Toddler with Sleep Issues - Help!

[arivecchi]

DS1 is 32 months old. He normally wakes up around 7:00-7:30 am. He then naps from 2-4 or 3-5. He used to go to bed around 8, but no more. He is wide awake until about 9 and we struggle to put him to bed. We recently switched him to a toddler bed and DH needs to sleep next to his bed until he falls asleep, which of course, sucks for DH. Most of the time, he wakes up around 1-2 am and cries until we get him and take him to our room. He cries hysterically if we try to put him back to bed in his toddler bed. What do you suggest? Is this just a phase? Do most toddlers like to co-sleep? Should we drop the nap? MY DH is really fed up with the whole deal, but I don't know what to do.

[egoldber]

If definitely sounds like the nap is on its way out. You could try shortening the nap and see if it helps. Some kids also do OK napping every other day.

[HIU8]

DD is 28 months. A month ago I dropped her nap--really she was dropping it. If she naps even for 1 hour she doesn't go to bed until at least 10 pm. Without a nap she will go down at 8. Either way she only sleeps until 6:30, so I would rather she gets the extra 2 hours of sleep. She does wake up in the middle of the night (we just moved her toddler bed to another side of her room) and she gets a sippy of milk and a backrub and then back to sleep. That usually works. Last night she was up from 12-2. She just could not settle herself. However, she is not allowed to come into our bed until after 6:30 am. There was a time when she was sleeping with us and it was the worst experience for me and DH--neither of us got any sleep b/c DD tosses and turns and kicks ALL NIGHT LONG.

[Piglet]

DS2 was like this and the solution for us was to push bedtime later by an hour. I think Ferber addresses this problem (something about 2 sleep cycles because they are in bed for too long). FTR, DS2 napped for at least a year beyond this period, so it wasn't the nap that had to go (he was a bear without it).

[arivecchi]

Thx everyone. I will report back if we have any progress.