
How Can I Get My Child to Sleep in His Own Bed?
Filed under: Feeding & Sleeping, Expert Advice: Toddlers & Preschoolers, Expert Advice: Big Kids
Dear AdviceMama,
I am the mother of three children. Our youngest refuses to sleep alone in his own bed. We have tried lying down with him until he falls asleep or letting him lie in our bed until he falls asleep, but as soon as we move or try to move him, he wakes up and the whole process starts all over. I feel like we have tried everything! I'm hoping you have some advice for us.
Signed,
Sleepy Mom
Dear Sleepy Mom,
This is one of the most common questions I'm asked, and probably because a disrupted sleep affects children (and their parents) so significantly. There's nothing quite as rejuvenating as going to bed peacefully and sleeping undisturbed through the night. A child who either can't fall asleep easily, or who requires parents to stay for extended periods of time is affecting their own sleep, as well as their weary parents'.
Get clear. This situation is made worse by sending mixed messages to your child. Do you lecture him about how he has to sleep in his own room, only to cave in when you're tired, tucking him into your bed as you give up ... "just for tonight"? Do you sometimes scold him for creeping into your bedroom in the middle of the night, and other times sweetly make room for him to join you?
Until and unless you're very clear about what you and your husband want your son to do, he's going to push to get what feels best to him. Remember, children are egocentric. As much as you're little boy loves you, he isn't thinking about how tired you might be as you lie there waiting for him to finally fall asleep; he's focused on what feels best to him.
So don't expect your child to recognize how sleepy you are and tell you to go off to bed. He -- like most children -- prefers your company as he falls asleep. It's normal; humans have been co-sleeping for thousands of years. I'm not telling you to sleep with him, but I am suggesting that you'll need to be crystal clear that the goal is to help him go to sleep in his own bed and stay there before you try the new strategies I will offer you.
If you're certain that you do not want your son to sleep in your room, choose a relaxed time -- not before bedtime -- when you explain the new bedtime plan. Give him the chance to be upset, scared or sad, and help him offload his feelings without trying to convince him of how much he's going to love sleeping alone! He probably isn't, at least at first. So let him express his anger, fear or tears about the fact that you've decided that he cannot sleep in your room anymore.
Proceed in stages. Think of the process as weaning, rather than a cold turkey, all-at-once experience of making him stay in his room. Focus on helping him go to sleep in his own room, rather than moving him after he's fallen asleep in yours (which clearly doesn't work).
Offer distractions. First, give him something interesting to look at or listen to so he doesn't feel bored and alone in the dark. Quiet music, audio books or a projector that shows stars moving across the ceiling can help distract a sleepy child.
Address fears. Charlotte Reznick, author of "The Power of Your Child's Imagination," suggests that if your child is fearful of sleeping in his own bed, engage his imagination for protection. One 9-year-old, initially terrified of break-ins even with a working alarm system, created an enormous white dragon to wrap around her bed and added a tiger at the door (just in case...). It helped her feel safe enough to allow her eyes to close and her body to relax into sleep."
Move across the room. Lie beside your son silently for a while, and then sit across the room from him while you listen to your iPod or read with your itty bitty light without engaging in any conversation. Let him know that, for a while, you're going to stay nearby until he falls asleep, but only to help him get used to being alone. Let him know if he tries to get you to talk, you will go out of the room. (But give him a reminder or two, as this will take some getting used to.)
After a week or so, start leaving for two to three minutes to "go to the bathroom," and be sure to return as promised. This will help him develop greater tolerance for your absence, without causing him to panic.
Usually within a couple of weeks of sticking closely to these guidelines, the parents I have worked with find that their children adjust to sleeping alone. Give it a try, and let me know how it works! And sweet dreams!
Yours in parenting support,
AdviceMama
AdviceMama, Susan Stiffelman, is a licensed and practicing psychotherapist and marriage and family therapist. She holds a Bachelor of Arts in developmental psychology and a Master of Arts in clinical psychology. Her book, Parenting Without Power Struggles, is available on Amazon. Sign up to get Susan's free parenting newsletter.
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ReaderComments (Page 5 of 7)
6-09-2011 @ 6:15AM
Joe said...Contrary to popular belief, some parents enjoy sex and don't want their 3 year old watching.
6-09-2011 @ 5:05AM
ch said...Coddling is an entirely different issue ...this is sleep has nothing to do with independence . Your child in order to make an independant smart choice needs to be secure and informed enough to make that decision ...your act of sending them off to bed without question does nothing but stomp on their independence and tells them that their opinion and voice does not matter...instead of the brush off and get out of my face go to bed try making it enjoyable for them to settle in and teach them that it is safe and necessary for everyone to get rest.It just doesn't make any sense at all to just send your child to their room and not try to resolve the issue ..which eventually gets exacerbated by the child feeling alone and unwanted and actually feeling dependant when an adult/parent won't deal with them.Get your parenting skills on and get involved people or don't have kids.
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6-09-2011 @ 5:09AM
Gina said...Regarding getting your child to sleep in his/her own bed: My oldest was the same way and I also tried everything I could think of then finally I discovered using a black light bulb in his lamp and letting him pick out glow in the dark items to hang in his room and it worked great. You can get stars, animals, and all sorts of things or make glow in the dark items with highlighters. It worked for me so it may just work for someone else!
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6-09-2011 @ 4:33PM
linda said....It you study the history of family sleeping customs..you will discover that separating the family bed is something more recent and novel than has been customary..
Over the years, what used to be considered normal..(such as the average age of weaning as 5 years old or the family bed as a place with no age limit).. is now considered perverted...
On the other hand, what used to be considered perverted..(such as vulgarity of every kind on the screen, music and computer for children to be exposed to) has become normal and acceptable..
So finding first graders having oral sex on the floor of the classroom would, I guess, be considered OK.. WHY? Because the media has no limits on what they expose. to the world..and the parents do little to protect the innocence of their childhood....By the way, that really did happen.
What I am saying is that children are visually, mentally, psychologically and emotionally raped with every kind of trash daily..NO ONE PROTECTS them from this assault..On the other hand, we expect them to be able to sleep alone but we adults can feel fearful, scared and alone to be by ourselves..Double standard
Before their births, I read all the various ways to raise a child..The one most nurturing won out..I had limits and boundaries regarding their behavior..but not when it came to demonstrating love, comfort, reassurance and lots of touch..My daughters are beautiful by other people standards inside and out..They tell me they are the most responsible, mature, caring and intelligent girls they know.. with loads of self confidence .this is true ...Well, one is nearly 25 and the other 16..One weaned at 6 and the other 7...We all slept together..We never had fear issues..because they had the comfort of knowing we were right there...At their own discretion they moved back and forth to our bed or another as they grew older..No rules...Just love..I figured why make a child full of fear as I was..They get so many compliments on their character from strangers and friends alike..that I have NO regrets how I have raised them..Everyone says that they are the most loving and caring girls..that they are so unique and often (without knowing how they were raised) would say they wished their kids were like mine..I just studied a lot before I had them and felt whatever builds the security of a child..they will take with them where ever they go for life..
My eldest is self directed, got honors in school, was a lead assistant for most of the specialists at a very large dental group ( at their request) because she was capable of working so well with them and the patients and was very apt at her work.. I taught them how to use knives and had them cooking, both at an early age of 3.. Wished you could have been there before you judge so quickly..Maybe we lost something good long ago and need to refresh ourselves on how to be sweet and nurturing again...
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6-09-2011 @ 6:11AM
Joe said...Here's a great idea, never have your child sleep in your bed and you won't have a problem. It's one thing to put a bassinet next to the bed when the child is an infant, but this "family bed" hippie crap? Instant intimacy killer... Just tell your child that you want to give him or her a baby brother or sister and that it only works if he or she sleeps in their own bed.
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6-09-2011 @ 6:18AM
LillieFaerie said...I have never minded that the kids or grandkids wanted to sleep with us. A few things, they have to go to the bathroom, they're cold and where we live that's a possibility and they just want to be able to relax and feel safe. They grow out of it, and I was always a parent first. My husband feels the same way. The kids grow up, do extremely well in school, have their own kids-who visit and come in bed, and then they want their own space. I have never regretted letting the kids make their own decisions. They grew up just great and I think I was a better mom for their closeness.
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6-09-2011 @ 6:22AM
Joe said...Are there any dads out there that want to chime in? Unfortunately, most men are jellyfish (no spine) in a marriage and they will allow this to happen and even lie about it being "ok" to maintain peace in the home. I would calmly and firmly explain to my child that "mommy and daddy work very hard and need their time alone tonight okay?" The truth is, they do. Besides, where are the little brothers and sisters supposed to come from?
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6-09-2011 @ 6:43AM
Bev said...What is wrong with you people = YOU are the parents. Don't you children respect you enough to listen and do what you say???? Find out if the child is afraid of something and deal with what he is frightened of if anything. If its just an I want to sleep with you or I don't want to sleep in my room and in my bed then that is another issue. To address that you have to realize you are the parent not the other way around. Its ok to say I said you are sleeping in your bed and thats the end of it. Parents seem to think they are being mean if they tell the child what is expected of them. Its called parenting . You can be a friend to your child but you are a parent first, or should be.
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6-09-2011 @ 7:21AM
don said...why is it so much different here in usa where most country in the world kids donr even have a room of there own and everyone sleeps in the same room
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6-09-2011 @ 7:33AM
JOHN said...you kick his sorry spoiled ass..
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6-09-2011 @ 7:47AM
Cheryl said...The problem with my grandson not wanting to sleep in his own bed didn't start until after he turned three. About that time his father(my son) became an over-the-road trucker & is now away for a full week at a time. Our daughter-in-law struggled with getting him to sleep in his own bed during the week & wasn't totally successful with anything until she & my son tried giving the little guy dad's old pillow to sleep with. It had dad's scent on it & seemed to do the trick. He rarely climbs into bed with mom during the week anymore. He's now four. Now if we can just figure out how to keep him from getting out of their apartment when mom's "tending to business"! He figured out how to unchain the door so we moved the chain higher but he figured out how to reach it anyway!
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6-09-2011 @ 11:44AM
jillsey1118 said...There's too much emphasis on children being alone at night in this culture. As adults most of us don't like to sleep alone. Why should children? In England they had the right idea when children all slept together in a "nursey" until they were older. Either have your son sleep with one or more of his siblings, or do what I did. We had a sleeping bag on the floor of our room. Our daughter was allowed to come in when she wanted and sleep on it, but she wasn't allowed to sleep in our bed. Our two older children, boy and girl, shared a room until the oldest was about 12 and told his sister he wanted to sleep alone from then on.
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6-09-2011 @ 11:44AM
Tara said...wow..theres a lot of people here who will paddle a young child for wanting to snuggle with Mommy cause they dont want to be alone in the dark. Sounds really healthy. My mom just said stay in bed . Ill keep the hall light on, and if you get really lonely, read or look at a picture book. It worked.
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6-09-2011 @ 8:33AM
Joan said...When a child continues to come into your room at night.l....
Do this!!
You and your husband pretend to be asleep. Make the child very uncomfortable....crowd him out. Do not let him know you are awake.
He will get up and go back into his bed.
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6-09-2011 @ 8:32AM
leon said...I never had that problem. The kids started out in a cradle and then a crib and then their own bed. Never had them sleeping with me in my bed. Never never never did. The kids are all grown up and they still don't sleep in my bed with or without me.
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6-09-2011 @ 9:59AM
Ron said...Yea it is sure tough, my god all you have to do is learn to teach kids some respect, make them mind, don't go with all this new day stupid attitude that you cant whip your kids. Yea I had a kid, moved to two story house and told her sleep upstairs, she was scared and tried the old trick but one time telling her how it is and she was fine, no light on either, todays idea that you have to be so sweet and only sweet talk is so stupid and the reason most of todays kids get to visit a jail sometime soon in there life
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6-09-2011 @ 9:05AM
kenzie said...Okay, so this was not my experience and my kids turned out great, but in the interest of understanding the whole "family bed" concept, somebody needs to explain it to me. Does everybody go to bed at the same time? Do the kids go to sleep in the bed and then you just scoot them over when you are ready to go to bed? When do you make love? Does everybody but me have a king sized bed (cause I know the times when one of my kids snuggled in after a bad dream, I got no sleep from the crowding.) I really don't see the value in all of this, but I want to understand--so share with me.
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6-09-2011 @ 1:07PM
Josephine said...I cured my 5 year old son from coming into our bed by explaining to him that this was mommy and daddy's bed and he had his own bed. When he said he was scared or wanted to sleep with us I told him it was okay, but he had to get his blanket and pillow and he could sleep next to our bed on the FLOOR. After a few nights of doing this I think he got disgusted sleeping on the hard floor and ended up going back into his bed and never came into our bed again. It also worked for my grandson.
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6-09-2011 @ 9:08AM
Marshall said...Grandparents can sometimes be at fault because they may
not be setting the boundaries . Young kids can sometimes
come into their beds without thinking. The other problem I do
see is when families have to share the same bedroom in tiny
rundown apartments and/or small houses. These kinds of
conditions can foster alot of drama. In these kinds of settings
it may be hard for parents and or/grandparents ,aunts and/or
uncles to set the boundaries.
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6-09-2011 @ 12:03PM
Tim said...DOOR LOCK!! install it. use it. If you lock your bedroom door it makes it a might hard for your child to come in. If there is an emergency he can call your name. After the emergency put him back in his room and lock your door.
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