She doesn’t want to sleep in her own bed
If she’s gone into her own room after sharing yours up to this point, your little one could be a bit disturbed by suddenly having her own space – and you nowhere nearby. You’re probably a bit thrown by it, too. And when you’re half asleep late at night, it’s easy to give in when she’s stood by your bed asking to get in for a cuddle.
What to do:
Sleep therapist Juliet Newson from Millpond children’s sleep clinic (www.mill-pond.co.uk) says if your tot is used to being in your room, it’s her independence that you need to nurture now.
“The key to this is consistency. Every time she gets up, take her back to her own bed with as little interaction as possible,” she says. Try a reward system, like Millpond’s ‘sleep fairy’.
“That’s where parents tell their children that the sleep fairy visits in the night to see if they’re staying in bed. If they are, a treat is added to their treat jar. It’s a great motivator,” adds Juliet.
“Jake’s in a pattern of getting up several times a night at the moment, wanting to sleep in our bed. As exhausting as it is, I always get up and put him back in his bed. Eventually he tires himself out and goes to sleep in his room. It would be so easy to give in, but I don’t want to set him up with bad sleeping habits,” said Vicky Owen, 33, mum to Jake, 3.
