Thursday, September 28, 2017

How to Get Toddlers to Sleep

There's a common battle which parents with toddlers face: bedtime! Toddlers who are used to spending all their time each day playing would naturally resist the lack of excitement which sleep brings. It's as if they try to tell you that they've got "so much to do, yet so little time." Also, your toddlers' refusal to go to sleep is their own way of exerting independence from you.

Since critical brain development happens during toddler years, it is important that your child gets enough sleep.



Here are a few things you can do to make your toddlers sleep at night:

1. Capitalize on their desire for independence. Does your toddler only attempt to lie on the mattress when you're around? Break this bad habit early on by teaching your toddler how to soothe himself/herself to sleep and assure them that you're just nearby if he/she needs you.

Let him/her also feel empowered if you allow them to make bedtime choices like what book they'd like you to read or what color of pajamas they'd like to wear. 

2. Follow a routine each night. When nightly routines are well-established, the transition from play to sleep will be much easier for your toddler. Their brains automatically start to wind down when familiar calming activities leading to bed are being performed.