Quote:
Originally posted by PenguinTrax
We got back from our Alaska trip almost 3 weeks ago and Avner is still having sleep issues. This is normal - she's out of her sleep schedule, her bodyclock is out of whack.
I think that switching her into a toddler bed right now would make the situation worse, not better - it's adding another change to her life right now.
I think the best thing is to be consistent with bath & bedtime. If she wakes, go to her, calm her and tell her that it's time to sleep and place her back in the bed. We sit on the footstool next to Avner's bed (he is in a twin already, he's 2 1/2) and hold his hand and maybe sing a few lullabys while he relaxes. Then we ask him if we can go downstairs and come back and check on him in a few minutes. He usually says OK, rolls over and goes to sleep on his own. We have never allowed him to 'cry it out' and we coslept until he was about 19 months.
Although popular media wants you to believe that babies and children should be sleeping through the night and in their own beds before they are 12 months old, reality and scientific studies have shown that's rarely the case. Developmental spurts and other issues wreak havoc with sleep patterns and most kids don't settle into a consistent sleep pattern until after the age of 3.
There are some very good resources here: http://www.askdrsears.com/html/7/T070100.asp
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this is wonderful advice! thank you! i'm so glad i'm not alone in my problems. she isn't still on roman time b/c there was no time change. we live in germany. she did have to endure a 10 hour car ride but we broke it up on the way home by spending a couple of days in venice. i did go ahead and convert her crib to a toddler bed. for this simple reason. my goal is not to pick her up when she wakes up at night but i find it nearly impossible w/ her being in a crib and the height difference. w/ her in a toddler bed i can be at eye level w/ her. she does know how to fall asleep on her own although i am in the room. no rocking or nursing. i know that's a biggie w/ all the peds also letting them cry it out. we used to do that when she was falling asleep at night. it worked for a few nights then after about 30 min she would wake back up and i just couldn't bare to repeat the process. hopefully things will go better tonight!
ETA: we have a consistent bedtime routine. best i can tell i'm doing everything right! now, why isn't it working! that's the ? maybe i have the next einstein on my hands
