Daughter Crying in Middle of Night

My son is 3 years old and he has cried like that since he was about 12 months. Now that he is getting older he can tell us what is wrong. Sometimes his tummy hurts but most of the time he is having a nightmare. I always keep gas relief drops handy. When he has nightmares I turn on the lights to wake him up and console him. Then he is able to go back to bed when he knows the "monsters" are not after him. I hope this is helpful because I have had many of sleepless nights trying to figure out what the problem was.

both of my sons did the same thing when it was getting close to a growth spurt or if their sleeping habits were changing...all i can say that helped me a little was playing with them a lot after their nap and keeping bedtime the same...the whole dinner at six, bath at seven, put toys away at seven thirty and then story and bedtime at eight...it might not prevent her from waking up in the middle of the night, but i also put a sippy cup of water in the bed with them and their favorite blanket or stuffed animal...i just had to go through it and it eventually went away...i also did the whole let them cry thing after making sure they didnt need a diaper change or something to snack on...you could also make sure that about an hour or so before bed to give her milk and a snack involving some kind of protein (it tends to make sure their stomach is full so they dont wake up hungry)

Really research "night terrors." It's typical for this age and development. It sounds scarier than it is. Just try to be there for her and the information about it will assure you. But do read about it online, there is a lot of information about it. Both my children went through it. It passes. If you or her doctor can rule out any other issues/problems/medical concerns, then that's good. Or sometimes it's simply something they go through as part of their development. They are always changing and going through different growth phases, nothing is static. Just as with adults. During times like this, naturally, it will interfere with the Parent's sleep as well. But hang in there... a child's greatest asset is their parents. Good luck!
~Susan
www.cafepress.com/littlegoogoo

Hello luv, how's your world today? At your local store they probably have 'sleepytime tea' which is made from chammomil flowers and very safe. At your local health food store youmay find'teething' or 'colic' tablets which too are made from chammomile and disolve on the tounge. The smell of lavender..there' a lotion you can buy that tells you it's calming and it does sooth and relax young ones back to sleep I found them very effective, safe and helpful when my children were young like that..Have a great day..M.

I have a 15 month old that has been doing the same thing. I think for her it may be teething but I am not sure. I wish there was more I could do for her. I hope you get some good advice.

could she be teething? my 1 yr old has about 5 teeth coming in rifht now. he was waking up alot at night, but i started putting baby orajel on his gums before bed and it's really helped out. good luck.

aud

Sounds like she may be having night terrors...my son is 2 and has had them every couple of weeks since he was 15 months. While it's scary at times (and frustrating) it's actually a nomral thing for children to go through. Search for it online to see if it's what your daughter has been going through.

Dear S.,

My son is 17 mos and has the same problem. If you can make sure he has a FULL tummy when he goes to bed, you can rule out hunger. If he is teething, you can give him some tylenol or orajel, but mostly, and this is tough I know - but let him cry. You are setting a pattern in his sleep cycle when you respond to him. For us it took two long sleepless weeks!! But it worked, he sleeps through the night, with an occassional night that has a cry that last 20 minutes tops. Then he is back to sleep. IF you feed him in the night, his body says "wake up, time to eat" whether he is tired or not. Just like grown ups bodies have routines, if you work nights, and then have days off, it is hard to sleep at night.

I am a big fan of schedules. Eating, sleeping, naps, etc. I know it doesn't always work that way, but 90% of the time my son's schedule is predictable and I can plan my day around his feedings,and naps and 8pm bedtime.

Good luck and stay strong!

Something to note about night terrors is there is a theory that night terrors are caused by children's underdeveloped lungs stopping breathing very breifly during the night. It's called sleep apnea, though this is usually a disorder that heavy men get. It is believed that because of infants underdeveloped lungs they may stop breathing. This happens when they sleep very hard and their bodies just aren't able to continue in the deep sleep. You want to try to make sure she goes down early enough that she's not overly tired when she goes to sleep. Another option is that he is having nightmares. You may talk to your doctor. One thing you may be able to do is when she starts crying turn on the lights, low if you can get an adustable dimmer or a small light for these specific nights, pick her up and make sure she is awake, then you may be able to calm her down. Thats all the suggestions I have, I wish you luck.

My guess would be teething. Infant Ibuprofen or Tylenol did the trick for us. My son got a lot of teeth between a year and a year and a half. His eye teeth and two-year molars woke him up at night and sometimes I even gave him Tylenol or Ibuprofen during the day when I noticed he didn't want to eat (even though he was indicating that he was hungry), and he was acting uncharacteristically crabby. BTW, I'm a big Scrubs fan -- not sure if that was the inspiration for your daughter's name, but I love it!

Sounds like Night Terrors to me, check out this website from babycenter and see if that helps.
http://www.babycenter.com/0_night-terrors_142.bc?Ad=com.b...

M. *`

Hello,
My daughter had night terrors starting at 1 year old till 2. She would scream at the top of her lungs and she never remembered when she woke up in the morning. It was as if she was still asleep doing it. I had to wake her up with all the lights on to get her to stop.
Finally I I changed her diet so that she had no protein after 3pm and saw an Anthroposophical doctor. 3 days later she never woke up screaming again.

I hope is helpful :)
A.

my daughters use to do that well my 5yr old still does sometimes, so i totally understand how you feel. my oldest use to wake up in the middle of the night crying her head off and screaming that her knee or leg hurt. so i took her to the doctor and he said it was growing pains caused by the thigh bone which makes it feel to them that its there knee or whole leg. he advised me to keep her somewhat calm during the day cause the more active she is the worse it will be at night and if she does play hard during the day then to give her motrin or tylenol before bed. if she still wakes up with pain then give her some more meds and put her in the tub of warm water. also what i found that really helps is a rice pack. you put rice in a sock, about a cup or so, tie it off so it don't come out, put it in the microwave for about 25-30 seconds so it will heat up and put it on your daughters leg. i know it sounds really weird rice pack but it works. just be careful though cause the rice can get really really hot.
well anyways my oldest is now 13 and she hasn't had a pain since she was about 7 or 8. i hope this helps you. good luck
C.

My daughter did this too. I'd have to put the TV on really loud to "snap her out of it" and then calm her down. I thought maybe she was feeling uncomfortable from something, and often times she was gassy and after that passed, she would calm down. I stopped giving her milk before bedtime and it really helped a lot. It was hard the first couple of nights and still months later she will occasionally ask for milk at bedtime, but it was worth it. Her screaming really eased and now when she cries at night, she can soothe herself back to sleep.

it probably is growing pains, my sons had them too. have you tried a little bit of tylenol before bed or a very warm bath. also massaging his legs before bed helps too.

S.

Hi S., My twins did the same thing. They are 21 months now and still it happens on occassion. I agree with your hubbie. I might be growing pains. Also, my girls will do that if they have had alot of stimulation the day or days before. They just can't process everything and some kids have really active imaginations, so... Hang in there! R.

You could try using a Bach Flower Remedy called Rescue Remedy. It is great for calming, without having to disturb the child which is not advised with night terrors. It can be found in health food stores and comes in dropper or spray form.

There is also Hylands Calm Forte. Research them and see if they are for you. Both are great at calming. Good luck!