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How to help a 2 year old fall asleep on her own?

504 views 1 reply 2 participants last post by  Mommiska 
#1 ·
We have a very successful night time routine. We read brush teeth, read books together and then cuddle to sleep while listening to music). Always effective, dd always goes down easily. She loves the cuddles with mama. If she wakes in the night, it just takes cuddles to sleep again (occassionally a sip of water first). We cosleep too. I love cuddling with her too.

The problem is that in the process of cuddling her to sleep, I often fall asleep too, but I have things I need to do after she goes to sleep, plus I wouldn't mind a little time to myself too and on weekends, some time with DH (he's working during the week). Also, if she should wake before I get back into bed, she cries till I cuddle her again. In the early hours of the morning, she sleeps pretty lightly and cuddles almost the whole time (like maybe 2 or so on).

How can I get her to learn to fall asleep without me at bedtime? and so if she wakes up before I get back to bed, she can fall back asleep on her own?
 
#2 ·
Hi - this is such a hard stage - it can be difficult to get anything done when we fall asleep with the kiddos at night. I've been there, done that.


I was wondering how old your daughter is? My 2 year old has needed either Mom or Dad to stay in his room with him until he fell asleep...it's perhaps a bit easier for us, as we moved him into his own cot/room way back when...so he would lie in the cot, and I would sit on the single bed in his room until he fell asleep (or until I woke up and realised that he was asleep!).

Since he turned 2 (back in September), we've occasionally 'checked' to see how well he handled us leaving the room before he was asleep. I'd tell him I needed to check something, and I'd be right back. Then I'd leave for a bit - if he was immediately distressed (which he was at the beginning!), I'd go right back in and leave it for a week or two before trying again.

Anyway - about a month ago, he got to the place that he could just fall asleep on his own. We kind of built up the time that we'd spend out of his room before coming back to check on him. And always came back if he was distressed at all...

Anyway - now I nurse him and put him to bed. Tell him good night and that I'll be back to check on him. I usually go back in about 10 minutes, and 9 times out of 10, he's asleep. If he happens to be awake, I usually sit with him for 1-2 minutes, then leave again, telling him I'll be back to check...when I go back the second time, he's always out like a light!

Can't really help too much with the night time wakings and co-sleeping, but that is what worked for us at bedtime. I think it was a develomental thing for ds...at 2 years, he wasn't ready to fall asleep on his own, but at 2.5 years old he was...
 
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