Sleeping FAQ: 12-18 Months – Night Waking

I am not sure if my 15.5mth daughter is waking through habit or because of her cold.

My daughter has been sleeping very well since 8 months but now cries every time I put her into bed. Even if I sit somewhere in the room, not looking at her she goes off OK. I am trying not to get into this though. Our big problem though is that for the last 3 nights she has woken every hour and we are exhausted. She has a slight cold. Nothing terrible and is in good form in the day. I think her nose gets blocked and she gets distressed. She seems to cry out and then go off again eventually. Last night though I got up to her at 4 am and she settled by 5 am. I gave her some Benilyn and Calpol. Is this a bad sleep habit she is forming or is it her cold and will pass? Should I just have soothed her and left? I just really wanted her to go back to sleep so that I could too. She slept until 8.20am after going back at 5am. She sleeps for 2 hours in the day and usually sleeps around 12 hours at night.

My daughter takes around 13ozs of milk in the day as well as cheese and yoghurt. She eats well at all three meals. Her lunch is protein based and her supper is vegetarian.

Separation anxiety is very common in toddlers at this age. Suddenly your happy baby begins to cry when you leave her at bedtime. This is a phase which will pass, providing you deal with it in a sympathetic way.

As your daughter is able to fall asleep on her own, even though she likes to know you are in the room, she is not making too many sleep associations. Once she is over her present cold you could begin to use gradual withdrawal to help her not rely on you being there in order to sleep. Once you have settled her in her cot kiss her good night and move away from her cot, just in the way you have been doing. Gradually, over a period of several nights, move your chair nearer and nearer to the door. Once you are beside the door the time has come to begin to remove yourself from the room for short periods of time.

On the following night kiss her goodnight and leave the room. If she cries reassure her with your voice from outside the room, telling her you will be back. Return within 30 seconds and reassure her briefly before leaving again. Always reassure her from outside the room once you leave again. Lengthen the period you wait outside her door by 30 seconds every few times so, gradually, you are leaving her for three or four minutes at a time. Your daughter should by now be falling asleep without so much fuss.

Until she is over her separation anxiety it would be better to settle her in her cot and leave her door slightly ajar until she is asleep. Busy yourself outside her room and pop back in every few minutes until she settles herself. This will give her the reassurance she needs whilst going through this phase.

If you think your baby may be sickening for something or is unwell it is much better to check on her should she wake in the night. If you feel she is bothered by her runny nose, or appears to be running a fever, then give her some medicine and help her to settle back to sleep again with a reassuring pat and “shsh”. Dealing with a sick child in the night can be tiring but, when unwell, she does need you to help her sleep. There are several things you can do to help ease a cold which should help your daughter to sleep better despite being unwell.

Elevate her cot at the head end by placing telephone directories under the legs. This will help any mucous she may have to drain away rather than gathering in the back of her throat and causing her discomfort.

The air of her room may be dry from the central heating. To add some humidity place a damp towel over a warm radiator half an hour before her bedtime. You can buy special humidifiers which will help a baby or child who is bothered with night time coughs.

Help her breathing by sprinkling the contents of a capsule of Karvol onto a muslin square and tying it to the cot rails above her head. If she has a runny or sore nose, smearing a little Vaseline in each nostril just before she settles to sleep will help her nasal passages remain clear and uncongested. You can buy a nasal spray of saline solution which can help a baby who is blocked with mucous.

Until her cold is better your daughter may need a little more sleep than usual. Be guided by her and her needs. Once she is recovered you will be able to settle back to her usual routine again. If she continues to wake a great deal in the night after she has recovered from her illness, it would help you to look at her food and milk intake to make sure she is taking enough to get her through the night. Also make sure she is getting plenty of fresh air every day and, if she is already walking, that she has plenty of chances to run about.