2.5yr old waking frequently at night

[MrsC10]

Hi ladies. Looking for anyone going through the same thing or anyone who may have any advice.

My daughter naps typically for around 1.5-2 hours during the day and doesn't usually fall asleep at night until around 9pm...sometimes a little before this.

She wakes VERY frequently through night. More so in the past 3-4 weeks than ever before. She's never been a great sleeper and I can count on one hand the amount of nights that she's slept through.

The waking once a night doesn't bother me, but recently it's been every half hour to hour! Sometimes it's just to moan and then roll over and sometimes she's up screaming and babbling like she's still dreaming about something.

Anyone else there with me or have any advice?

 

[MindUtopia]

The screaming and babbling sounds like night terrors. They are really common unfortunately and nothing really you can do about it. I've found that honestly just leaving them be, they snap out of it and go back to sleep usually in about 10-15 minutes (they aren't actually awake, it's like sleep walking sort of). I would only get up and intervene if she gets up and might fall and hurt herself.

It could just be one of those phases and will pass, but you might see if shortening or cutting the nap helps. Mine was really struggling to fall asleep, not until 9-10pm, and waking lots around that age. We dropped her nap and she started to sleep so much better. So that may help. Otherwise, you might just have to ride it out as she could just be doing lots of growing and developing which is disrupting her sleep.

 

[MrsC10]

Thank you. I think it's a bit of a mix between a sleep regression caused by a leap in development and us going to check on her too often when she wakes and therefore she's getting used to the attention at night. We're probably not helping ourselves.
I plan tonight to try and put her to bed earlier than her usual time and to try and not check on her so quickly/often during the night when she cries out.

Worth a try.

 

[lil' mole]

Was just going to say my dd2, who is just over 2, has been very similar recently. She generally doesn’t sleep through either but sleep suddenly got a whole lot worse. I think it lasted a couple of weeks and now she is just starting to sleep better (down to 2-3 wake ups a night). She has just had a massive explosion in language, so we’ve put it down to developmental leap

 

[MrsC10]

We had a good night last night. I started her bedtime routine 15 minutes earlier than we normally would, but she still took forever to go to sleep. Tried every trick she could think of not to fall asleep.
She stirred a bit when I went to bed, but I didn't go through to her and she settled herself. She woke up at 5:30am and came through to our room for half an hour before we had to get up for work (we just let her carry on sleeping in our bed until we were ready).
I did notice when brushing her teeth last night that one of her bottom molars has come through and the top two are sitting just under her gums, so I'm wondering if that has had an impact on her lousy sleeping for the last few weeks.

Anyway, only time will tell if last night was a one off or if things are returning to some sort of 'normal'.

 

[Babybum35]

We had a good night last night. I started her bedtime routine 15 minutes earlier than we normally would, but she still took forever to go to sleep. Tried every trick she could think of not to fall asleep.
She stirred a bit when I went to bed, but I didn't go through to her and she settled herself. She woke up at 5:30am and came through to our room for half an hour before we had to get up for work (we just let her carry on sleeping in our bed until we were ready).
I did notice when brushing her teeth last night that one of her bottom molars has come through and the top two are sitting just under her gums, so I'm wondering if that has had an impact on her lousy sleeping for the last few weeks.

Anyway, only time will tell if last night was a one off or if things are returning to some sort of 'normal'.

My dd is the same way she's 2. We bed share and are still breastfeeding so its never much more than moaning and feeding. I have read that some kids are like that they are classified as high need not special needs but kids who need more attention cuddles and cling a lot more than some but when they are up it's like they are in constant motion and just always in something or doing something. I hope its a phase but I've heard kids classified like this don't sleep through the night til they are older. I've also been reminded that even as an adult I don't sleep through the night and if I've got a lot on my mind I can't fall asleep. I wonder if there's a way to cut down on the stimulation in the evenings to help bed readiness

 

[MrsC10]

I don't think there's anything else behind it other than she's going through a development leap and is cutting her molars. She's not a clingy child. She's happy to play on her own and to be left with other people that she knows.
I think she's just growing up and her brain is starting to process things a lot more so night times are now scary for her.
I'm sure it will pass in time. Nothing lasts forever.

 

[laura109]

I've had trouble with my two year old since September. She was a great sleeper until she went into a bed. Now she ends up in our bed every night. I agree that it's possibly night terrors. We've tried all sorts to bribe our dd but it's not working yet. I honestly think a
Most parents of two year olds are going through something similar so perhaps it's as they are becoming more aware. I tried stopping naps but she falls asleep at teatime. I was told also until they are ready to drop the nap it can be a problem at night x

 

[laura109]

P. S I notice your pregnant too. Same here! Despite the fact dd Is showing nothing but positive feelings towards the new arrival it could be a bit of anxiety over the change. She may be sensing changes in you. That's certainly what I think is also a factor for us. That's if she's aware that a new baby is coming x

 

[Jesse7]

I have a boy that is 4 and a girl that is 2.5 yrs. My boy never slept through the night until he was 3 years old no matter what i tried, he has always been my more dependent child where he needs us more and we have just accepted that, whereas my daughter has always been a good sleeper until a few months back where all of a sudden she was waking up often moaning and unhappy, it only lasted a few weeks and then i realized that she was getting her last set of molars, which come around the 2.5 year mark. hoping this is the case for you and it passes quickly.