Sleep training 14 month old help please

[MillyStar]

Morning, I started a thread last week but forgot about it so thought i'd start another!

My first question is would you start any sleep training in this weather or wait a few weeks? I know the heatwave is playing havoc with a lot of little ones sleep!

My DD is 14.5 months old. She's been in her own room since 6 months old and always has her bottle and teeth brushed with me sat on her nursing chair then i've waited until she's fallen asleep on my knee and put her into her cot, I've not been cuddling her she's just lay on my knee supported by a feeding pillow.

I want to get to the stage now where I can put her down awake and leave her as at the moment I have to wait till she's fast asleep and I can wake her up putting her down and it goes on for two hours sometimes ;(

A few of my friends say they brush their little ones teeth then put them in their cot with a bottle and leave them too is, isn't that really bad for their teeth though? So my first question is do I do that or do I give her milk/brush teeth and then put her in her cot?

She has dummies to sleep and if I do leave the room she stands up and throws her dummy out the cot and any spare ones that are in there - I assume to get me back in to pick them up! Should I go back in every single time and pick her dummy up and just make no eye contact? Or would you just wait every ten minutes or something and then go in? I thought about a dummy clip but not sure how safe they are at night!

I really haven't got a clue how to play this, do I keep going in until she settles so she know i'm not abandoned or do I be strong and let her cry till she fals asleep?

Help!!

[Purplecatti]

Controlled crying often gets a flaming but it worked for us and we had tried everything and still had a permanently overtired baby as I couldn't get her to sleep until 10 and she would be up every 2 hours until being up for the day at half 5 or 6.

I don't know about dummies but we trained our dd at 7 months.

I feed her, cuddle her, put her down, stroke her face and leave. I go back in for a face stroke every 5 minutes.
The first night it took over an hour but by day 4 I only went in once.
I've never extended it more than 10 minutes, and judge it by her crying as to whether or not to go in straight away.

It doesn't work for everyone i guess it dependa on the baby but it did for us. Now i have a happier baby and i get some evening time again.
Obviously teething and illness throw that out the window, then it's anything goes and we start again once she's better.

[Izpie]

I breastfed dd1 to sleep until 18 months! I decided to do gradual withdrawal to sleep train once I decided to stop. First I cuddled her to sleep to get over not being bf, once used to that I cuddled for a bit and then sat next to her cot holding her hand until asleep. Then I started letting go of her hand before falling asleep, when she got upset I'd verbally reassure and if necessary briefly held her hand again. Once she was falling asleep with me just next to her cot not touching I moved away a bit, then further away and eventually out the door. All in all it probably took a month and a fair amount of time on my part- but it worked and at the end of the month I could put her down and leave.

Dd2 I had neither time or energy & resorted to a more controlled crying approach, slightly more gentle version with more cuddles and reassurance. Worked as well, and more quickly but there were more tears.

Good luck whatever you do, it's bliss when bedtime gets easier. Just moved dd2 from cot to bed and she's loving that she can get up & run around instead of sleeping- sigh.

[anklebitersmum]

We had the biters in proper beds but the routine would be the same..into bed, settle, and return, return, return calmly but with no talking or eye contact as you said initially. We used our own controlled crying method when they were younger (6mths ish) in conjunction with the arm test as they fell asleep on lap with last (warm as they'd take it) milk so they were aware that they just got re-tucked by 14mths it was more a case of keeping them in bed iyswim.

We did our controlled cying with a soothing 'no, no, bedtime, night night' tuck and kiss followed by (after pitched crying rather than just loud noise) 'bedtime' tuck only, and after that just tuck, no interaction. Door duty consisted of sitting outside the bedroom door and returning to bed in the same manner..gentle but firm. Depending on the level of stubborness you may need a book for the first night or two mind

If I were you I'd probably combine big bed 'door duty' with the controlled method now so that you're not going through the whole episode again in 12 months time (providing DD can get on and off beds/sofas alone with no dramas that is) by employing a bed guard.

Good luck though..and rest assured that practically all parents with a routine have been in that 'arrrrgh, grit teeth and RELAX' place with bedtimes