How do you get your toddlers to sleep?

[fertilizemyeggsbenedict]

I'm not talking about bedtime routine, I mean how do they actually fall asleep? We're still rocking our 18 mo to sleep at night and driving/ pushchairing him to sleep at nap time. But soon we're going to have to teach him how to fall asleep. He won't sit still for stories but he sometimes is so relaxed after a bath he just falls asleep in DH arms, other times he's full of beans and just talking away for ages. He cosleeps and always has so we haven't tried the leaving him and checking on him thing but I suspect that would result in meltdown and I don't want to go down the CC or CIO route.

[sososotired]

Try the no cry sleep solution, you might find something in there that could help you :)

[Buttercupisfull]

I'm still breastfeeding her to sleep

[Buttercupisfull]

I tried the no sleep solution book but gave up after a few days might give it another go myself

[NoraRobertsismyguiltypleasure]

I moved from cuddling to sleep to sitting next to her and resting hand on her and now sit in a chair and read a book whilst periodically saying in a bored voice 'Lie down and go to sleep'. Usually within half an hour she has stopped chatting to all her toys and moving from one end of the bed to the other and once lying still she falls asleep in 5 or 10 mins. I do find it really useful to always do the same routine, that way wherever I am or if I need her to go to bed a bit later I can usually can still get her to sleep fairly quickly.

[DomesticGoddess31]

I will be implementing a bedtime routine soonish for DS (3mths) that will be exactly the same every single night. Do that consistently and it gives them the sleep cues they need to eventually fall asleep on their own. DD (3) used to be rocked and fed to sleep. Now we do her bedtime routine and just leave and she falls straight to sleep.

[MrsAtticus]

Similar to Nora, still sit with him until he's asleep at 3, but works for us. I wasn't anti CC, we tried but found it not very effective whereas gradually withdrawing you are still able to provide comfort.
You defintely need the bored voice though - no fun interactions!

[bronya]

Singing - remarkably old fashioned really! We tried stories and music, but snuggling up with him and singing nursery rhymes/repetitive songs really works. 10 (or rather 20!) green bottles and 'There were ten in a bed' work particularly well at the moment! Best effects to be had after a good run at the park though, and a nap no later than 1pm.

[teacher54321]

Bedtime routine that is set in stone, cuddles and stories on mummy's bed, put in cot in dark room with a non leaky sippy cup of water and some teddies, shut the door and leave him to it. Sometimes he sleeps immediately, he usually whinges for maybe 5 minutes and then chats/sings through his day and drops off within 1/2 hour or so. He's 2 and a quarter.

[DiscoDancer]

Marking place as still breast feeding 15 month old to sleep. Also trying to get him into own cot bed after co sleeping all this time.

[Misty9]

We were still cuddling ds to sleep when he was nearly 2 and we dreaded stopping, but actually it wasn't that bad. We just changed the routine so he had milk and stories in bed instead of on lap and it only took a couple of nights for him to adjust. It took 6 months for him to stop mucking about at bedtime once he'd gone into a bed however...

Now, at nearly 3, he finally can fall asleep alone again after lullabies and sitting with him for 10 minutes. We did despair of ever getting to this point though!

[noblegiraffe]

My 18 month old gets a story, says goodnight to her animals then gets put in her cot cuddling her bear and she gets herself to sleep. She did this from being fed to sleep without any fuss or crying needed, just one day she was ready.

Her older brother we had to sit in a dark room with him till he slept, with or without music on, till he was 2 and if you dared try to tiptoe out before he was dead to the world he'd be up and crying like a shot. Then when he was 2 we switched him to a bed, sat down in his room as usual and he told me to go away! And that was it, he has done it himself since.

[slightlyconfused85]

My DD is 20 months. We do bed routine, clean her teeth and then stick her in her cot with her two favourite teddies and say a cheerful goodbye! She then whitters on to herself for a while then drops off. She has done this since she was 3 months old so very used to it.

[Mummyteachmummy]

Breastfeeding 2 year old (crying too buttercup!) I clearly missed the memo on doing any sort of self-settling training whatsoever. Must catch up! I have found in the last six months though she's gone from about five wakings needing feeding to sleep, to only one, so she's clearly taught herself to self-settle during the night as presumably she is stirring more than once. I too am a hater of any sort of crying though and the DRAMA that would result in any suggestion of no boob for bed is just terrifying; hoping she'll just decide she doesn't want it herself one day

[Happy36]

Before and at 18 months we were fanatical about routine. She had a musical mobile that was played once then turned off and one of us would stay in the room for 5 minutes then leave, leaving the door half-open. If she was under the weather we would try to make our extra attention as undetectable as possible. It seemed to work quite well although I find it´s difficult to compare with other parents as everyone´s patience (and idea of 5 minutes) is different.