Sleeping Problems - Rush,KY

Hi.Have you tried to not let her go to bed when she wants to. Let her stay up later I had to do that with my son around that age. My son is adhd he was on meds. But it was interfing with his heart causing black out spells. and he has alerges and on meds for that. We took him off and so far for 1 1/2 years now no problems with spells. I'm like you now after listening to a friend of mine I don't like meds either. Hope to help out if that will work P..

I hate to say it, but it could just be a phase! My daughter was an awful sleeper, waking up 2-3 times a night after I thought we had her sleeping through the night.

I would be cautious about GIVING her ANYTHING to help her sleep. What happens when you stop giving it? Will she revert back to her wakefulness? Instead try dealing with the cause. Something I have been interested in BUT NOT TRIED is the Feingold diet. Perhaps there is something in her diet (besides sugar) that is causing her to be awake more. You can google to find info.

hope that helps,
B.

Go to www.hylands.com. Go to products and look at Calms Forte 4 Kids. You can buy it at almost any store. Walgreens, WalMart, Kroger, Target, etc. I used their teething tablets as well. I love how safe all their products are. Here is some info on the Calms Forte that I've copied off the website:

Watching your restless child toss like a tiny boat in rough seas, you’d give anything to bring on the calm. These sleepless nights are heartbreaking as much as they are exhausting – for both of you. But even the youngest human body has the ability to re-establish balance and health – including rejuvenating sleep patterns. The trick to achieving this balance lies in your ability to provide safe relief that targets the causes that keep kids up at night. Hyland’s created Calms Forté 4 Kids™ for just this reason.

This medicine is designed to safely and effectively counteract mental and physical restlessness in children. Studies show that 69% of our children under 10 years of age are prone to some kind of sleep problem. This doesn’t mean that your child needs to suffer. Calms Forté 4 Kids™ addresses the causes that inhibit a child from sleeping well. Your child won’t wake up groggy like he or she might, when given over-the-counter drugs containing diphenhydramine (such as Benadryl®). This is significant for school-age children who need to be alert first thing in the morning.

Like all of our homeopathic medicines, Calms Forté 4 Kids™ is a formulation of all natural, safe and effective ingredients. A calmative solution to restlessness, this medicine comes in easy-to-administer tablets that dissolve almost instantly in the mouth. Calms Forté 4 Kids™ works without side effects and won't interact with other medications.

125 quick-dissolving tablets, easy to administer

Formulated for children ages 2 and up

No side effects

Can be used with other medications without contraindications or drug interactions

Aspirin- and acetaminophen-free

Addresses other causes that can inhibit children from sleeping well, including night terrors, growing pains, and sleeplessness from vacation travel.

Useful for irritability and wakefulness

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If you don't like the Hylands, you can go to any pharmacy and ask about what dosage of Melatonin would be safe for a 21mth old. It's also an all natural supplement available anywhere. Good luck, I know that's very difficult to deal with! I hope it works for your daughter. =0)

D., I have to agree with some of the others that maybe she is just overly tired? My son is almost 5 and still gets up once or twice at night. When he is in daycare, he takes naps and then sleeps very well at night. We are currently staying home with mom so no naps....little sleep. They'll behave much better and get their rest. As for the eating...he doesn't eat much at one time because his pacemaker sits on his tummy, so we have something, usually a bowl of cereal, just before bedtime. I'm not sure the sweet cereal would be ok for her, although, when they come off the "sugar high" they'll crash. LOL! Just a thought! I wish y'all the very best of luck and hope everything works out.

Hi D.,

I have an up-coming parenting course on-line that helps parents bring our their children's best, how to set effective limits without physical or emotional punishment. You may be interested in checking it out. Parents who go through the program have 100% success getting their young children to be more cooperative without threatening, yelling, or spanking.

My website is www.noblemother.com or feel free to call me if you have questions at ###-###-####; I'm a Parent Educator, Coach, and Facilitator.

All the Best,
R.

I agree with Sarah T... I know it sounds crazy, but try an earlier bedtime. Kids that are lacking sleep are generally overstimulated, and will have trouble staying asleep throughout the night. Also, don't skip naps. That just adds to the problem, and makes them even more hyper. I don't know what her bedtime currently is, but I would start by putting her down about 15-20 minutes earlier every few days until you notice an improvement. When my son was that age, we started getting ready for bed at 6:30 with him being asleep by 7:30 at the latest!! Good luck!

It sounds like she is overstimulated. Don't skip naps. In fact a good nap during the day and an eariler (rather than later) bedtime is better. At almost two she should be getting a nap in the afternoon that lasts at least 2 hours. It is good for her to run and get out her energy, but also make sure that it is paired with down times. No tv or music, just time to look at books or play in her room with a toy or two.

Hi D.,

There are natural things that will help her sleep and if it comes to that, it would be safe to try. Pharmaceuticals are scary at any age, but especially for little ones. They affect their bodies differently and then a really little one can't express what is going on in their body either.

If she's waking in the middle of the night and you think she's hyper, then there is probably something stimulating her while in bed. Laundry detergents and synthetic mattresses are neurological stimulants and keep me up at night too if I'm exposed to them. I have detoxed my house and seen better sleep patterns in my family and illnesses have vanished...My youngest had her diagnosis of ADHD removed after we detoxed.

If your daughter wants more information, please tell her to get in touch with me. I'd love to help.

Regards,

M.

It is good that you limit the sweets in your daughter's diet, but there are many other culprits that could be super-charging your little girl. Check out www.feingold.org. Feingold is a 30yr old non-profit organization whose purpose is to inform the public about petroleum-based artificial ingredients in our food supply. These harmful additives cause ADD, ADHD, and many other behavioral, emotional and physical side effects. Feingold is a leading authority on this subject and has helped thousands of families over the years. Our oldest daughter had many sleep issues until we discovered Feingold. Best wishes.

We had the same problems for awhile and someone told me to make naps very consistent at the exact times that our little guy exhibited sleepiness. It has worked like a charm. It took a little work on our parts to make sure it happened properly, but he still takes naps and sleeps 10-11 hours at night. So worth the frustration. Once they get overtired it is almost impossible to get them to sleep. They have gotten so much stimulation their little minds go into high gear. Good luck to you and your daughter.

I'm assuming she is sharing a room with her sister and you are unable to separate them. It's not uncommon for children this age not to sleep through the night. I remember taking my now 8 year old son to the doctor at around 19 months old because I would put him to bed and he would be up within a few hours, ready to play. It pure exhausted me. The doctor said at that age they can't evaluate for hyperactivity/ADD/ADHD. I asked what was wrong and she asked if he had any behavioral problems and I told her no because he was so well behaved. She said he was a high energy kid that didn't need the sleep that other children needed and to put him to bed when I wanted to go to bed and let him sleep as long as he would and eventually he would outgrow it. As long as there are no behavior problems she probably just doesn't need the sleep. As parent we tend to put are children down around 8-8:30 every night because we think they need all that sleep. With my 8 year old, that's the exact opposite. I put him to bed about 30 minutes before I go to bed just so he will sleep the same schedule as mine. My other son, however, goes to bed at 8:30 every night and sleeps until 7-7:30 the next morning. Ask your daughter to put her to bed and have her sleep the same hours as her. It may work. It did for me. If I was going to bed at 10:30, my son was in bed at 10-10:15. He would sleep til around 6:00 - 6:30 which was perfect because I was getting up then to get ready for work. Also, with children that age, if you give them any bit of sleep they are up for the long haul. My youngest can get a 5 minute nap and be ready to go for hours. Good luck!

There are a couple of things I didn't notice anyone mention, that may be worth considering. Dietary/nutrition can also overstimulate a child system. Especially caffeine (an accepted drug found in drinks and chocolate, for instance) in various foods. It may be helpful to check in with Dietitian or Nutritionist at your local Health Dept or Coop. Minimizing processed foods and increasing whole foods may help, and certainly not hurt.

In addition to creating a dark cozy room and routine, consider trying some soft relaxing music, such as classical or New Age. I started doing that with my child when she was a baby, to help her go and stay asleep. For her, it worked like a dream. At 4, she still loves to have her classical music at night. It helps me fall asleep as well, for we still use a monitor.

I hope you're able to find something that works for your family soon. Going without sleep can effect your hormonal levels even more. And we all know they severely effected during and after pregnancy as it is. ;-)

I had a similar problem with my now 4 yr old boy. He done it to me all the time. He never slept well. He would go to bed round 830-9 and be up at 2am ready to jam. At his 4 yr old well child checkup they happened to look at his throat. He had huge tonsils and adnoids. I had also asked about his snoring. It used to sound like he was a grown man snoring. The doc told me it was probably the reason he had not been sleeping well. She said he was probably experiencing sleep apnea. I then took him to a ears, nose and throat specialist 1 week later and he said that it was a wonder he was sleeping at all. 2 weeks later we had the t and a's out and he now sleeps like a baby is suppose to sleep with no snoring. It is worth a shot to ask the doc.

dont get her out of her crib. leave her in there she will go back to sleep maybe not the first night or even the 5th but it will happen stay strong and dont cave! if she stays up for a long time screaming go pat her back sing to her but do not get her out. dont let her have this much control!

Are you sure she's not getting any caffeine during the day (tea, Mountain Dew/Mellow Yellow, etc)? I know if I drink anything with caffeine in it I'm wide awake like FOURTEEN hours later and wondering why I'm exhausted but not sleepy. Just a thought . . .

Sounds like you have gotten a lot of great suggestions. I want to also suggest making sure her room is totally dark to increase her natural production of melatonin which will help to keep her asleep.

Dark walls, thick dark drapes on the windows, no electronics like the time on a digital clock, and no night light. If she is scared without a night light, try turning it off after she is asleep. Good luck!

I had a lot of luck with a book The No Cry Sleep Solution for Babies. I know there is one for toddlers too. It's by Elizabeth Pantley. There is lots of good info in it on why children have sleep issues and how their bodies work. It makes it easier to figure out what to do when you understand why they are doing it. And then she gives some great techniques to try. I would recommend that. Also, has she asked her pediatrician? I would check with a dr before I gave my child ANYTHING, natural, herbal or whatever. My doc has warned me away from some things that are over the counter and seem safe. And the pediatrician can help with suggestions and explanations also.

One thing that I learned with my baby is that being over-tired actually makes the night waking worse. Skipping naps and late bedtimes has the opposite effect. They aren't like adults that will sleep through the night when they are exhausted. The book really helped me when I was desperate. He was a terrible sleeper but things are much better now that I know a little about how his brain works. I was doing everything wrong! Good luck.

Hello,
I feel your pain:) I think her schedule may need adjusting. The baby whisperer for toddler's is an EXCELLENT book. She may actually need more sleep. I read that if kid's don't go to bed early enough, it can make them get up earlier and act the way you are describing. The book is written by Tracy Hogg, she is awesome, there are schedules in it to follow. Best of luck, and stay strong! :)
A.

Hi D.,
We have the same problem with our 3 year old grandson. It has always been an issue, his energy level in the middle of the night. He too has had all the necessary things implemented in his activity,no naps,and also wants to go to bed around 7 or 8pm, but now, he says at bedtime "I want to go take a nap". What to do? We don't know either. It's sometimes is worse than other times, it's like as if normal times of not being nocturnal happen, and then a switch is flipped and he's back to being a problem during the night.
I hear you about sweets, but I've asked my daughter to fill his tummy with hot oatmeal cereal at bedtime. Not really a wonderful habit I realize, but when she has done that, it seems to fill his tummy and he does sleep through the night. Then, getting up at 5 or 6 is tolerable, especially when school is in session and his older brother (7) has to get up to go to school. Now the older brother has always been a very good sleeper. No fuss at bedtime and has slept through the night since he was 5 months old. I actually was the one that implemented his schedule by allowing him to calm himself down when he was a baby, it took a week, but, my daughter said it was the best gift anyone ever gave her. She was too disturbed by him crying himself to sleep. You know, I told her each night it would be fewer and fewer minutes until it was accomplished. I think when his new brother came home the whole thing was geared around his older brother's rest. In other words, she wouldn't allow him to cry himself to sleep because it would wake his preschool brother's rest. Also, as a baby my youngest grandson was a constant spit up baby, she was afraid of him choking. Valid worry, but with that I think some bad habits were formed. What do you think? Did that happen with your youngest, was she put to bed after her oldest so her sister could get her rest needed for school?
I'd say try the cereal and see if it helps. I'm 10 years older than you, I don't know if that makes a difference except we both know how the philosophy in baby books changed every few years about what to feed, how much to feed, when to feed, seemed to rotate every so often. Back then I stayed in the hospital for almost a week when she was born. I gave her a "shot" size portion of rice cereal the first night she came home and she slept through the night from day 1. Let me know if you get any ideas that have valid outcomes. I don't believe in medicating a child for these reasons either. Good luck and here's hoping a mom out there has a really good remedy.

I have a 4 year old son who is very active. We would put him to bed at 8:30 or so, or if on his own would fall aspleep a little earlier - without fail he would wake up at around midnight or 1 AM ready to take on the day. We tried no naps, extra outings, just like you are trying. Then one of my friends who is an elementary teacher suggested I try Melatonin which is a dietary supplement. All natural. It helps them go to sleep and stay asleep. I did some research on the internet, went to the health food store and talked to the manager who suggested I start out with .05 mg about 20 minutes before bedtime. It works. I don't give this to him every day. During the week when it's important that he gets a good 8 to 10 hours of sleep (and me) is when I give it to him. It also helps their body to get on a schedule. It's a suggestion to try, they are not expensive. Sometimes your body does not produce enough melatonin and this helps supplement that situation. Good luck.