4:30am wake up for cereal and tantrums
2 nights in a row now, he’s woken up from
Co sleeping with us (he’s had two weeks of being sick and just wanted to keep an eye on him) he’s woken up at 4:30am screaming like he’s in pain and pointing to our stairs. We found out he’s doing that because he is hungry….. any tips on to avoid this 4am wake up session to eat?
Also tantrums. How are we handling them? He’s only 16 months old and he’s throwing fits like he is 2, with little stompies and backing up, can’t tell if he is in pain but he’s been chomping on his fingers more lately and apparently holding his jaw according to my sister, so I’m thinking he’s teething and that’s causing him to wake and scream constantly.
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Terrible twos start in the second year of life, not when they turn two (our paediatrician told us that).
Does he go back to bed after he eats? I would try and give a bed time snack to keep him full all night. Otherwise he might just be ready to start his day at 4:30, in which, a schedule adjustment might be needed. What does his wake up, nap time/length and bed time look like?
For tantrums, we try to avoid them at all cost. If they happen, we talk it through and explain feelings and try to distract with other things (toys, snacks, books, etc).
We found some strategies to help us prevent them from happening all together
- giving options versus yes/no questions (do you want your blue shorts or red shorts today? Vs. Do you want these shorts?)
- avoid using negatives like “no” or “don’t”, use affirming language and demonstrate desired behaviour (“Markers are used to draw on paper, watch mama colour” vs “we do not draw on the walls”)
- remind him to use his words / point
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