Five Gentle Ways to Encourage Toddler Sleep

With so many parenting books telling you how to get your baby to sleep, it comes as a shock when you reach the toddler and preschool years with one that still doesn’t sleep well. 25% of all five year olds are still waking during the night and this can cause a huge strain on the whole family. I had one of these along with a 3yo who takes forever to go to sleep each night.

If you are lucky enough to get yourself a non-sleeper for a child, take heart, it is not going to go on forever, by the time they are teenagers you will be finding it hard to wake them up. In the meantime, there are plenty of gentle ways to help encourage your child to sleep better.

The first step, though is to get to the bottom of why they are waking through the night, finding it hard to get to sleep or waking early. This could be as simple as their room being too light, or too dark, both of which are relatively easy to change. It could be a physical issue, which will need a visit to a medical practitioner to rule out.

Once you have ruled out any physical or environmental reasons for their night waking then you can look at the more mental and holistic possibilities and how to encourage more consistent sleep patterns.

Start gently, and stay consistent.

It can often be trial and error when it comes to gently encouraging good sleep patterns but trying too many new things at once or chopping and changing too often is going to confuse the message. I recommend trying each one for a couple of weeks before deciding if it has worked and starting something new. Don’t be afraid to use a baby sleep tracker if you’re worried about them.

Each family will have success with different techniques so make sure you try them all over time and see which one works for you and your family.

The following tips can encourage better sleep in toddlers and pre-schoolers:

• Turn off the Technology: for the two hours before children’s bedtime turn of the TV, shut off the computer, disconnect the xbox. All these run on a blue light spectrum which actually inhibits the brains ability to create melatonin, the sleepy hormone. Thereby making it hard for the child to turn off and go to sleep at night.In addition some games and movies can be seen as violent or scary through a child’s eyes even if we believe them to be the most innocuous games and movies out there. For ages my daughter was scared to go to bed after watching the Disney classic Cinderella.
• Relaxation: There are a number of guided relaxation CDs out there especially designed for children as well as a few great meditation books for you to read to them each night.Make it a habit that every night after their bedtime story, they get a meditation either one you read to them or from a cd, teaching them now at this early age to relax their body will go a long way to help them master their emotions in the adolescent period.
• Essential Oils: Lavender and Cedarwood Oils are both good to help relaxation and sleep, diffuse one in the child’s room, or alternatively put it in a spray bottle with some water and encourage your child to spray their room. They love the spraying!
• Alarm Clock: If early waking is your problem consider one of the children’s clocks which shows them when it is time to get up. Make it a rule that they do not get up till the clock says so. I’ll be honest, I have noticed that this really only works for slightly older children and even then not consistently, however your child may be different so give it a try.
• Create a Nest: If you child is missing you in the night, consider creating a ‘nest’ in your bedroom, put a mattress on the floor of your room (or just a folded doona) and create a bed that your child can come into in the night to be close to you. I found that my daughter came in every night for about two months, then it started to wind down until about 8 months after we created it we realised she hadn’t used it in over a month.
• Let them set their own bed time: This is a controversial one that works for some people. Get your child ready for bed, read them a story then let them have quiet play in their bedroom, set some rules such as only allowed to come out of the room once, and that this is time for Mum and Dad to have some together time, ask them to come and get you when they want to go to sleep. You will be amazed at how well this works for pre-schooler and school aged kids.

If all else fails, become an early bird or a night owl to be there with your child while they need you, it is only for a short period of time. Trying to make your child fit into the way you expect the experience to be, will be stressful for all, if you adjust your expectations the whole family will do better.
Article written by Shirley Taylor. Shirley Taylor runs The Parent Academy where parents can get support, mentoring and information on issues they are facing with their under 5s. She runs the MotherCalm Program designed to assist parents to reduce their risk of Postnatal Depression. She also runs retreats for mothers in need of a little pampering and support.

Find out more at www.parentacademy.com.au