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3 1/2 year old (special needs) child waking up at night...



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amother


 

Post Sun, Oct 20 2013, 9:43 am
She keeps waking up in middle of the night to come sleep in our bed. She's exhausted in the morning and so are we!
If I make her another bottle and put her back in her bed - she cries but then goes back to sleep and wakes up later to come to our bed. I cant just put her back to bed 10 times a night. I'm exhausted as it is!

Any solutions?
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the world's best mom




 
 
    
 

Post Sun, Oct 20 2013, 10:07 am
Try a weighted blanket. She seems to need the feeling of being cuddled by something more than just a regular blanket. Also, deep pressure massage before bedtime might help.

I don't know what you are giving her in her bottles, but if it's not water, you are probably killing her teeth. If she has an extreme need to suck, maybe a water bottle can do the trick. Water doesn't spoil, so you can prepare a few bottles by her bed before you go to sleep. Although, depending what the severity of her special needs is, you may want to cut out the bottles completely.
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Mama Bear




 
 
    
 

Post Sun, Oct 20 2013, 3:00 pm
you can try giving her 1/4 or 1/2 melochew for a few nights so she falls asleep right away again.
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momfrombrooklyn




 
 
    
 

Post Sun, Oct 20 2013, 4:10 pm
A tent bed might encourage her to stay in her bed. These are made for children with special needs.

http://thesafetysleeper.com/

http://www.myreadysetbloom.com/
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Mama Bear




 
 
    
 

Post Sun, Oct 20 2013, 4:21 pm
the bed tent issue is problematic. ready set bloom is not manufacturing right now & the other ones are very expensive.

check my blog for 2 links to good amazon tents that might work.
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amother


 

Post Sun, Oct 20 2013, 5:47 pm
I ordered that tent and then it didn't come for months so I cancelled it so we just started locking her door Sad she doesn't even try to open it after the first 2 days so I stopped but the problem is her waking and crying and when we come to see what's wrong , she runs into our room. She doesn't really talk and her comprehension isn't good so there is no reasoning with her.
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Mama Bear




 
 
    
 

Post Sun, Oct 20 2013, 6:50 pm
She could be having a sensory meltdown or nighttime fears.
My son also woke a lot & cried in th emiddle of the night. bh it stopped.
Since he slept in a tent we'd put toys & a bottle in his bed & put on a noise machine so unless he mamish cried we wouldnt know if he was up in the middle of the night.
It's so hrd when they dont talk.
((HUGS))
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the world's best mom




 
 
    
 

Post Sun, Oct 20 2013, 7:32 pm
Sad I would also cry and run into my Mommy's room if I was being locked into my room alone at night.

She's probably terrified, in addition to having sensory needs. She may not understand why she's being locked into her room.

I have sensory kids who had trouble sleeping when they were young. I let them come into my bed. I understand that that's not a solution for everyone, but there's got to be something to do other than locking a little kid with almost no comprehension into her room. JMHO.
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amother


 

Post Sun, Oct 20 2013, 7:38 pm
the world's best mom wrote:
Sad I would also cry and run into my Mommy's room if I was being locked into my room alone at night.

She's probably terrified, in addition to having sensory needs. She may not understand why she's being locked into her room.

I have sensory kids who had trouble sleeping when they were young. I let them come into my bed. I understand that that's not a solution for everyone, but there's got to be something to do other than locking a little kid with almost no comprehension into her room. JMHO.


Ouch Sad
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the world's best mom




 
 
    
 

Post Sun, Oct 20 2013, 7:45 pm
amother wrote:
the world's best mom wrote:
Sad I would also cry and run into my Mommy's room if I was being locked into my room alone at night.

She's probably terrified, in addition to having sensory needs. She may not understand why she's being locked into her room.

I have sensory kids who had trouble sleeping when they were young. I let them come into my bed. I understand that that's not a solution for everyone, but there's got to be something to do other than locking a little kid with almost no comprehension into her room. JMHO.


Ouch Sad
I'm sorry. I should have kept my big mouth shut.
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naomi2




 
 
    
 

Post Sun, Oct 20 2013, 7:50 pm
we just went through this exactly. we tried going back with him and sleeping near his bed for the rest of the night but he would wake up again and come to our room anyway. what helped was letting ds sleep on the floor of our room when he woke up. It's somewhat better than sharing a bed because it sets boundaries. also, it's not that comfortable so weaning him off of it would be easier.
a sticker chart with a prize at the end worked a little bit.
but the thing that worked most was putting him to sleep in his crib instead of his toddler bed. he feels really comfortable and safe in there and doesn't wake up anymore. I don't care that he is 4 and a half and still in a crib, he loves it and we get to sleep through the night!
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Vegieburger




 
 
    
 

Post Sun, Oct 20 2013, 7:51 pm
What about sleeping with her? Or make a bed for her on your floor?
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Tapuzi




 
 
    
 

Post Sun, Oct 20 2013, 8:53 pm
We found having daddy sleep on the floor beside crib worked. DS felt secure enough to go to sleep but didn't persist to wake up at night past a few nights because it wasn't all that exciting. If I had gone into the room he would have insisted on getting in my bed. With daddy the floor was enough.
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amother


 

Post Sun, Oct 20 2013, 10:20 pm
It's not only that I don't want her in my bed, she doesn't sleep well when she's in my room. She sometimes wakes up and just wanders around my room or just sits there staring and doesn't sleep well because she's a crazy light sleeper.
I don't like locking her in her room but we don't really know what to do and as I've said, at this point we don't even lock it anymore.
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amother


 

Post Sun, Oct 20 2013, 10:48 pm
My husband and I just thought of a sound machine. What do u think? Would this help her sleep more deeply?
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the world's best mom




 
 
    
 

Post Sun, Oct 20 2013, 11:53 pm
amother wrote:
My husband and I just thought of a sound machine. What do u think? Would this help her sleep more deeply?
Definitely possible.
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amother


 

Post Mon, Oct 21 2013, 2:10 am
Ok, you're talking to someone who's been there done that. As a matter of fact, my special needs daughter is almost 10 and she still wakes up during the night and goes in search of her father (thank God, not her mother). She climbs into his bed to sleep with him. He will generally move to a different bed/room and she will inevitably wake up and trek after him. It drives him nuts. BUT even though I was always of the school of thought that holds that you should gently lead them back to their own bed, he never did that. He always lets her sleep with him and then he wakes up exhausted because she wakes him dozens of times during the night. Here is how he explains his actions (or lack thereof) to me: He says that we don't know what difficulties and frustrations she experiences during the day. In school, on the street etc. There will always be kids that make fun or stare or whatever. He feels that maybe she needs the extra nurturing at night and this is how she gets it.
I don't have any answers, unfortunately. I just wanted to give you another perspective. Things are different with special needs kids and one has to take their emotional needs into account.
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Bruria




 
 
    
 

Post Mon, Oct 21 2013, 3:32 am
If she has special needs there are a few points to consider. What I am going to say you already know, she needs a very well set routine to make her go to bed. If she is a light sleeper, she needs lots of silence and probably even turning a door nob might wake her up. I would suggest maybe a mattress next to your bed so she can sleep there and if she wakes up, all you have to do is let your arm down so she knows you are there. After maybe a year you can think of getting her to sleep in her own room. Some kids just take longer for that and special kids need the parents for more time. What your husband says is true, you have no idea what she feels and how her challenges during the day affect her. She probably feels very anxious to be such a light sleeper, and anxiety has to do with not knowing what comes next( that's why the routine is VERY important).
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