Author Topic: Sudden EW for 21mo - what to do...?  (Read 1530 times)

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Offline Bera

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Sudden EW for 21mo - what to do...?
« on: May 10, 2018, 05:54:48 am »
Hi all

My LB is 21mo now, we were doing well recently with our routine until it suddenly changed and I’m a bit confused as to what to do. The routine we had was

WU 6.30
Nap 12.30-2 (I had to start capping nap a few months ago to preserve a decent BT which started creeping towards 8/8.30!)
BT 7.30 & he mostly STTN

Now, WU time has been creeping earlier and earlier (& BT later), and I want to get back to the old routine if I can...

Current routine is

WU 6
Nap 12.15-2
BT 7.45

It doesn’t make sense, he’s in bed by 7.30 but he often takes 15-20 mins to settle, you’d think he’d be tired after being up since 6! Often, he wakes around 5/5.15 & resettles with some water but he’s back up by 6ish. Today he woke at 5.45! 😳

Is this the 18 month sleep regression? It’s been going on for a few weeks already... should I cap the nap further? I’d be grateful for any suggestions...

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Re: Sudden EW for 21mo - what to do...?
« Reply #1 on: May 11, 2018, 08:55:41 am »
Hi there
There is a language leap that comes around 21 months and it can totally throw sleep off track, at the time it can feel like the whole routine went to pot but it does pass.
I would suggest though that you don't move the nap earlier, I know you are trying to make up for the EW by offering the nap 15 min earlier but this can back fire and end up making WU even earlier.  Instead I'd suggest sticking to the set nap time of 12.30 for a few days and then possibly moving it 15 min later to 12.45, you can cap at 2pm still if your LO responds well enough to a capped nap and that may help with BT.

There were a few developmental leaps with my DS where BT seemed to go on for ages, too long, rather than getting frustrated with his delays I just moved BT 30 - 60 min later for that short period so that he went to sleep more quickly and the overall BT routine was calmer. Then once he was through the tricky phase I brought BT earlier again.


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Re: Sudden EW for 21mo - what to do...?
« Reply #2 on: May 11, 2018, 20:08:07 pm »
Thanks Creations 😊

Yesterday, he only had a 40 min nap at nursery so I put him down at 7.30 and he was out like a light. He slept through until 6.30! 👍🏽👍🏽 But I won’t celebrate just yet, I’ll stick to 12.30/12.45 nap as you suggested and hope this passes. I just want to make sure he gets enough night sleep.

I didn’t realise about the language leap. That makes perfect sense bc he’s picking up so many words recently and talking a lot more!

Thanks again

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Re: Sudden EW for 21mo - what to do...?
« Reply #3 on: May 12, 2018, 13:25:00 pm »
That makes perfect sense bc he’s picking up so many words recently and talking a lot more!
How lovely :)

I also didn't know about this language leap when mine went off track at this age, someone else here told me.  Somehow these sleep disturbances are so much easier to cope with when you know what the reason is and that it happens to other LOs too.
Enjoy the chatter!!


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Re: Sudden EW for 21mo - what to do...?
« Reply #4 on: May 14, 2018, 15:47:45 pm »
Just an update, in case anyone is following the thread.

I decided to put up some blackout material on the window (we had it up last year but it irritated my husband so I took it down in the winter). I did that 4-5 days ago and since then, he’s slept until at least 6.30 every day, sometimes close to 7! It might be a coincidence, bc I have been following Creations’ advice about timings too, but i think it has helped. He already has blackout blinds but they aren’t well fitted bc they let lots of light in around the edges of them and his bedroom faces east so he gets all the morning sun

Anyway, all is well again, until the next leap or tooth! 😊

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Re: Sudden EW for 21mo - what to do...?
« Reply #5 on: May 14, 2018, 18:44:51 pm »
Brilliant result!
For waht it's worth my DS (who is 7 years old) has 3 layers of window covering. Blackout sheeting velcroed to the frame, then regular blinds, then black out curtains.
I have tried to reduce in the past and always failed. The best sleep and the best morning WU time always comes form the darkest room!


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Re: Sudden EW for 21mo - what to do...?
« Reply #6 on: May 19, 2018, 06:03:31 am »
We’re back to early wakings 😔

The 6.30/6.45 WU lasted less than a week and now it’s back to 6am but also with an awakening at 5am where he resettles with some water or patting. He’s also been waking at some other point during the night anytime between 11-2, he wakes upset and sort of crying but settles easily.

Shall I try the previous advice to push nap back to 12.45 & see if that helps? He’s consistently sleeping at 12.30 at the moment (on Thursday and Friday he goes to nursery and they put him down at 12.15 and he’s often awake within 45mins,  they have a policy not to force a tired child to stay awake and they say that he’s super tired and often falling asleep at the dinner table during lunch! Which he never does at home.)

His current routine is

WU 6.00
Nap 12.30-2
BT 7.45 (hes in bed by 7.30 but he chats for a while before he goes to sleep)

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Re: Sudden EW for 21mo - what to do...?
« Reply #7 on: May 20, 2018, 08:24:27 am »
He is likely tired earlier at nursery because of the additional stimulation.
I would try moving the nap later.


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Re: Sudden EW for 21mo - what to do...?
« Reply #8 on: May 20, 2018, 12:21:06 pm »
Thanks Creations.

Shall I still cap at 2.00? Or let him have 1.5hours until 2.15?

(This morning he was up at 5.30! 🤦🏽‍♀️)

I got a gro clock recently too, he understands the concept of sun and star (awake and asleep) but he doesn’t yet know to go back to sleep at night whenever he sees the star. I’m sure he’ll pick it up eventually but for now, I’m making sure he stays in his cot until the ‘sun comes up’ (which I’ve set to 6.15 for now) 🤞🏼

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Re: Sudden EW for 21mo - what to do...?
« Reply #9 on: May 20, 2018, 18:10:28 pm »
You could cap it and try to stick to your usual BT or you could let him have a full nap length and let BT move a bit later. A later BT (and the slightly later nap) should help to shift morning WU a bit later.  The transition to one nap can take many months and everyone seems to find a different solution to how to get through that time period.  Mine had to have a long nap and short night.  Many others can have a reduced length nap and keep the night a bit longer.
A bit of trial and error to see what suits your LO.


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Re: Sudden EW for 21mo - what to do...?
« Reply #10 on: June 10, 2018, 18:42:18 pm »
I just wanted to post an update, as things are going well :)

We have made nap later - he now naps from 1-2.15 and bedtime is around 7.45/8 (he’s in bed for 7.40 but sometimes chats for a while before he nods off)

WU now is usually around 6.15-6.30 (which is a big improvement on 5.30!) and I think the gro clock is helping. If he wakes up before 6.30 (when the gro clock changes to sunshine) then I give him water and tell him I’ll be back when the sun comes on. Previously he’d scream and moan and shout after this but now, he’ll happily play in his cot until then. We even had a few WU after 7am last week!!

I’m gradually moving the gro clock time forward towards 6.45/7 and I’m hoping that with time, I won’t have to go in to reassure him if he wakes up early, and hopefully he’ll just learn to sit quietly by himself until WU time. 

Thanks again for the help and support. I hope this helps someone else in a similar position, especially to know that these things pass and do get better! 😊

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Re: Sudden EW for 21mo - what to do...?
« Reply #11 on: June 11, 2018, 09:12:23 am »
Great update Bera :)
Thanks for taking the time to share.