Gradual withdrawal day 1 for 15mon LO - Detailed questions

[LHJ]

I started Gradual Withdrawal for my 15month old son today for his nap and night sleep.  I put the rocking chair next to his crib, sat sideways, said good night and closed my eyes.  He was standing up in his crib crying for 1hr 30min before falling asleep for the nap,  then 1hr for the night sleep.  For night sleep, he did not cry much already, it just took a long time for him to fall asleep. 
I have some detailed questions for this method.
1. How do I know when he is ready to sleep by himself without me sitting on the chair waiting for him to fall asleep completely?  Can you explain details what would be the sign for my baby becomes independent?
2.  when he wakes up middle of the night, do I wait for him to fall back to sleep completely?
Thank you very much for any advice.

[MasynSpencerElliotte]

How was he falling asleep prior to trying gw? What does his routine look like (ie naptimes, bedtime, wake up). Wondering if maybe he needs a routine tweak along with the gw.

[Truly Blessed]

Hi Hun, it would be good to see his routine as Heidi says, this would help us ensure that it isn't taking longer due to his routine needing a tweak.

1. How do I know when he is ready to sleep by himself without me sitting on the chair waiting for him to fall asleep completely?  Can you explain details what would be the sign for my baby becomes independent?

You wait until he is handling the situation well for eg: Crying less and lying himself down. Then you would move the chair further away, for most LO's this takes approx 3 to 4 days at each stage, but can speed up towards the end as they get used to the idea of independent sleep.

2.  when he wakes up middle of the night, do I wait for him to fall back to sleep completely?
Thank you very much for any advice.

Yes, you do. Both at BT and with NW you wait until he asleep and then 15 mins afterwards to ensure he is in a deep enough sleep so as not to pop up as soon as you leave.

Let us know how it is going.

((HUGS))

x.