3 Year Old Waking Me up Every Night

She is probably very aware that something is up--you are pregnant! I felt so sad when I read that you thought rubbing her back is a bad habit--children(actually all of us) need touch! Spend more time rubbing her back at bed time not less maybe then she will not get up in the night--however she needs to learn that it does not have to be until she falls asleep. Maybe a timer would help--I will spend half hour with you rubbing your back and cuddling, reading stories but then I need time for myself and if you are not sleepy you can... cuddle your doll, listen to music(soft, relaxing only), "read" a book etc. Then do NOT rub her back when she gets up duringthe night--you can train her that she has the right to cuddling and touch but not when you are sleeping! This is what I would do with my second daughter who would not sleep at night. The key is to be consistent--give her what she needs while giving you what you need! You might start on the weekend because you will get less sleep at first until she is with the routine.

HI A.. Does your little one have a special thing that she thinks of as a person? My daughter has her blankie and bear that she has to have to sleep with. No Bear, No Sleep (that is what she told our neice who babysat one night, I laughed my butt off). Your little one is at the age where she might need a comfort item with her. I would take her to the store to pick one out, and then tell her she doesn't need momie to rub her back, she needs to rub bears back or something along those lines. Also, I think before you can break the habbit of rubbing her back to sleep during the night, you will need to break the habbit of rubbing her back to sleep at the start of the night. Also, what time is she getting up in the morning, if she is getting up at 6am, she might not be going to bed early enough at night. I would try putting her to bed at 8pm (maybe even having dady do it to break the back rubbing habbit) and feeding her a good solid snack right before bed. I do bath, pjs, cuddle, bowl of cereal, bed with my 2 yo. If you are going to change a part of her schedule to break the back rubbing, it might be good to change the whole thing, in preperation for the new baby, explain to her that she is a big girl now. Should also help the transition with a new baby on her/his way. Good luck!

Our daughter (who turned four in May) just started going to sleep on her own and basically sleeping through the night. I am a teacher, and I told her when she turned four (and I was home for the summer) that she was going to start going to bed by herself. We talked about it for weeks (if not months) beforehand. I also bought her some appliques from Target. Each night that she slept by herself and went to bed by herself, she could put an applique up in her room. Since the first night, she has done great. Occasionally she wakes in the middle of the night (she actually showed up in our bed sometime in the middle of the night last night), but those nights are few and far between. We read at bedtime and my husband pats her back for about five minutes and then we leave the room. Good luck to you. Hope this helps!

These are similar to the ones we bought:

http://www.bizrate.com/baby_toddlerbedding/oid463765295__...

Hi A..
I know your pain! MY 4 year old daughter is a terrible sleeper!
I have 3 children and one on the way! Out of the 3 that are already here, she is by far the worst. She fights me going to bed and always has a reason why she cant sleep. She also will come in our room around 3 in the morning and tap me on the shoulder telling me she cant sleep or asking if I will get her a bowl of cereal!! It drives me crazy! I asked our Dr if there might be some sort of problem and he said that some kids are really good sleepers and some are not! AHHHH! That was no help. Im exhausted. So my husband and I are trying little things to help her not only go to bed but stay there.
The first thing we do is allow her to pick out a book or small toy every night and she is allowed to read the book (look at the pictures ) or play with the toy for a half hour after we put her in bed. We also bought some childrens books on CD which we play for her everynight as well. ( we read to her before bed, so we dont use that as a replacement, just an aid in sleeping) Most nights she will fall asleep while listening to the CD and holding her book or toy.
The next thing we did was I bought a cheap timer at Target and plugged a night light into it. I set the timer to turn the nightlight off in the morning around 6:30am. I told her that if she wakes up in the middle of the night and the light is on, then she knows she isnt allowed to get out of bed. If the light is off, she can come out! Most nights it works. We've had a few kinks, but Im hoping that this will help her body get into a routine and will not only let us get some sleep but her as well! IM sure you will get some great advice on here! Hope you find something that works! Congrats on the pregnancy!

Hi A.,

Maybe buy her a soft baby doll for her to sleep with, and as your preg progresses teach her that your body needs to sleep for the baby to grow. So together the both of you can take care of your babies at nighttime. At 3 they love having a sense of responsibility.

A chart might help, too, for keeping track of uninterrupted nights. Each morning thank her for a good night's sleep, letting her know that the baby really liked it, too.

After like 5 straight nights or so, give her a small prize or just a sticker.

Good luck! I have 3 1/2 yr-old boy/girl twins and a good night's sleep is my top priority still!!

K.

My daughter did this exact same thing! Well, I never rubbed her back until she fell asleep, but she always came to my side of bed and said "will you put me back in bed?" I did it the first night, and then when she asked the second night I realized that it was going to become habit. So, I said "No, you go put yourself to bed", then of course came the "but...". I just told her "Don't argue with me, and go to bed..NOW." Then I turn over, and she goes to bed. Now, she'll get up and go potty and just head right back to bed everytime without bothering me. You have to remember that kids will only try to get away with what they're allowed to get away with. There's no reason for you to have to get out of bed to put your daughter back in bed. Plus, I am a strong believer of the importance of a child's learning and practicing of their own independence. I believe the more things in their lives they can be independent on, the better prepared they are for the days they start school, show up for their first day in a sport, and other things they do without their mom and dad. If a mother answers every request of her child, and those requests are ones which take away from a child's independency, those children are more likely to be uncomfortable at school until they grow used to it. My children both said "Mommy I want to walk into school all by myself" on their first day of preschool. I was the ONLY mother in the carpool line for their age group! I wasn't sad though, I was bursting with pride. There were my little babies, proving to me and themselves that they are strong enough and confident enough to take that kind of step without holding their mommy's hand. It may seem like something as small as putting her back into bed doesn't matter, but it really does, all those little things add up to her own amount of security within herself.