Toddler suddenly super clingy at bedtime

73trix

My little lad has generally been pretty good going to bed, once he has his dodie. Now we fund ourselves with a battle every eve of crying when either parent leaves the room etc. We had a phase of this when he was lots younger but it passed. Now, unfortunately it's back!! Seems the only way to get him back to sleep is to lie down beside cot and he will reach out to touch us / grab our hand / hair and then he could go off in 5 min or 25min. Unfortunately it's a habit now for nearly 2wks and a head wreck. Why again, suddenly now?

ncmc

73trix wrote: »

My little lad has generally been pretty good going to bed, once he has his dodie. Now we fund ourselves with a battle every eve of crying when either parent leaves the room etc. We had a phase of this when he was lots younger but it passed. Now, unfortunately it's back!! Seems the only way to get him back to sleep is to lie down beside cot and he will reach out to touch us / grab our hand / hair and then he could go off in 5 min or 25min. Unfortunately it's a habit now for nearly 2wks and a head wreck. Why again, suddenly now?

What age is he 73trix? My little girl (2.5) has been weird at bedtime that last couple of months. Nothing as bad as that, but very particular on routines, certain songs have to be sung, has to be tucked in a certain way, teddies have to be tucked in a certain way, head has to be stroked a certain way etc etc! If you do one step wrong, you have to go back in and do over! It's a bit frustrating, but I have read that it is quite common at this age, so I'm trying not to worry about it and hope it passes in time!

pwurple

Same here on the 2.5 year old. Some kind of separation anxiety. I'm just going with it and staying til she sleeps. Her sister was the same, it passed.

Lucuma

You don't mention the child's age? We've had a sudden change at bedtimes here as well with a 2yr 3mo old. She has always been a great sleeper and suddenly now she wants the light left on, she doesn't want to go to bed, there's battles and tears every night, she wants this, that and the other. She is also climbing out of travel cot (we move around a lot so she's often in a travel cot) not out of the big cot yet but it's just a matter of time. The fact she has a choice about staying in bed or not is melting her head (and ours) she has been up til 1am some nights. I'm trying not to let it develop into a situation where she sleeps with us or we have to sleep with her coz with a young baby and living in an apartment we're not set up for that. Major separation anxiety going on here as well in general, if I leave the room or try to go to the toilet without her for example!!

73trix

Lucuma wrote: »

You don't mention the child's age? We've had a sudden change at bedtimes here as well with a 2yr 3mo old. She has always been a great sleeper and suddenly now she wants the light left on, she doesn't want to go to bed, there's battles and tears every night, she wants this, that and the other. She is also climbing out of travel cot (we move around a lot so she's often in a travel cot) not out of the big cot yet but it's just a matter of time. The fact she has a choice about staying in bed or not is melting her head (and ours) she has been up til 1am some nights. I'm trying not to let it develop into a situation where she sleeps with us or we have to sleep with her coz with a young baby and living in an apartment we're not set up for that. Major separation anxiety going on here as well in general, if I leave the room or try to go to the toilet without her for example!!

Apols. He's almost 2 and 3mths and I m lying beside the cot to help him sleep now every nite suddenly. This is a new thing! Also lucuma, my little guy goes mental when I'm out of sight - leave the room etc. It's a non issue with his daddy who is feeling v inadequate and that lo wouldn't notice if he was there or not kinda thing! It's sweet on one hand to be so needed yet a bit trying at times. He's turned into my shadow overnight!!

Lucuma

73trix wrote: »

Apols. He's almost 2 and 3mths and I m lying beside the cot to help him sleep now every nite suddenly. This is a new thing! Also lucuma, my little guy goes mental when I'm out of sight - leave the room etc. It's a non issue with his daddy who is feeling v inadequate and that lo wouldn't notice if he was there or not kinda thing! It's sweet on one hand to be so needed yet a bit trying at times. He's turned into my shadow overnight!!

Snap!
She will go as far as to say 'I don't like Daddy, I want Mammy' :eek:
Not going down well with Daddy's ego AT ALL

Glad to hear this is normal at their age so, never experienced it before with this child so it's a new one for me to have her clinging to my legs

bp

Preferring one parent is completely normal! I love when mine prefer daddy....peace for me

iguana

Have there been any big changes at home? Maybe someone has stuck a tree in the livingroom, covered it in awesome looking shiny objects and yet he's discouraged from touching them? Have there been more outings than usual. Extra shopping trips? Extra treat foods? Are his parents swinging a bit between stressed and extra jolly?

Christmas, while great for kids, is also a bit of an emotional trial and can leave kids feeling stressed out without understanding why. So it could just be that. It actually tends to get a bit worse as they get older but at 2 it can still have an effect.

73trix

iguana wrote: »

Have there been any big changes at home? Maybe someone has stuck a tree in the livingroom, covered it in awesome looking shiny objects and yet he's discouraged from touching them? Have there been more outings than usual. Extra shopping trips? Extra treat foods? Are his parents swinging a bit between stressed and extra jolly?

Christmas, while great for kids, is also a bit of an emotional trial and can leave kids feeling stressed out without understanding why. So it could just be that. It actually tends to get a bit worse as they get older but at 2 it can still have an effect.

I get the Xmas theory but don't think it applies in our case as predates any sign of Xmas in this house. No other changes. Maybe just a phase.

ShaShaBear

Odd, our 2.5 year old girl, who is normally a BEAST for sleeping (begs for supper and bed by 7pm and will throw a full on wobbly if you dare wake her before 9am) is waking every night between 12 and 1am and will sit in the room banging stuff on her bed and shouting (not in anger, just being her normal self on a louder volume) for the guts of 2 hours. Usually after about an hour she will chance her arm and appear at our bedroom door.
Super odd!

Lucuma

ShaShaBear wrote: »

Odd, our 2.5 year old girl, who is normally a BEAST for sleeping (begs for supper and bed by 7pm and will throw a full on wobbly if you dare wake her before 9am) is waking every night between 12 and 1am and will sit in the room banging stuff on her bed and shouting (not in anger, just being her normal self on a louder volume) for the guts of 2 hours. Usually after about an hour she will chance her arm and appear at our bedroom door.
Super odd!

I suppose at sometime between 2 and 3 they will drop the nap so we can expect a change in their sleeping habits. Dropping the nap and going to bed a bit later might get her back to sleeping through the night for ye

ShaShaBear

Lucuma wrote: »

I suppose at sometime between 2 and 3 they will drop the nap so we can expect a change in their sleeping habits. Dropping the nap and going to bed a bit later might get her back to sleeping through the night for ye

She hasn't napped since she was 14 months, so that's definitely not it!