Help with 2 Year Old Waking with Nighmares

The mind isn't fully asleep when we dream, and if he's going to bed too late, he could be having dreams as a result, like these nightmares. If that's not the case, maybe he has seen something on tv or a movie that needs to be explained to him or something. How much does he watch tv. If that's not it, maybe he just has a really good imagination...
When I was little I was SERIOUSLY scared to death of alligators under my bed... I would wake up needing to pee and would JUMP off my bed and dart for the door so they couldn't get me, then I would RUN back to my bed and HOP onto it so they couldn't reach out and grab me....... but my bed was my safe spot, the alligators couldn't get me there.
You should be thankful that he is coming to you to talk about these things, cause when I was little I never went to my parents about it, I kept it my little secret and that's how I ended up when I got older too, never told my parents things I should have, and hid things from them. I think nightmares are totally normal, everyone gets them, and you should be glad he comes to you for comfort.

My daughter went through a phase like that I think when she was around 3. I think her episodes fit the description of "night terrors." I had read about them in various books. One thing that I looked at was whether she was a little sleep deprived - maybe she was giving up her nap or she had been going to bed late several nights in a row, or both. A little extra sleep seemed to help. It sounds like you're doing the "right" thing in the middle of the night - taking him back to bed, etc. Maybe look up "night terrors." Good luck, it will probably pass with a little reassurance from you.

My daughter started having nightmares for a brief period of time right before turning 3. While not as intense as you're describing, she would get scared at bedtime and say she was having dreaming of a lion and tiger coming after her. We have kind of an animal theme going in her room with pictures of different animals, and I noticed a picture of a lion and tiger. I pointed at it and asked if I should take it out of her room, and she said yes. Then, we have a picture that her uncle drew for her that if kind of an abstract pastel little-girl type picture. I put that where she could see it from her bed and told her it was little-girl dreamland, and told her there were things like puppies and ice cream and friends to play with there, and told her that she could go there in her sleep. After talking her through it for a few minutes, she went to bed without a problem, and the next morning when she woke up, she said, "I had good dreams! I went there!" and pointed to the picture. Focusing her on the picture when she gets scared has helped since then as well. Good luck!
T.

I have had siblings with night terrors and even a friend in high school who screamed at night in her sleep, but also I've had kids with what you described. I think todays TV and movies are maybe more scary than we think to little 2 year olds who seem fine in the day and then relive it all at night. I would always read a story to my kids before bedtime, usually a Bible story and then another one and we would talk about it and how God protects us and loves us, etc. When they would wake scared, if they did, I would put them in bed, we'd talk about nothing to worry about as God was there and then we would pray. Even the little ones would calm down with that reassurance. I'm sure it won't always work as it doesn't always work with mature adults who know better but it is a very calming way to remind them there is no need for fear. I think the 2 yr. old will get over it but in the meantime you are helping him learn how to deal with future fears. I think talk of trucks and sirens, etc. are a sign he's reliving his TV from the daytime. Maybe watch more calm shows for a bit too. My grandson watched Thomas for a year before he suddenly became afraid of some of the trains on there. Funny how they suddenly think differently as they mature and realize faces they didn't see before, etc.

this sounds like night terrors, but is he remembering
any of this when he is awake during the day? my sons
pediatrician said this was the difference between night
terrors and nightmares. my son started having night
terrors at a bit past 2 years of age. they usually
came at about 1 1/2 to 2 hours after he fell asleep
and with him it began with a piercing shriek followed
by a lot of screaming and thrashing, sometimes for a
good half hour or more. trying to comfort him made it
worse and he didn't seem to really be awake at all
during it. but when he awoke in the morning or from
his nap after one of these he was totally fine, no
left over tears or fearfulness. his doctor said it
was a phase a lot of little kids go thru and for a night
terror it was best to do nothing and let it run its
course. he said that a child having a night terror is
still technically sleeping and that trying to awaken
them can actually frighten them and also make it very
hard to get them back to sleep. in a nightmare or bad
dream the child wakes up from sleep and remembers that
he is frightened and will want comforting.
one of the harder things I had to do was to do nothing
when my son had a night terror. he still has 1 or 2 of
them a month, but the only person they seem to traumatize
is me! I do go into his room and lay next to
his bed until he quiets down again because I am still
afraid he's going to hurt himself sometimes. he gets
violent! he thrashes and kicks the wall and swings out
screaming at the top of his lungs the whole time. but
he is totally disconnected from his awake world and the
doctor said that this behavior during a night terror
was pretty much normal. he said he will grow out of them
in a year or two. so don't worry. I know it is hard,
believe me, but give him whatever comfort he will take
and encourage him to go back to sleep. it's all you can
really do. good luck!

My son has had periodic nightmares and we talk about them. "The ghosts/monsters on Scooby Doo...are they real? Noooooo! They're always somebody playin' a trick!" Sometimes he wouldn't be scared, he would get his feelings hurt in a dream and that would upset him even more.

Now, before bed we talk about what exciting dreams he might have. "Maybe you will ride on Thomas (the train) and you can help deliver kids to a birthday party!" I give him lots of fun details to think about and hope that some will stick. They say you often dream about the last thoughts in your mind before you drift off! Lots of times he will wake up and get excited telling me about his dream and they are sometimes similar to the stories we talk about. Who knows?!

I agree with Beth that these are "night terrors"....I remember my youngest going through this for a while when she was about 2 or 3 years old. I do not think that you are going to be able to reasonably expect him to comfort himself back to sleep without you or your husband being there. You wouldnt expect him to take care of himself and comfort himself after being hurt or scared really badly by something during the day....a 2 year old just simply isnt capable of that. He needs the assurance that he can only get from his Momma and Daddy at times like this. Be patient...this will not last forever...and as Beth suggested, I would good night terrors and see what the "experts" have to say on the subject.
R. Ann

Another vote for night terrors. Our Parent Educator just visited a few weeks ago with our 2 year old and she reminded me that this is prime time (2-3years old) for them. The children are finally developing their own sense of imagination at this time and they are begining to have more vivid dreams etc. She suggested just sitting in their room until calmed down. Get a drink of water and put them back to bed when ready. The only other "preventative" tip she said was to remind your children at night in a simple prayer (if you do that) for God to protect you and give you a peaceful rest. Remind your child that you are always safe in your home and that Mommy and Daddy are always there to protect you. She mentioned that sometimes this would give the children a safe feeling going to sleep and MAYBE let them drift off to sleep feeling safe and happy. It is just a phase and should go away on it's own. I think my now 5 year old only woke up about 6 times total with them. Good Luck!

Hi C.!

My son is 4 and still does this. He started it when he was 2. It is not an every night thing. But you are right about it scaring you. It scares me too. I think their little minds are just absorbing so much during the day, so it makes for really active dreams. You are doing the right thing by comforting him and then putting him back in his bed. That's really all you can do. I know it's hard to go back to sleep once they scare you awake. I hope that you can find a way to calm your nerves after those times. Congrats on the new one to come. And just know you aren't alone! Good luck!

Yes, this is a stage that they go through and I have to agree that movies and TV do not help. I noticed with our oldest that she would do it more after watching certain movies. She loved the movies and didn't have any problems while she watched them, but then would wake up with nightmares that night. It is good that he can tell you what he is scarred of. Listen to what he says and try to eliminate anything movies or TV that he watches that has those things in it. It probably won't completely stop him from having the nightmares but it will help. Also talk to him about scary situations and help him to understand how to solve problems. A lot of times nightmares come because you have something on your mind that is not resolved. For a little guy, it might be something quite simple but he is struggling with it and you just need to help him understand.

a lot of good suggestions here, one thing i always try to do is put myself in my son's shoes (he's 2 1/2). i figure, everything is so new to them, and dreams are too. even if it was a totally "normal", walking down the street and a purple firetruck with wings drives by, kind of dream, it would freak you out if you never had a dream before. just the "realness" while still being totally "unreal" could be pretty freaky if you didn't know what was going on. it sounds like he's not scared to go back to bed or anything, and that's a good sign. i would say keep doing what you're doing, listen to what he's telling you about them, reassure him, and help him back to bed. try not to let it freak you out, of course that will just make it worse. it sounds like you're doing exactly what you should. hope it gets better.

Good Morning C.. I understand what your going through finally. Our gr son Corbin will be 4 this month. I take care of him and his baby brother Zane 17 months daily. Last night Mom and Dad decided it was finally date night for them so I went over, took the boys to dinner and back home to play before bedtime.
All went ok until it was time to put Corbin down. He had been the best like your little man about going to bed, since he was 2 and got his big boy bed. Bathroom, teeth brushed, drink of water, prayers, hugs kisses night night.

He goes to bed at 8 on the dot. I had his brother down at 7. Corbin found all kinds of reasons why he didn't want to go to bed. Didn't like his room, not enough stuffed animals in bed with him, his room was messy. I hadn't told him enough stories... etc It was 9 and Mom and Dad were coming in the door. I had sat with him resting my head on his bed, he didn't want me to shut my eyes. I had never had a problem with him ever before going to bed.

Our son said this is what has been happening for the last month or so. When he finally gets to sleep he wakes up around 2-3 crying and goes to their room.
His room is closer to the street and Gen thinks he hears cars going by and it scares him. We are in a very small town and not much traffic after 10 at all. ( side walks roll up at 8:30) lol This is a boy when he hears the train going through town gets up moves the blinds and watches the train go by a block away, then goes back to bed. We're stumped!!

Last night Mom sat with him a little while, talked to him, snuggled and let him ask questions and favors. Tears still rolling down his face every time she was going to leave the room. He has a wonderful imagination so I went in like I did with our son's and told him to shut his eye's and think of bunny rabbits in the grass, butterflies landing on the flowers, pretty clouds moving across the sky, puppy dogs chasing their ball. *Laughing* he looked at me and said Nana it's dark in my eye's, I can't see them. I chuckled a little and told him he can do it like he does when we pretend to be dinosaurs. He was so tired if we could just get him to close his eyes for 5 minutes he would be out.

There is something really bothering him and none of us have figured it out either. I mentioned to our son and daughter in law several Mama's have mentioned their children going through the same thing recently.

I left at 9:45 and he had finally settled down and was asleep.

We are at a loss also C., so I am praying for you and others that we can all figure out some answers. Will be interested in what other mama's advise or suggest.

God Bless
K. Nana of 5
PS he slept through the night no waking up last night!!