Didn't think I'd be back here...

[Spandanna]

But here I am

DS turns 21 months at the start of next week and everything is out the window since we went away on holiday 3 weeks ago. Quite aside from his daytime antics (tantrums galore, total chaos that he causes) he now wakes early (anywhere between 4am and 5.30) absolutely screaming his head off. he wakes screaming from his nap after 1 hour... today after 35 minutes). Where previously he would sleep for 2 to 3 hours in the day and sleep 7pm-6.15ish but stay quiet with a dummy until his sunshine clock came on at 6.45.

Suddenly he totally pays no attention to the sunshine. if I go in to give his dummy he goes nuts and throws the dummy across the room. He refuses his muslin to comfort him which he used to take to bed. All of this is making his daytime behaviour worse. I'm feeling like I'm not coping very well at all with it. I have my other two children at home as it's the school holidays and I'm snappy with them because I can't control DS2's wild behaviour. I sit down to play a game with them during nap time to spend some time with them and then he wakes early so they're disappointed again.

Humph 

Any advice welcome...I just don't know how to get him back on track

[Scottishmummy]

What time does he go to bed? Could you post his days with wake up time, nap time and BT & his routine before these changes?

Could he have built up some overtiredness with holiday & return home disruptions?

My DS' behaviour is awful when he's tired, what works for him is doing EBT, or even SEBT until he catches up on sleep again.  Would that work for you?

The other possibility is that he might be at the start of the 1-0 transition, but I think you'd need to catch him up on sleep before trying any changes to his routine.

[Spandanna]

Thank you for your reply.

His routine before the holiday was Bed at 7pm
wake about 6ish but we would give him a dummy and he would play quietly or dose until 7am sunshine on his groclock
nap 12.30-2.30 and often longer I'd wake him at 3 for the school run

On holiday there were days where he didn't nap, day's where he'd catch half an hour in the pushchair/car he would have days of going to bed at 8pm, sometimes as late as 10pm and sometimes would wake for the day at 5.30 so serious over tiredness but I can't get him to catch up.

He has once again woken today after a 30 minute nap having been up for the day at 5.50 (6.45BT last night)

he just screams and shouts and if I go in with a dummy he throws it across his room. There is absolutely no getting him back to sleep....

[Scottishmummy]

Sounds like OT has definitely crept in & it would help to give lots of opportunity to catch up on sleep.

Could you try a super EBT tonight?

Or an earlier start to the nap tomorrow?

[Spandanna]

Ok will try. He woke at 5.45 today after another dreadful nap yesterday too so have put him down for a nap at 11.20. Will see what happens....

[Spandanna]

The result..... Screaming. Now he won't settle for his nap. This has literally never happened before. Not since he was tiny. Am reaching the end of my tether

[Scottishmummy]

I'm sorry, big hugs. Did he sleep at all today? Can you do early bedtime?

Ok..so other option is to go back to closer to usual nap time (12-12.30?) & earlier bed? 6.45 is still quite close to "normal" for a short nap day...I was thinking more like 6-6.30?

Hope he gets back to sleeping soon.

[Spandanna]

Thanks so much for replying, he didn't nap at all in the end. I was quite surprised as he went in to bed happy and yawning as he often does when the light goes off. After a few minutes my older two shouted something near his room and that's when he started crying. I spent nearly 2 hours trying to get him down and have up in the end. He went to bed about 6.40. I find it difficult to get him down much earlier because of the older two and even then he was awake just before 6 today and woke shouting again.

Annoyingly today we are out for a family meal so won't be able to put him down for a nap. The big two go back to school on Tuesday so am hoping I'll be able to get back into a better routine. I'm
Wondering if it's a developmental thing or his 2 year molars on the move?

[Scottishmummy]

Oh dear, a no nap day is hard, how has he been today?
I understand the difficulty of juggling BTs with more than 1 child, although in our house it's usually our younger DD waking her older brother up!

Could be teeth? Any signs of any pushing through?

Could be developmental too, although leaps & sleep disruptions are usually around birthdays and half birthdays and you're in the middle of that... One thing I did wonder was whether it could be an UT/OT loop but was hesitant to suggest it as that would mean trying for a later nap and possibly also later BT...& I don't want to make things worse ...but if things don't settle with your 12.30 nap, it might be worth trying a slightly later nap (1pm-ish?) as it can't be much more disruptive than no nap at all!

[Katet]

Have you had his ears looked at. For me any child screaming at times when they lie down (esp after a holiday where they may have gone swimming ) I'd look at ears as possibility. Neither of my boys ever seemed to show the classic signs & learnt to get them checked out when sleep went really bad... was almost always the case/combined with teething, which as 21months could be part of the problem too. 

[Spandanna]

Hmmm, both good thoughts. He was ok-ish after no nap but he seems pretty boisterous and borderline aggressive on and off a lot of late so his behaviour in the afternoon all seemed normal for him 

He fell asleep in the car for 20 mins yesterday on way to meal at about 11am then he went to bed at 6.30 and with two whimpers in the night where we heard him but then he stopped, he slept until 6.30am...

He was at the childminder's today and she said she wasn't sure if he napped. He went to bed but she peeped in a couple of times and he was awake (she uses his dummy from the start of his nap... we usually only use a dummy to resettle in the early hours. Not that that works these days either)

He has gone to bed at 6,45 but tonight, for the first time ever, put up a fight being put to bed. He snuggled into me when I turned off the light, as he always does, but when I went to lie him down and zip him into sleeping bag he started shouting and getting to his feet. In the end I coaxed him to lie down and then he was fine and has gone to sleep fine but I don't understand this sudden change.

I might get his ears checked just to rule it out. I'll also see how his night is and maybe try a later nap tomorrow. I have to wake him at 2.50ish to go on the school run so ideally don't want to push it too late but will try 1pm to begin with

thanks ladies

[Scottishmummy]

Good luck!

Out of interest, at what age did he drop to only 1 nap? Just wondering if he's starting the 1-0 early, but it would see, odd to go from 2-3hrs day sleep to nothing in scouse of weeks.

Yes, try the 1pm nap and getting ears checked too. My DS gets more shouty and loses his temper easily when tired too, so it makes me sense that he still needs some daysleep.

[Spandanna]

I can't really remember but I think he was about 1 when he dropped to 1 nap, but I really pushed this because of the school run. He was needing a nap across morning drop off and then afternoon pick up so 2 naps just wasn't working for us in the end. After a 6 am wake up this morning he has gone for a 12.15 nap. He was so tired in the car no our way home from playgroup that I just put him to bed and he has gone down! First time in days, and no fight. Will see how long he manages...

I really hope this isn't the start of 1-0

[Scottishmummy]

Fingers crossed for a long nap! Maybe he has worked through whatever was bothering him and is ready to catch up on a lot of sleep. We can but hope!
Xx

[Spandanna]

Ha ha... he did 45 mins 

At least he went down ok and we have some sort of nap, tomorrow I'll look to push it later now that there's a chance I'll coax him to bed without a battle on my hands!