Lots of children want their parents in the room with them, hugging them or sitting them with, while they fall asleep. If you are pretty happy sitting with your child while he fall asleep, then feel free done it. If you want your child to fall asleep on their own, without you balanced at the end of their bed watching, then you might want to try some or all of the following methods.
Method 1: I will be back in 5 minutes
The old trick of “I will come and check on you in X minutes” works for some children. Say somewhat along the lines of: “I will just be in my bedroom and I will come and check on you in two minutes if you are silent, otherwise I will go from the room.” Some kids can be convinced by this method, but do remember to check on them, otherwise they will get very upset and won’t believe you next time.
Method 2: Ongoing retreat
Ongoing retreat does what it says and includes you moving further and further away from your child each night until you are finally so far away you are hopping. Ongoing retreat is a good method for more nervous and crying children, who are complaining “Don’t leave me, Mama”. If you are already hugging your child to sleep, then try one night just holding his hand, possibly the next night sitting on his bed, and so on. The hint is your child is still supported but you move further away every night.
Method 3: Controlled crying and quick return
Controlled crying is debatable because it contains allowing the child cry and not calming them. With this method, you follow your normal bedtime routine, then put the child to bed and leave and your kid’s then expected to start crying.
With controlled crying, you do not go back to comfort them. You return to check on them after, for example, five minutes. Then you increase the amount of time in between each inspection – for example, you might leave it seven minutes, or ten minutes, or 15 minutes.
This method is right for you and your child is up to you. If you have extended the uncontrolled crying stage, it might be cost a try. It is essential to talk to your child about what will happen earlier, otherwise your strange manners might curiosity them. When you are using crying methods on kids you need to employ return policy i.e. return the kids quickly to their bed.
Method 4: Labeled chart
Sometimes using a sticker chart, with the promise of delights when an assured target is gotten, can have some achievement. A usual example might be to give one star for going to bed politely and one star for waiting in their own bed all night. But others are not mainly attracted in the promise of a hangover sticker in the morning. So if this method fails, you might need to think of another policy.
