Toddler Sleep: Effective Bedtime Routines & Sleep Tips

This video will go over the causes of bedtime battles and stalling with toddlers. It will give you tools to help improve your child’s bedtime routine to change bedtime into an enjoyable time for everyone.
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[@suzannemunoz9773]

Thank you for this video!!! We've got a 3 yr old independent sleeper but we have soooooo many stalls and this is helpful to see you in real time being patient...I set the boundary but I'm not as patient. Even the flipping in bed!!! It is so infuriating while I just watch but seeing ryaan do it and your calm Ness honestly gets me excited for bedtime tonight. Thank you!!

[@pedsdoctalktv9960]

Im excited I can record this because I do believe it helps to see how i respond. I TOTALLY get patience is thin, but the repetition and playing into their little games to some degree does help. So much more coming in toddler and tantrums course launching May 1!

[@franug]

My 26 month old daughter started stalling this week and already I'm . It's so frustrating! She behaves similarly to your boy here. The worst part for me is when she's all ready, PJs on, books on hand to read but she refuses to get into her crib...I'm happy to see I've been using most the things you show here but honestly it's so tiring...we had been spoiled by her being great at sleeping on her own lol

[@pedsdoctalktv9960]

It is so exhausting!! And can be so frustrating especially when you’ve had a relatively “easy” sleeper before. Stay calm and strong mama! You’ve got this 💪🏻❤️

[@lukeguy3907]

Great vid and great patient yet assertive parenting

[@kakaakemi678]

Hi! Cool tips! Especially the one "don't show frustration" which I know I do. We struggle because our daughter cries when we leave the room. We're trying to leave the door open to see if it helps..

[@pedsdoctalktv9960]

Great strategy. Let us know if there's more content you're looking for

[@cdb5662]

Excellent!

[@erikanaimi5510]

What do I do if she stalls after we’ve already put her down? She doesn’t have a problem with the routine but after she’s laid down, lights out, and door closed she then screams and calls for us constantly wanting water, diaper change, more cuddles. It feels too old to let her cry it out & if I let her cry more than 20 min she gets pissed & tries climbing out of the crib even though she can’t really do it. Help!! Sometimes these stalls take an hour or more until she finally actually goes to sleep!!

[@pedsdoctalktv9960]

Some options are here are prepping her on what will happen when you do lay her down. Okay time for bed..I say bye bye and see you in morning. If your child is over 3.5, a pass system is an option. Make fake "passes' out of paper and tell her she gets two passes (or whatever number) to be used for whatever she wants and to use it wisely--water, pee break, etc. Also, verbally explaining: "You had water and I will give you a big old glass of water when you wake up. What do you want for breakfast?"

[@FridayNightArcade]

I love how my staircase suddenly turns into quicksand when it's time to march our twins upstairs to bed lol.

[@pedsdoctalktv9960]

🤣🤣🤣

[@LisanneWei-ux5ro]

Thank you for this video! Watching the routine with your son Ryaan made me feel soooo much better. Like okay I’m not alone with the stalling and I’m not completely doing things wrong. I just need to work on my patience and not snipping at him immediately when he continuously stalls

[@pedsdoctalktv9960]

Yes definitely not alone. it's so common for toddlers to stall at bedtime. it can be soo frustrating but try to remain calm and hold boundaries and it should improve with time!

[@piotrchodoruk494]

Wow

[@lukeguy3907]

What happens if when they’re stalling in bed you just leave them and say goodnight? Wouldn’t they fall asleep eventually and save you time in quite a long drawn out routine? Also what is the benefit of offering them control?

[@samgacicia8365]

I️ love this video. I do have a question: our son continues to get out of his crib, so we talked to the doctor and we were told to get him in a toddler bed. As we have been doing our routine, he is now banging his head on the door. We need help!

[@pedsdoctalktv9960]

Maybe consider using a baby gate instead of shutting the door? If your child is over 2.5 you could also consider using a bedtime pass system or a visual sticker chart as a form of positive reinforcement to stay in their room. For the bedtime pass system, they get 3-5 passes when they can come out and once the passes are up they have to stay in their room. For the visual sticker chart, they get a sticker for every night they stay in their room, and after 5 stickers they get a surprise. This works best for kids who are incentivized by rewards, so know your kid’s temperament.

[@dsetitoff]

This won’t work for our 3 year old. We do all you suggested in the video but he’s not in a crib, he sleeps on a floor bed. He’s been out of the crib since he was 1.5 years old. So every time we try laying him down he just tries to run out of the room. We bring him back to his room and he runs out the room. It’s like a game to him that goes on for over an hour. My husband usually has to lay with him in his bed or rocking him in the chair, basically has to hold him so he stops moving and trying to run. It’s terrible. Night time is exhausting.

[@pedsdoctalktv9960]

It can be more challenging when they’re in a big bed. For some it works to calmly repeatedly walk them back to their room when they come out (the excitement wears off if you give them the same calm walk back) for others a graduated check in can help “I’ll go downstairs and grab your blanket.. “ and then when you walk back in “hey that was so awesome you stayed in your bed all by yourself!” And continue with spacing out check ins. Whatever method you pick make sure to be consistent. If still struggling also feel free to checkout my toddler tantrums course where more info is covered, I know it can be so tough but I hope it gets better for y’all soon❤️

[@iamxnatalie]

What would you suggest for the toddler who is still potty training and using going potty as a stall tactic? My toddler has been doing this and we feel wrong telling him no but he'll 'need' to go potty 3-4 times during the bedtime process.

[@angiegriffin1082]

Yep, same exact situation here. And somehow she's actually trained herself to poop at night so there's nearly always an actual poo!

[@pedsdoctalktv9960]

i do allow one trial for sure to believe them. "Okay let's try to poop!" And if nothing comes out then positive affirmations: "Nice job trying, let's try again in morning okay! I know you can do it." I completely agree with letting them try once and reinfroce you recognized they try and that we try again in MORNING.

[@KatrinaYeong4589]

I try this routine everyday and still won’t work on my daughter and she’s 3 years old and very stubborn.

[@misst.4229]

Wow looks familiar, too much negotiating," it's time for bed good night, see you in the morning" end of story, yes crying may start but it's normal.

[@pedsdoctalktv9960]

Yes boundaries are so important!

[@Wendalster]

Geez this makes me sad, lol I’m struggling with my 3 yr old I been sleep deprived for 2 weeks. And my mental state is deteriorating 😢

[@pedsdoctalktv9960]

Aw I hope the video has some strategies for you to try to make bedtime go smoother❤️ I know how exhausting and frustrating it can be!

[@RoyalKnowledge1233]

I have a 3 1/2 year old, she get's in the bed but keeps getting out of bed and playing with her cover making tents or getting out of bed to have some type of fun. It's frustrating. We read a book or two before bed, afterwards I turn on instrumental music or rain, but I can hear her playing when i'm in my room. Do you have any advice?

[@pedsdoctalktv9960]

If she's playing quietly in her room, I'd leave her be! She should listen to her body on when she's tired. If this is new behavior after a transition to a new room or big bed, the playing will likely subside as the novelty wears off. If she's staying up way late and it's interfering with wake up time/daytime schedule you can try to remove the exciting toys from her room or start bedtime earlier to encourage her to fall asleep sooner but otherwise she may just need the time to unwind and relax before falling asleep

[@RoyalKnowledge1233]

@@pedsdoctalktv9960 Thank you, I really appreciate you responding back😚

[@mariax876]

I am struuuuuuugling right now 😭 My 26 month old was amazing in his crib - we would put him down sleepy but awake and he would go down like a dream He jumped his crib so we switched to toddler rail and it’s literally off the rails now I will literally do the dance where he gets out of bed and I bring him calmly back in for HOURS - he fights and cries the whole time If he does go down it’s only for a couple hours We are all so sleep deprived What can I do??

[@pedsdoctalktv9960]

Did you have to switch to a crib because of safety? If he was climbing out it was time to switch but if he was well contained in the crib I’d consider switching back. You want to keep toddlers in their cribs as long as possible because the older they are the better they can follow direction and understand the concept of staying in bed until morning. And it may mean better sleep for you all if he was sleeping so well in the crib!

[@Ash-fp9ol]

Mine is the same had to get him off his crib because he started using it as a play gym. But now he is all over the place playing in the room, reading more books, playing with toys, running out the room even getting trying to get changed. Everything possible. We do supper, bath, teeth books bed. He is 27months. It takes something 2 hrs to get him to finally fall asleep. It is exhausting and he has the worst tantrums during this time. He also cries that he is scared of the dark (never a problem before in fact takes longer when I put nightlight in the room) a lot of talk now about monsters and zombies (I do no screen time 1-2hrs before bed). I stay in the room with him now because it’s just unsafe he climbs into the wardrobe, pulls the chest of draws etc (we share a bedroom). I should add he doesn’t nap at home anymore. Only pram or car. Nap times at home is an equal battle! I’m at loss pls advise😢

[@mariax876]

@@Ash-fp9ol I’m so sorry 😢 I know how terrible that can be. For us I actually moved him back to the crib - I literally have the mattress on the floor and he can’t get out…yet… so it’s bought us a couple more months 🤞🏼 sending positive vibes your way mama 💚

[@Ash-fp9ol]

@@mariax876 thank you so much for the reply that is very sweet of you. Unfortunately our cot was at its lowest level. we turned it into a toddler bed now. Thank you for being so kind. ❤️ so glad you were able to fix the issue and by yourself rime