A while back, we changed up the Monster’s night time routine to try to ensure ourselves a good night’s sleep. Despite the fact that we’ve no way to know how much he’s actually using the iPad each night, it’s been a godsend in the sense that we’ve been able, ourselves, to get some rest.
But nothing lasts forever.
Last week was the semi-annual appointment with the developmental pediatrician, and we brought up the Monster’s sleep cycle issues. The first thing she said to us?
Ditch the iPad.
Basically, while we’re using Benedryl and the iPad to get him to go to sleep and settle in, it’s probably not good for him in the long term, and she’d rather see him not using either one of them. Moreover, the way that we’re getting him to take the medication has him wetting the bed, which is undermining the rest of his toilet training, not to mention having us having to run additional laundry. She’s more than fine with a serious upping of the melatonin if we feel it’s necessary, and she suggested soothing music and lights, but she’d rather see what happens over the next few months without the other things hurting his sleep cycle.
So first thing up, we took him off the iPad cold turkey (much like we cut off the car rides on demand), and I managed to get him to go to bed that first night without Benedryl. It was a little rough, but we’d both admit that having a dry bed in the morning (albeit with a soaked pull-up) is better than us having to do so much more laundry. The wife managed to dig an old lava lamp out of the garage, and that seems to be taking the place of the iPad as a mechanism to calm him.
And… surprisingly, he’s still been quiet through the night. He’s not really been causing any additional trouble beyond some quibbling at bedtime.
On the other hand, at the same time, we’ve transitioned R to a toddler bed. The first night went alright, but the second night involved a couple of tumbles out of his bed, since he’s not used to the rail not being there. If it happens again tonight, we’re probably going to have to find the rail in the basement to help bolster him.
The other downside? R talks to the Monster when he hears him through the door, when R is going to and from the bathroom. I’m just picturing at some point that they’re going to end up starting trouble at 2 AM…