21 Month old wakes up for 2 hours each night

Q: Hi there,

My 21 month old daughter, Katie, wakes most nights at around the same time (btwn midnight and 2am) and she'll cry until we come into her room. Then she is perfectly happy in her cot, as long as we remain in the room with her.  But the moment we leave her room, she'll cry and freak-out until we return. Now, I don't mind if she wakes once or twice a night, as long as she goes right back to sleep again. But she doesn't - she stays awake for 2 to 3 hours until she finally drifts off to sleep. My husband and I take turns being in the room with her, but we just can't take it anymore - we're exhausted!!

As a (breast-fed) baby, Katie would wake up every hour and only go back to sleep on the breast. As a result, I resorted to keeping her in our bed with us.  At around her 1st birthday, we had had enough and got a sleep-trainer in to help us out.  Since then, Katie has been sleeping right through... that is, up until 2 months ago, when she started teething her eye teeth. Now, she has all 4 eye teeth, but is still waking every night for 2 hours.  We've tried the crying it out method, but she'll cry for 3 hours and still not sleep.

What are we doing wrong? Why is she waking every night when before she would sleep through? And why is she up for 2 to 3 hours instead of going back to sleep?  Please help!!

Tarynn, Robert and Katie

A: Dear Tarynn

You must feel desperate! One of the worst tortures we suffer as parents is that when our baby has been sleeping through and returns to bad habits and wakes frequently. I suggest the following:

1. De-worm your little girl. Ask your doctor for a good de-worming medicine to rule out worms as a cause of night waking
2. Give her a supplement such as Barley Green if she is a fussy eater as many toddlers are
3. Make sure she has a doodoo blanky to sooth herself in the middle of the night
4. Introduce high levels of movement at 4pm, such as a visit to the park, swinging on a swing, going for a ‘long’ walk
5. Use a night light to allay mid night fears as toddlers are renowned for nighttime fears
6. Use a sleeping bag to make sure she is warm enough at night
7. Keep her in her cot until she is sleeping well again
8. Give her Calmag supplements (a supplement with magnesium)
9. Use Bach Rescue Remedy Spray in her mouth as you respond to her at night as this will help her settle.
10. Use white noise to keep her state drowsy and help her back to sleep
11. If you have ruled everything out, do gentle sleep training: Sit by her bed until she falls asleep. As longs as she lies quietly, sit there. If she makes a noise or performs or sits up, walk out and give her a boundary cue: “I will come back when you lie down”

Thanks Meg