15mth old suddenly fighting bedtime

[kitten2014]

Hi guys, up until a week ago our lil miss had a lovely routine of waketime 7-7pm with one 1hr-2hr nap during the day (usually 11ish til 12ish), and was happy with bedtime bottle in bed, teeth, story, singsong and bed and we actually got to a point that when we saw her yawn/wipe eyes we would say gnite and got kisses or waves back and she would happily settle herself to sleep....

We've then had a bad teething spell although not as bad last couple of nights and recently been away camping (which meant cosleeping two of the three nights as she couldnt handle her cot and we couldnt leave her to cry for a bit due to other campers), ever since returning and with the extreme heat we returned to wednesday night she has woken every single night, sometimes more than once, last night three times, she is now reaching for a cuddle when she knows its bedtime and practically climbs into our arms, and screams when we leave...even now I know she's tired as been awake 5hrs since nap and she has been 10mins screaming not even sitting or lying down...as if she hates her cot all of a sudden...

We realise her routine has been affected by being away but usually she settles back down quickly, perhaps she's missing the cosleeping (much more do-able in a tent than a normal bed), maybe she doesnt like the sides to her cot, maybe she's teething or simply too hot but it seems all of a sudden she has reveerted back to bad sleeping habits and she has always been a good self settler and sleeper so its unusual for her....

Anyone similar situation/tips/advice? We are considering removing a side of the cot but know that I wouldnt sleep at all doing that and would probably have to sleep in same room (there is a single bed in there) to ensure she doesnt hurt herself...perhaps she is ready to transition? But then at the same time if this is her relearning after our trip I realise we should maintain the routine until she settles back into it...so hard to know whats best....

 

[Kiagirl]

We took a side off as she started to hate her cot but would settle instantly in our bed. We cut a length of wood the same length as the side and screws that into the holes then wrapped a blanket around to create a lip so she couldn't roll out. I did pop a mattress on the floor for the first couple of nights but we didn't need it. Within 3 nights she was sleeping right through again. Good luck xx

 

[kitten2014]

Hi we're going to give it a go tonight as we have taken one side off, played with her to observe her climbing in and out and so far only went head first once so fx she remembers her method of climbing out tonight lol...prepared for a very long night lol...we've also put down a blanket and rug with pillows dotted around the room so she can snuggle elsewhere if she wants...eventually we'd lift these so she is used to her cot as a bed...wish us luck! x

 

[kitten2014]

ok so she slept 7.30-10ish, awake an hr just wandering around the room and climbing in and out of cot, then slept til 2.30, 2.30-3.30 same again but from 3.30-5ish seemed very light sleep as she kept waking every 30mins, eventually she then went 5-8am deep sleep so 9hrs total so not bad but think she was confused with all the space...we chose not to put a side rail up as she would simply climb over it and would make it more dangerous we tested her out during the daytime as well as bedtime and she learnt how to climb out very well...we had duvert and a throw on the floor and this is where she slept all night, hopefully she'll eventually sleep in her cot but cant force it now it has no sides lol... fx we have a better night tonight...

 

[kitten2014]

ok another broken night but a bit of progress 7.30-1am...not bad til she woke but after wandering/fussing/tryin to sleep for an hr went thru did nappy botle n hugs then an hr later she slept...will take her longer as she has more space but just wondering how many days to do this for as she is clearly lacking in sleep getting 7-9hrs per nite instead of 11-13...still only one nap 1-2hrs...i know persistence is key but dont like idea ofdher sleepin on floor bless her!

 

[kitten2014]

ok now want to know your thoughts on whether to let her sleep anywhere vs the endless battle of putting her in her bed every time she climbs out (which will be a lot of times!) not sure if have the patience n she is getting very tired bless her...will it help when she's of an age and understanding to be able to open the door? I dont want to make my job harder that it will already be when she's older but not sure if can handle 40 or so puttin her back in cot that will take place in first 20mins...lol

advice/suggestions please...

 

[kitten2014]

OK so with lots of encouragement and putting back in cot she fell asleep in cot - yay! ... only to roll out of it 40mins later...d'oh...back on floor...luckily had a pillow n duvet in the right position so she stayed asleep....let's c if she goes back into her bed...at least she's had a bit of sleep on proper mattress...

 

[Kiagirl]

Oh no! I really didn't have that with my LO but I did sleep the first night in there on the floor. We have a video monitor so I could see when she tried to climb out so I would just say no, be a good girl and lay down which she always did. You could get a bed guard to stop her rolling? We never did as we just used the wood ( it was literally 2 inches and stopped her rolling out) but wasn't high enough for her to need to climb over it. I wanted her to stay in her bed and sleep there as if I was having a battle getting her to settle in her room, I then didn't want to have to create a battle again to get her into her bed. She soon realised though and has slept through pretty much for 2 years so it was worth the drama for a few days X good luck X

 

[kitten2014]

well we have just had night 4 and aside from a wakeup0 and some whimpers at 10ish for about 10mins she has been down solid from 7.30-7am! yay! previous night we had one wakeup at 4 but last night was first time we didnt have a middle of the night wakeup! At least if she did I didnt hear her lol, woke to her tapping a toy on the door!

 

[kitten2014]

also for the past two nights we've kept the floor more sparse aside from duvet near her cot for fallouts and have insisted on her staying in cot for bedtime and naptime routine, this has meant that even tho she climbs out to follow us out she climbs back in, last nite she was in 3hrs before she fell out, night before an hour so we are making progress, she is used to bumpers on her cot sides so if we put a small bit of wood there she'd hit her head a lot so we decided it was better for her to learn and bless her at one point last night she had her legs hanging over the side lol...v cute...I think the fact shes now sleeping solidly after just three nights that she was ready for the transition...woohoo!

 

[Kiagirl]

Oh that's great and yes she prob was ready. Lucie always hangs out somewhere it only took us 3 or 4 nights so fingers crossed for you. X

 

[kitten2014]

well we've had 5 nights now and last night for the first time she climbed back into her bed in the early hours so thats good, just yesterday I put a rolled up towel in her sheet to create a kind of side to it and seemed to help her...main thing is she's not having any midnight wakeups (around 3/4am) aside from a brief getup two nights ago but resettled within 10mins so thats progress...she will eventually move to the fullsize double bed we have but Im not ready for her top do that yet as she cant climb into it so therefore I would be mummy to the rescue all night long wheneva she got out lol...gonna give it a while...introducing her to a baby mini pillow tonight as she seems to like hugging/snuggling into the pillow I put on the floor...

 

[Kiagirl]

Oh that's a good idea! Glad it's working well for you X

 

[kitten2014]

well it seems like she was definately ready as aside from teething related wakeups (molars) she hasnt had middle of the night crying requiring intervention for over a fortnight - much better than every night lol...we moved her into her own big bed night before last and she slept sound for 12hrs! same idea, rolled up towel near edge, used a sofa pouffe (not sure how they're spellt) near side of bed for climbing in and out and she hasnt fallen out once...the bed is very similar height to a table nearby and thankfully she hasnt tried to explore it - thats the only scary part now she's higher but she's loving the space and freedom and last night even belly hugged the pillow lol...so grown up!