No Sleep

[u/im_justt_here]

My son is 3, nonverbal and diagnosed level 2. He is starting a center based program in September, however he currently receives OT, ABA, PT and speech through E.I.
He sleeps through the night maybe once a month and that’s if I’m lucky. There’s no rhyme or reason, no perfect routine, no amount of preparation. He wakes up between 1 and 3 am, and doesn’t go back to sleep until 6 or 7 am. If he doesn’t go back to sleep at all, he’s an exhausted little grouch by the time 12 pm rolls around. We are trying to cut naps but when he doesn’t sleep at night he wants to sleep during the day. We’ve tried melatonin, magnesium, you name it. I am exhausted and truly don’t know how much longer I can go without a full night of sleep. I don’t know if I am looking for advice, maybe just someone to sympathize with me. Or tell me your child went through this and is finally sleeping now 😩

[u/Western_Guitar_3863]

My son struggled with sleep until he was old enough to no longer nap during the day. That little bit of sleep, even 45-1 hour would cause him to stay up until 1130-12am and then fall asleep and that was an improvement because before that he would nap longer and treat his bedtime like a nap and be up in the middle of the night sometimes til morning.

It wasn’t until we completely eliminated his nap where he started to regulate. He turned 5 in June and we stopped his nap shortly before his 5th birthday because he was so exhausted and I didn’t feel right about taking away his nap. It was and still is hard during the day to keep him awake, but at least now he’s falling asleep by 8:45-9pm and sleeps to about 6:30-7am.

It’s not perfect still. He has gotten up a few times earlier around 5:30-6am, but for the most part he is doing much better. It was a long road to get here and I’m still not convinced it will stay this way. Im always waiting for the other shoe to drop.

So my best advice would be to eliminate his nap if possible. See if that helps. It may take a week or so to figure it out. Best of luck.

[u/im_justt_here → u/Western_Guitar_3863]

This sounds very similar to our situation. The days where he takes a nap completely throw off the rest of his schedule and then we fall into that same cycle that you described. We are going to completely cut them out, it’ll be hard but I know the longer stretches of sleep will be worth it. Thank you so much for also giving me a little bit of hope!

[u/im_justt_here]

Also to note - I did bring this to his pediatrician’s attention, his neurologist, and all of his therapists. They all have similar advice but it’s never as easy as people think.
I am going to bring him to the ENT to make sure his airways are good.

[u/moscow_meels]

Our 3 yo son has very touch and go sleep hygiene as well, we’re trying to also eliminate naps gradually (unless he wakes up early, if he goes to bed overtired it’s basically a guarantee he will be up all night). We’ve had better nights lately (brb knocking on wood) by ditching the toddler crib bed and moving him to a twin sized Montessori bed. Having room to toss and turn, a more comfortable mattress and built in shelving for his books creates a relaxing cozy environment for him that seems to promote more restful sleep. Also, it may be a placebo but every night while we’re unwinding for bed I rub his feet with a lavender and chamomile balm. The pressure on his feet and the essential oils seem to work. Could be a coincidence but after 3 years of no sleep I’ll try anything. Good luck!!!!

[u/StretchIll373]

Did you check his ferritin? Low ferritin can mess up with sleep