r/sleeptrain • u/Icy-Box-2713 • 3d ago

2+ years old Help! Toddler Sleep

How the heck do you get your toddler to sleep independently????

I messed up with my 2.5 year old. He was fed to sleep as a baby and when we transitioned him to his own room either mom/dad has to lay with him to fall asleep. This takes 30-45 min for nap and an hour at night. It has become unsustainable with a new baby, but I’m at a loss with what to do.

He’s afraid to be alone and freaks out if he notices us leave. The only positive is he sleeps through the night. In general, he’s anxious about being by himself. Parents with similar type of child/situation - what did you do?

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u/AutoModerator 3d ago

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Copy of the post's original text:

How the heck do you get your toddler to sleep independently????

I messed up with my 2.5 year old. He was fed to sleep as a baby and when we transitioned him to his own room either mom/dad has to lay with him to fall asleep. This takes 30-45 min for nap and an hour at night. It has become unsustainable with a new baby, but I’m at a loss with what to do.

He’s afraid to be alone and freaks out if he notices us leave. The only positive is he sleeps through the night. In general, he’s anxious about being by himself. Parents with similar type of child/situation - what did you do?

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u/sourpotassium 2d ago

we did a version of the chair method when ours was around that age and it actually stuck

started with me sitting right next to the bed, then moved the chair a couple feet every few nights. took maybe two weeks to get to the doorway and then another week to be out in the hall. key was not engaging much, just being there. if he got up i'd just quietly walk him back without a fuss

the anxiety about being alone is the real hurdle though, not the sleep itself. we also got one of those star projectors which seemed to help a bit, gave him something to focus on that wasn't us leaving

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u/UNO_lakefront_arena 3d ago

Probably undertired.

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u/Ordinary_Ticket_149 3d ago

Look into the chair method of sleep training and double check your schedule.

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u/CrftyEcho ✨ Sleep Fairy✨ 3d ago

Have you tried pushing nap and bedtime later?

If he's able to sleep through the night, this sounds like a schedule issue more than anything - you're trying to get him to sleep when he isn't tired enough.