Sleep consultant Kildare? Toddlers sleeping issues

Ooo30

Hi thanks for taking the time to read this.

We have a 14 month old toddler at home and a newborn 7 days old.

The 14 month old has never been a great sleeper and we probably should have done something about it sooner.

She struggles to settle herself and it's a rarity were she just nods off on her own for naps or at night time.

She won't go down at night till about half nine or ten and even at that she needs a bottle and to fall asleep on us then transferred to the cot were inevitably she wakes during the night anywhere from 2a.m to 6 a.m were she won't/can't settle herself so my partner end up taking her into the spare bedroom were she takes a bit of time to settle and eventually goes back asleep again.

What tends to wake her up is she tosses and turns a lot in her sleep so she ends up banging her head and waking up.

I'm just looking for a sleep consultant to come in and help us is there any people could recommend? Or even any tips people may have?

monflat

Congrats by the way
personally I wouldn't waste your money because at the Moment your toddler will be put out anyways that a new baby has arrived
You just will have to start to do the exact same things every night.
Routine.
Like bath story bed or
Story bottle bed.
It will take some time.

My middle child went totally off the rails when her younger brother was born. It took her 4 months to get right again.

These early days with the new baby are hard so I would suggest routine and plenty of help too as you will be tired from night feeds.
Try not to make too many changes as yet as having a new sibling is extremely upsetting for some children.

Julo12

A sleep consultant might help you stick to a plan but I doubt they'll have any better techniques than you can get online or in books.
Agree that new baby is going to make this v difficult if not impossible. Our previously great sleeper went a bit mental when the new baby arrived and it took ages to get back on track. One of us just slept with her for a few months til I was brave enough to tackle the issue!
In the meantime, as she was cranky from lack of night time sleep we did whatever we had to to get her to nap so walk in the buggy or drive in the car and made sure she got at least 1 hr, preferably 2.
To tackle the night sleep I started routine really early. You target a bedtime of say 8pm and work backwards so if u think it'll take an hr to settle then bring them up at 7

Julo12

Sorry didn't get to finish.. Once she'd had bath or shower it was into pjs then btl of warm milk in her room then into cot/bed. Lights out and I'd stay in her room til she fell asleep. For first wk that could take up to an hr as she'd keep checking I was there. Luckily baby was small enough I could feed her and then hold her while she slept. Then baby was left downstairs or in her own room so I'd have to go check on her and I'd say I'll be right back to check on you. After a wk or so of this she was ok with going to bed having a story then I could leave.
We had set backs tho where I'd have to start again and I took every opportunity to say big girls sleep all night long! Even now she repeats that to me nearly every morning! I did a reward chart but yours is probably too young for that. Not too young to keep repeating things like time for sleep now and big praise when she does have a good nights sleep/nap

How Strange

I really wouldn't be trying to tackle her poor sleeping habits right now. She's going to be totally out of sorts with the arrival of a new sibling.

Secondly, don't waste your money on a sleep consultant. They'll show you exactly what you'll read in a book and then leave you to do the hard work yourself. In 2-3 months time read Elizabeth Pantleys the no cry sleep solution. My daughter was awful for bad sleeping habits and I found the gentle techniques in this book great. We are still using them over a year later. However the main things with a new night time routine is perseverance and consistency. Children who are bad sleepers need to learn exactly what to expect every night. I found the 2-3 weeks I was trying to break the bad habit and start the good habit was very tough but on 4th week we saw real improvements which motivated is to keep going. However at the start we were getting even less sleep at night so you really just have to stick with it.

livinsane

I'd start by working on an earlier bedtime. How many naps a day does she usually have? If more than one, maybe it's time to cut it back to one.

I'm certainly no expert, my two year old still wakes a few times a night but he's in bed early and gets a good stretch at the start. He was absolutely dire at fourteen months though. Just improving with age really.

Congratulations on the new baby.

LegacyUser

I would echo what other posters have said.I do know someone who used a sleep consultant, and sent me their notes....but I can tell you what is in the notes is almost exactly what is in any sleep book for babies that is on the market.I had one sleeping book, and I used tips from it but adapted to suit a bit.The main points are a good, consistent bedtime routine between 7 and 8, they have to be able to fall asleep themselves (so have to go into bed awake but drowsy) and no bottles or dribks or anything like that.Most places say no soother either, but we do use one.You can cry it out or try gradually removing yourself from the room (by gradually i mean over 3-4 nights).Any wakings during the night have to be treated the same way as falling asleep at bedtime...so say you chose to sit in the room (not touching the child) and keep telling them it's time for sleep, then that's what you do when they wake at night.For as long as it takes.They have to understand that night is for sleeping and they don't get out of bed during it (unless sick or something, obviously)I also know that if they wake at night, resettling them every ten mins is a good method...so leave for ten mins, go in and resettle (dont take them out of bed), then leave again...repeat as necessary.

It will take a week or two to settle but the worst should be over after the first 4 or 5 nights.But basically, whether you use a consultant or not, it has to be you giving the consistent, repetitive response for as long as it takes.