Toddler Sleep Training – Complete Expert Guide For Parents

Is your toddler finds difficult to fall asleep? then you need to learn toddler sleep training. Parents always find it difficult for their toddlers to fall asleep easily. Of course there is a possibility that your toddler used to be a good sleeper when he was an infant. But once the infant reaches the stage of toddler it becomes difficult for him to sleep early.

But you don’t need to worry about it because we’ve got your back here. In this article we’ll give your proper toddler sleep training that will make easy for your toddler to fall asleep easily.

As each baby is different from the other so that’s why each baby requires different method that can help them in falling asleep. We are sharing different methods to help you in toddler sleep training. You have to find out that which one of the following method will work for your toddler. All these methods are recommended by pediatricians.

Here are Some Toddler Sleep Training Methods

1. Toddler cuddling method

As sleeping from lap to bed can be difficult for toddlers. So that’s why they find it difficult to sleep, so it’s important to cuddle or hug them frequently. It will help to them gradually adjust their sleep, so with the passage of time they will start to sleep on their own.

How to do it?

When your toddler is sleepy then put him on the bed or in crib and leave the room while closing the door. If the toddler feels bother then still you don’t need to enter the room, however if he starts to cry then re-enter the room, pick him up and give him hug and cuddle, and soothe him by rubbing his back. Then again leave the room.

You have to repeat this process until the toddler goes to sleep. This will give your toddler a sense of security and safety they need. You have to do this for few days and then your toddler will gradually starts to sleep on his own.

2. Let toddler cry method

This method is considered to be the alternative of toddler cuddling method, however most of the parents are not going to like this method. Because in this method you have to let your toddler cry for so much time.

How to perform this method?

In this method you don’t have to re-enter the room on crying and give your child hugs and cuddles. Instead, you have to stay outside the room and let your baby cry. Set the time intervals in which you have to re-visit the room to give your child the sense of security and safety. Gradually increase the length of time intervals with the passage of time.

This method will work faster than the toddler cuddling method. Keep in mind one thing that you have to stay strong for any kind of situation. Otherwise your little one will learn that he’ll get whatever he wants on crying louder.

3. Set a bedtime routine for your toddler

Just like us, toddlers also starts to follow the routine. That’s why you can set the night time bed routine for your toddler that will help him to sleep regularly on a fix time. Here are some tips that you can follow to set a bedtime routine. It’s also the essential part of toddler sleep training.

• Give your toddler a nighttime bath with a warm water. It is really helpful in relaxing mind and body. Nighttime bath will help toddler to fall asleep early.
• Check if the diaper is dirty then replace it immediately or if he don’t use diapers anymore then take him to washroom immediately. Dress him up in comfortable cloths and brush his hair.
• Now create a peaceful environment. Make sure there is not any kind of disturbance or noise in the room that can become a resistance in your toddler’s sleep. You can do any kind of quite activity like reading books, or place toys around him.
• White noise is really helpful in making your toddler fall asleep. You can create an environment of white noise by playing the sounds like rainfall or waterfall etc.
• Now make the lights dim and set the room temperature at comfort level.
• Now start soothing your baby by rubbing his back or it’s better to put him in a comfortable baby swing and sing a song to make him calm.
• Once he falls asleep then take him out of baby swing and put him back on a bed.

FAQs

How do I get my 2 year old to sleep in his own bed?

First of all you have to make your child’s room comfortable so that he’ll love to stay in his own room. Choice of room environment is totally depends upon the child, some toddlers love to sleep in room with white noise while some love to stay in quiet and dark environment.

Make your toddler feel strong by creating clear expectations. Talk to him and say that you have to sleep alone on your bed. Don’t leave him alone from the start, stay with him until he fall asleep then you can leave the room. Once the toddler grows little bit then you can leave the room even from the start.

Give him a warm bath before going to sleep and cuddling will also help him to fall asleep. Follow these steps and with the passage of time your toddler will start to sleep on his bed alone.

What is the Ferber method for toddlers?

It is for the children who are suffering from sleep problem. This method helps your child to fall asleep. In this method you leave your child alone in the room and no matter what whether your child is crying or not, you don’t re-enter the room. You set the specific time intervals, in which you’ll re-enter the room, the length of time interval should be increased gradually.

So your child will learn that no one will come to his aid and he starts to sleep on his own. Remember this method is not recommended for babies under 6 months old.

When should a toddler go from cot to bed?

Well there is no specific time for toddlers to move from cot to bed. However generally toddlers go from cot to bed between the ages of 18 months to 3.5 years. But to stay on a safer side you should consider moving your toddler from cot to bed at least when they are 2 years old.

How can I get my toddler to sleep all night?

Mostly toddlers wake up at night because either they are sleeping too much or too little during the day time. Let your toddler get enough nap during the day time. Too much nap will make him sleep less during the night time. While little nap during the day will make him frustrated and overtired which will make him fall asleep before the bedtime, so he’ll wake up during the night.

When should I give my toddler a pillow?

When the toddler becomes 2-3 years old, then you can introduce a toddler pillow to him. Remember toddler pillow is not like the normal big pillows. Its small and thin pillow, made for toddlers.

Conclusion

Whenever the infant reaches the stage of toddler, it becomes difficult for him to fall asleep easily. There are various reasons for that, but toddler sleep training can be very beneficial for your toddler to fall asleep easily. As each toddler is different from the other so that’s why one method will not work for all the toddlers. So we have mentioned different toddler sleep training methods, so that you can check which one will work for your toddler.