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Toddler sleeping troubles due to deployment

Posted 08/19/2012

So my husband is deployed and my two year old recently started having some sleep troubles. Prior to the deployment, my son would do his bedtime routine(bath, mickey clubhouse and snack, potty brush teeth, book and bed) like a champ. He has had the same routine since 15months old and did great. He'd sleep from 730 til 630. He also did a similar routine at nap time and took a 1.5-3 hour nap each day.

Since we last saw my husband (2 weeks ago) at his training when we came home bedtime and naptime has been rough. He no longer naps for more than 1 hour. At bedtime he is coming out of his room and asking for milk or water, he kicks at the wall and has a hard time falling alseep. He wakes up at 530 or 6 everyday.

I know he's overly tired and I thought this was just a reaction to the deployment and that it would pass or get better. I'm getting worried that it's going to be a problem the whole time. I'm tired and extra cranky cause of the lack of sleepiing too.

Any ideas on what to do?

Comments (3)

Posted 08/19/2012

Sounds like a normal 2 year old.  Both of mine went through this. What time does he go to bed?  On the days that my YDS takes a crappy nap, I push bedtime up by half an hour, sometimes more.  It could also be that he's sensing the change in family dynamics.  Does he have a daddy doll?  My kiddos LOVE their daddy doll, he's part of the bedtime routine. We hug and kiss "daddy" and tell him good night. You can also try putting a gate up in his room so he can't get out.  Might be loud for a bit but eventually he'll learn that he doesn't have free access whenever he wants. Good luck, mama!!!



Mommy to a Pookie Bear (4/08) ; Mr. Man (6/10) & Little Miss (9/14)

Posted 08/19/2012
Really does sound like the 2 year old thing to do. My son has been doing the exact same thing for 2 months and nothing has changed. Dh isn't deployed right now, his sleep habits just went down the toilet. He's finally starting to sleep normal again but that time he wasn't I was about to go postal, especially being 32 weeks pregnant. Good luck, it will pass!
Posted 08/20/2012
I have been going through something really similar with my almost 3 year old. While I will agree the some of it is just normal toddler stuff, I think deployment factors in. How could it not? Their dad is gone and I believe that kids can pick up on our own internal feelings of stress, fear, etc.

I don't have a lot of great advice except to continue with thei consistent routine. And consistency with rules etc. That is not easy when you are doing it alone. I have daily meltdowns myself from the fatigue and stress of it all. With my son consistency has helped. I also instituted a bedtime chart with 4 bedtime rules... Brush teeth, take a bath, read 2 books, go to sleep. And do it all with good manners. We made it and decorated it together. Then I put a 10 checkboxes at the bottom. When he had 10 checks we went and picked him out a toy that he really wanted and I kept emphasizing that it was for his great bedtime behavior. That worked.

It didn't solve the problem and we have had more issues. I haven't gone back to the chart again because I do want his behavior to be good and not solely motivated by prizes. However, things are much better! When we do have problems they take less time to correct.

Hang in their mamma. It's a grind and I am sure you te doing awesome. Just hold your ground with them. I never knew how hard deployment would be until we were in it. Now I have even more respect for the military spouses who do this all the time.

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