10 answers

13 Month Old Crying Middle of the Night

Hi Moms,
Occasionally our 13 month old will cry/scream middle of the night - sometimes at 1 am, other times at 4am but only for few minutes. We usually wait it out and she goes back to sleep but I wonder if I should be going in to see what is going on. We do go in once she goes quiet to make sure everything is okay. Only once did her cry escalate and it turned out she had a poopy diaper at 4 in the morning. Any other moms have similar experiences? I just wish I knew what is causing her to cry. Thank you.

1 mom found this helpful

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So What Happened?™

Thank you to everyone who responded. I am glad to hear that this is 'normal' - whew! I do hope that this too is a phase and that I can look forward to uninterrupted sleep again...

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Sometimes my son would do that. I would go in and hold him and he would usually be abk to sleep with in minutes. It is like he just needed to know that I was still there for him. It made us both feel better for me to go to him!

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could be "night terrors", caused by their little brains doing a lot of growing at this point in life. My son did that for about a month. It sounds as if you are handling it just right.

Sometimes my son would do that. I would go in and hold him and he would usually be abk to sleep with in minutes. It is like he just needed to know that I was still there for him. It made us both feel better for me to go to him!

That's about the time they begin to have dreams. Sounds normal & sounds like you are handling it right.

Hi H.,
Could it be teething? My second child is now 13 months old and has done the same type of crying at night and shortly into daily naps. He has been cutting molars, and this crying out has been happening off and on since his teething began.
Hope this helps some, and congrats on your little girl!
G.

I don't have an answer. but my daughter is currently 16 mon. she cries most b/c of she feels too hot.

H.

In my opinion, you are handling it perfectly. I have 5 children and do not go in in the first few minutes of crying (unless it is the obvious "I'm hurt" cry, which is rare). Usually they go back down. Occasionaly one will have a poopy diaper, we take care of it. But if you react right away and run in, that will encourage them to cry until you come in. Just do exactly as you are, you won't always be perfectly right, but checking after they go back down is better for them and for you!

Take care!
D.

H.,

I understand this one well. My 16 month old daughter experiences crying in the middle of the night as well. I believe she is dreaming and waking from her sleep. I usually sneak in her room and give her a once over to ensure she's okay. Most times she goes back to sleep before too long, so no parental intervention is necessary. I think this may be the case for your daughter. She's likely dreaming and waking up, as we all do during the night. Unless it becomes worse, I would not be too concerned.
- T.

Hi H.,
Is it possible that your daughter is getting her 1 year molars? A sleep specialist once told me that bursts of crying in the night is usually due to teething. I remember feeling like I needed to go in to see what was the matter too, but learned that if she really needed me for anything, she would let me know. It should get better soon. Good luck!

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