Please help 2.5 yr old now waking 4 times a night :-(

[lyssie28]

Hi, I posted previously about my toddler waking up again through the night screaming.  We thought maybe just a regression or we have a new baby but she'll sleep fine through the day for her nap.  She has said now that she's scared of the dark.  I got her a little night light that goes off after 20 minutes but now she cries every 20 minutes for it to be put back on!  I tried giving her the nightlight so she can switch it on herself but she plays with it in bed and it wakes her even more.  I then tried putting the hall light on and it works on her bedtime.  It's on maybe 45 mins and she's normally asleep by then but now she's waking more in the night she's asking for it on.  I'm not even sure she's going back to sleep.  When she wakes she is really screaming so we can't even just leave her for 5 minutes to see if she'll go back over.  Do you think she's maybe doing it to test us?

[Emami]

Could you just leave the hall light on? Or get her a plug in night light that stays on? It sounds as though she is reassured by the light at the moment so I'd go with it.

But if you feel that she's just messing around rather than genuinely not liking the dark do you think she is UT? How long is her nap? She might be starting to drop it and need it capped to sleep better at night.

[Jodes112]

Agree both my son and now my dd who is 2.5 too, have gone through a scared of the dark stage so for both of them i introduced a night light. It a plug in one, that stays on all night. Doesnt wake then up at all.

Also my ds prefferd the door open we would tell him that the hall light would be on until he fell asleep but this would not be on in the night. He was fine with this. DD has followed suit and recently asked for the door slightly open (about an inch) but they have their night lights on all night.

Think their imagination goes haywire at this age! Shadows and noises!!

[Haribo2012]

I'd definitely get a little night light or some fairy lights for her room. My DS used to sleep in pitch black but in last year (now 3.5yrs) he has the gro clock on really low, landing light on and then when we go to bed turn off landing light and have a plug in night light on the landing. Some nights will have the door ajar but others wants it fully open....says there are shadows or noises etc etc.