2 1/2 Year old struggling to go sleep

[PeanutButter2304]

I have a 2 1/2 year old son. I have always thought of him as being a good sleeper. The last two weeks he screams in such distress when I leave the room. I have tried rocking him to sleep and putting him in his bed and he just wakes up and we go round in circles.

I feel like I am being held hostage, I can't leave the room without him screaming and he is in a cot bed now so he is getting out of his bed and screaming at his stair gate.

I am honestly pulling my hair out about it. He hasn't been going to sleep until 11:30 and then waking at 5. Although he goes back to sleep, I am not.

[Beanbaglover Moderator]

I'm sorry to hear you are having trouble sleeping. It can be hard when children don't sleep well. Do you have anyone who can help you catch up on some rest?

Many things prevent children from getting a good night's sleep. I have included some links that may help.

- justonenorfolk.nhs.uk/child...

- rcpsych.ac.uk/mental-health...

It sounds like your child may be experiencing a little separation anxiety, which is an expected developmental stage, this link may be useful

- justonenorfolk.nhs.uk/emoti...

The Solihull Approach ‘Understanding Your Child’ is a free online course which is helpful for understanding your child's behaviour and for recognising and development changes they may be going through. Use this link to access the course

- justonenorfolk.nhs.uk/onlin...

Also, you can contact the National Sleep Helpline on 03303 530541 for support and advice. This is available Sunday - Thursday 7pm - 9pm. The helpline is run by a team of specialist trained sleep advisors. Although they cannot give medical advice, they can talk through your issues, offer you some practical strategies and recommend services that could help.

You can also call the Norfolk Healthy Child Programme team on 0300 300 0123 (8am-6pm Mon-Fri) or text them on Parentline on 07520 631590 (8am-6pm Mon-Fri) if you would like to talk things through with someone.