1 year old restless sleeping?

Question

my 1 year old tosses and turns all night long. he also wakes up numerous times crying out. is there any way i can help him sleep better and stay alseep throughout the night. he used to sleep thru when he was younger.

Answer 1

This is normal.  As a child progresses with age his sleep pattern can change.  Give your child more stimulating activities throughout the day.  Establish and keep to a consistent sleep routine.

Answer 2

Hi there,

It's really tough to have a restless one year old - does he sleep in a cot or with you?  If he sleeps with you this could be a sign that he needs to settle in his own space now.

Could it be a sign of experiencing change and stress perhaps?  

Has he been involved in change recently?

Do you think he is hungry or thirsty?  This can create the restlessness.

Have you adopted a calming bedtime routine for him?  A lot of action directly before bedtime can cause this sleeping problem.  

Are you suffering from stress yourself?  Often our one year olds can seem to be intimately connected to their mother's emotional problems.

I wish you all the best

Answer 3

I would suggest try to keep him really busy before bed kinda wear him out don't let him take a long nap during the day if he does.   If all else fails I let mine sleep with me.  Bad habit

Answer 4

My son is almost a year old and he's turned into a restless sleeper.  I attribute it to all the things he's learning to do.  I believe he's working on them in his sleep.  Even more he wakes up at night wanting to practice the things he's thinking of in his dreams.  It's a tough time sort of like when you are taking a new class and you start late so you have to work really hard to catch up.    On top of that no one speaks your language and can answer your questions so you get frustrated over that too.  

I'm exhausted right now but, I'm really looking forward to the wonders my son will discover over the next year.

Answer 5

Kids are miniature adults. They carry their experiences throughout the day to bed with them at night. This can turn into dreams, and or restless sleeping. He or she may have a fear they can not express, or a problem that they can not tell you about. Has anything changed in his or her life at the same time the restless sleeping began? It is important to make sure the child is not experiencing anything traumatic in his or her day for example: bad babysitter, daycare worker, etc.

Tell the child a bedtime story that is sweet and carefree, and do a special tuck in ritual, such as:

1. kiss on the forehead.

2. tuck the covers around him or her really tight.

3. read a carefree story, maybe a funny one.

4. another kiss.

5. lights out.

6. night light on.

7. special good dream stuffed animal (new, go buy one that is cuddly and give it to him or her as a gift, tell him or her a story about how it takes all bad dreams away.)

8. say good night, and leave the room.

If the child is tossing and turning, moaning, or seems to be having a bad dream, go in the room and in a light voice say its ok mommy is here and you are safe, touch the child gently and he or she should calm down and stay asleep.

If he or she wakes up screaming, give them the stuffed animal u recently gave them, tuck them back in and reasure them that you would never, ever, ever let anyone hurt them.

In the mean time, make sure that is true, double check the people caring for your child when  your away, even if they are family, friends or people you believe to be safe, you never know.

Answer 6

My daughter did the same thing around 1 year old. But I later found out it was stress that caused it because we had just moved and our sleeping arrangements changed. She would also wake up 2 hours after she was asleep with night terrors. She would run from her bed screaming, it was horrible. I tried everything from benadryl to a strict bedtime routine(night time snack, teeth brushing, washing hands and feet, dimming the light, reading several stories, and sitting beside her for 15-20 mins).

You can try limited things that make a kid hyper(no chocolate, soda, caffeine ect.). Try a warm glass of milk. A little benadryl will help falling asleep and waking up. But you have to be careful because sometimes it will do the opposite. Keep the tv off. Dim all lights. Also try a soothing warm bath before bed with chamomile or lavender. And a nice body massage with chamomile/lavender lotion.

To this day my daughter still tosses and turns. Sometimes waking up backwards in bed and cries till I fix her.  

I do have to recommend a fantastic book: The No-Cry Sleep solution for Toddlers and Preschoolers. It's worth it's weight in gold :)

Good Luck.

Answer 7

Its a stage.

He could be going through a growth spurt, teething, and so on. You can tell me "no", but you'll eventually figure it out. Sometimes those teeth hide, or those inches creep, and you don't notice it until its too "late". ;) :)

I'd try giving him an earlier nap. Like around 11, and only let him sleep 1-2 hours more. No more or less.

Then, from there, I'd start just catching his "signals". He could need to use the bathroom. He could need a drink. He could need to eat before. He could need to wait a longer period of time to sleep after eating. He could need you to hold him a bit first. Read him a story.

You could start getting into a "routine" too. Even just doing something special or specific an hour before, could do the trick.

Like I wrote - its a stage... It will pass. Hang in there. You'll figure it out.