to wind down. Some routines include: back rub, song, book, bath time, a snack (before brushing his teeth!), some rocking. The one that works well for me is: bath time (with bubbles), brushing teeth, favorite bedtime story, rocking in the chair a bit and a final song as I put him in bed and rub his back. He's not asleep when I leave, but he's gone a few moments after. Make the bed time routines fun and enjoyable for your son and he may actually enjoy going to bed.

#2: Get him a "lovey." If blankets carry too much stigma then get him a stuffed animal. My son has a stuffed puppy he's had since he was four months old and he LOVES his Pup Pup. Whenever my son cannot be consoled by me, he has his lovey to calm him down. By the way, once your son gets attached to a certain item... buy two or three, just in case.

#3: Knock him out. No, not with a baseball bat... I mean, during the day. If your son isn't getting enough exercise, he might not want to sleep at night. Take him outside and run around, chase him around a park or the house, take him swimming... the more time he spends running around outside is more energy spent which will equal a much more tired little boy at bedtime. The other day my husband knocked my son out so much that he actually asked for his bath about ten minutes earlier than usual. I was in shock.

#4: Have you tried switching to a toddler bed? It will get rid of the fear of the crib and if you make sure his room is safe, he will entertain himself at night without bothering you.

#5: I don't know about tv habits in your household, but cut it down to 30 minutes a day if he watches it. The AAP recommends that children under the age of 2 not watch any tv but that's reaching a bit... so 30 minutes is an acceptable compromise. TV (this includes movies, dvds and television shows) is extremely stimulating for a child this young and watching too much of it can be overkill on your son. Kids that are overstimulated have a much harder time falling and staying asleep than their less stimulated peers. In addition, tv time cuts down on the time he could be running around outside or romping through the house screaming (which are definite exhaustion makers).

#6: Play around with his naps. Don't mess with bedtime -- remember, your son will get used to a set bedtime... and when school rolls around you will not want your preschooler going to bed at 10 pm. 8 to 8:30 isn't a bad bedtime to control, but make sure he's not napping too late or too long during the day. If he sleeps two hours, a 1 to 3 nap time is great... if he sleeps three, try 12 to 3... but try to avoid letting him sleep past 3 pm so you can ensure he's exhausted by the time your bedtime routine begins.

Finally... If you get up with him when he wakes up at night, you're reinforcing the behavior. I know it sounds harsh, but there were a few episodes with my son where he woke up at around 3 am crying but I refused to go in. I'd check my video monitor to make sure he was ok (and that puppy was in bed with him) and after a few days he stopped. It was an aberration that would have gotten completely out of control if I catered to his wishes for me to come in and rock him back to sleep. One of the greatest gifts you can give your child is the gift of the ability to fall asleep without assistance. The rule of thumb is this: at two am, make sure there's nothing wrong with him and leave. Don't coddle him, stay with him or rock him, just let him be. If you have to, set a limit as to how long to rock him and only do it a few times. He's old enough to be sleeping through the night and you're old enough to deserve a full night's sleep.

Good luck with this... I certainly hope you'll regain your sleep soon :)

Source(s):

My little man is 21 months old and is a champion sleeper by design ;)

Answer 9

Lot's of good advice here. If he's not sleeping in his crib anyway, get rid of it, get a full size bed, it's more comfortable to sleep in with him. Get him used to sleeping in it lay down with him at night, then when he falls asleep leave. A gate at the door is a good idea to keep him safe. Reduce the time each night you're laying with him and hope that he loves his bed. Good luck!

Answer 10

YOU HAVE TO MAKE HIM SLEEP IN HIS CRIB,OR ELSE YOU'LL BE SLEEPING ON THE SOFA UNTIL HE'S 5. JUST LET HIM CRY. OR TRY SEEING A CHILD DOCTER AND TELL HER WHATS HAPPENING

Source(s):

ME

Answer 11

I agree with the trying a toddler bed. He's still a little too young and he may get up at night, but if you usually left his door open, then you could just put up a baby gate to keep him in and make sure he can't get into anything bad in his room if he were alone in there. He may feel imprisioned in his crib. I commend you for trying the cry it out, and I can only imagine how you felt when he started vomiting he cried so hard. My daughter has never done that, but she has come close. You're right for not doing that anymore. Being on the couch is better than him being in your bed. If the toddler bed doesn't work, try getting an air mattress and put it in HIS room and one of you sleep in there with him. You need to find out what is causing this. Is it his room in the dark? Is it just his crib, etc. Do you have a nightlight in his room? That may help too. Think along these lines for a new idea and I hope you can get that boy in bed!

Answer 12

its time to purchase a toddler bed with guard rails and put him to sleep in it. You and your husband are reinforcing your child behavior. He is learning that if he cries he will get a response. Try also reducing the time he sleeps during the day to make him more tired at night. be strong and be firm. He will not die from crying himself to sleep.