Toddler: Transition from Cot to Bed

livvy

I have a 2yr (+2 months) old. She was a great sleeper when in the cot. Once she started climbing out of it i decided it was time to put her in a bed. Since then (3 weeks ago) she has not slept through the night. She will only go to sleep if i lie down next to her. Every night she wakes and calls out. Most times i just hop into her bed - some nights she will go back to sleep / others I'm not so lucky. Im expecting my second and find this new routine quite draining. I have left her cry for a while but always give it. Can anyone suggest a solution. She is not potty trained yet and still takes a bottle to bed. (BTW she went into her own room at 4 months and never spent a night in our bed - and will not get it now!)

Mulan

Hiya

Make sure to use the same blankets that you used in the cot. Try to make things the same if you know what I mean.

Good luck

lalalulu

Hi.. I know how draining it can be when your sleep is broken and all you want is for your daughter to settle then being pregnant definitely doesn't help:(

I would suggest you start a reward/star chart, make a big deal out of it telling your daughter what a big girl she is sleeping in her new big girl bed. Explain she will get a sticker each time she sleeps in her own bed.
The key really is to be enthuastic about it. If she sleeps through for a full week she can have a reward only small nothing over the top. I know it's tough when she wakes during the night crying out for you because i used to take my own daughter in to the bed with me i was exhausted.

I hope this helps.

IsThatSo?

It might be a bit scary for her, after all its a big change (not having bars around for comfort/security) and more so if your little one is the sensitive type.

Is there any particular character she is into? like Dora maybe? If you can get your hands on a duvet cover of a favourite character it might help. This worked on my nephew who is the most sensitive and particular child you will ever meet!!!! A favourite teddy and the blankets used in the cot will also help.

She is a little young to have hit the "afraid of the dark" phase (thats usually around 3) but a nice nightlight/lamp might help also in case that is part of the problem. She would not be able to articulate this as she is so young.

Something is bothering her though and all you can do is work through a list of things (like above) and eliminate them until you find the problem.

Good luck, I know its hard, especially when you are pregnant and probably not getting the best sleep yourself anyway:(

livvy

Thank you for your advice - since my post i've had a bit of success - last night i got until 6am - not great but it's a start - I've gotten a peppa pig duvet cover and a winnie the poo nightlight. Luckily the days are getting warmer so i reckon if i make sure she is well exercised i've a good chance. Thank you again for taking the time to post.

memo_to_all

Hi OP

We put our 2 year old son in his own real bed about 3 weeksago and have found the opposit.

He tended to fidgit around his cot alot and banged his head off the bars and got his feet stuck and woke up nearly every night...but now he sleeps so well.

Something has changed...and its whats changed thats causing the problem....so maybe you need to try re-create the cot eviroment a little. Do you have the safety rail down the side of the bed?...is the bed at roughly the same level as her cot was?...has she changed room with the bed?

Anyway..I sympatise with you..its hard work with a child waking every night. Best of luck and keep us posted.

lostinnappies

Here's how I did it and it worked a treat. I put him in his cot and took one side down. In its place I put up one of those low rails to stop him falling out. I started a routine of jammies on, brush our teeth, lie down in bed for a story (must be in the bed), lights off and a night night song, leave the room. He did call out for a while but i didnt go in unless he got out of bed at which point I calmly put him back in gave him a kiss and left the room again. This lasted for a night or two ... you have to keep it up otherwise it wont work. Once things settled down i removed the other side of the cot so it looked like a normal bed. Once he got used to this i put the "real" bed in his room to get used to it. Then I made the switch. children hate change its always best to do it gradually. Hoped this helped.

Singer73

There a\re sets of cartoon characters stickers (really big ones) that you can get - decorate the walls with them, and make sure the child is included in this. This way it make sit more like 'their' room. Maybe get a mattress you can put near the bed, so you can lie there for a while, and leave without disturbing.

di11on

With both our kids, we had the opposite problem.

Neither of our two girls were real climbers but when they were each around 2 yrs, we decided it was time to take the sides off their cot beds. For months after, they would still call from their beds when they woke in the morning, just like they did from their cots... waiting for someone to come get them. Was about two months before our first realised they could just come down and come out of the room herself. The second still doesn't realise she can do this after 3 months!!!!

Is that worrying?

The only advice I've heard on this before that seemed to make to me is to give them a bear or some sort of character to guard them. Best of luck OP!