[slm_tbm]

I just don't understand this and I know there has to be a reason. Micah is eating and adjusting very well. He is a happy baby who is doing all the things he should be at 16 months. However there is one thing bothering me. We eat dinner around 5:30-6pm, play with him until 7:30pm, then bath and bed around 8pm. This has worked very well for him and us since we brought him home on the 24th of September, that is until now. The last week he has suddenly changed. He follows his routine and goes to sleep with one of us being in the room until he falls asleep. Before he would sleep until the next morning only waking if he didn't feel good. Now exactly one hour after going to sleep he wakes up screaming. I thought night terrors, but he will fall back asleep within minutes of one of us going into his room. We then repeat this process an hour and then a half hour later. It doesn't make any sense! He's not scared when he wakes up, not hungry and doesn't need anything. He just wakes up to scream and then goes back to sleep. I just don't get it. Can anyone help?

Shana

[Shoshana]

Since the waking/screaming does seem to be timed, and since he does fall right back to sleep, it may BE night terrors. It may be that as he cycles through the stages of sleep, when he reaches stage 4, the night terror occurs. Night terrors occur in the deepest stage of sleep so when they 'wake up', they're not fully awake and hence go back to sleep quickly. There is also autonomic nervous system arousal during a night terror (such as sweating, racing heart, maybe trembling). Nightmares occur during REM (dreaming sleep) which is physiologically very similar to waking (i.e., the brain waves of REM sleep & waking are very similar). If someone wakes up during REM sleep, they typically do not fall right back to sleep.

Good luck...

[suburbanmomgw]

Our son did this. It was like clockwork... screaming 45 min into sleep. It did stop. Now, I don't even remember how long it went on--maybe 2 or 3 months. Now he sleeps well. Hang in there!

[waitinginnj]

My guess is that he is more conscience of the changes that have occurred and he is double checking that you will be there for him. I would view this as part of bonding. He has also probably learned that when he cries you respond. This may not have been true in the orphanage.

I went through something similiar.

[Vicki H]

Alex did this for a while and still does occasionally. They seem to go through phases. Has anything changed his sleep pattern in any way?
I noticed with Alex he seemed to want one of us in the room until he fell asleep and would wake screaming about an hour later after we came home from vacation. I had no idea what could have caused this. My sister suggested and I now believe she is correct. On vacation he slept in the same bedroom as we did, not in bed with us but in the same room.
I think he had some trouble adjusting to sleeping in a room by himself after vacation.
He still does this occasionally, my only guess is that he had a nightmare or a noise spooked him.
Hang in there, they go through phases, this too shall pass.

Good Luck,
Vicki

[dlhall]

This happened with Natalya too and my doctor said it was separation anxiety and that it was normal. She said to stay in the room with her after she awakes, pat her and comfort her, but don't let her fall asleep in my arms. It lasted about two weeks and then she was fine.

Liz

[slm_tbm]

Well, tonight proves it's definitely timed. I put him to bed about an hour early tonight because he has to get up early tomorrow. So instead of going to sleep at 8 he went down at 7pm. Now up until now we thought he was waking at 1 hour after going to sleep, but he's not. He's waking at 9:10pm. He did it again tonight. My Dr. gave me hydrxyzine to give him to help him sleep and he woke through it too. He woke up and screamed until one of us went in, then went back to sleep within 5 minutes. Woke up again about 30 minutes later and went back to sleep after one of us went in. There has got to be some way to get around this! He's exhausting both himself and us. I don't get any sleep because I'm constantly in a semi awake stance waiting for him to wake up. Please tell me there is something I can do to help him through this. I don't understand why it's just started after him being with us for well over a month! I would have thought he would have had sleeping problems much earlier than now. We have made sure we haven't gone anywhere and he sleeps in his own bed every night. What else can we do? I'm at a loss when even the medical approach didn't work.

Shana

[tschuitema73]

Shana,
It has been awhile since being on the forum so I know I'm getting to this a little late.
But if you are still having this problem. I have a suggestion. It may be that your son feels you "should" be in the room while he is sleeping since you stay with him while he's going to sleep. So it won't be a quick fix but if you lay him down after his routine (book, prayers etc) and let him see you leave. He may learn that you feel he can fall asleep on his own, then he may be more secure to do so.
I know it's hard.
Tamara

[Melora_z]

My otherwise well adjusted bio son did this for awhile. It was like clockwork. We would put him to bed and an hour later he was awake and screaming. Most of the time he would go back to sleep if we went in to him but sometimes he would have to be held until he went back to sleep. His heart wasnt racing and he wasnt sweating so I dont think it was night terrors.. it was just something that we finally got through and he stopped.

Some issues just have to be dealt with and "lived through" and unfortunately, being the mom of 5 kids, I can tell you, sleep issues are universal.

I know how frustrating it is though.... you can set the clock by their waking up. If I remember correctly it didnt last forever even though at the time it seemed like it did.

[slm_tbm]

Thank you for everyone's input. About 4-5 nights ago my husband and I decided to teach him about going to sleep without one of us in the room. We were both petrified of doing this after hearing so many horror stories, but I think he prefers it! We put him down after his nightly ritual (bath, lotion, love), cover him up and turn the lights off. Then he gets patted on the stomach for about a minute and we leave the room. The first night he cried for a moment, then stopped. Both of us ran into our bedroom to look at the monitor and he was just laying there much more still than he is when we are in there. After the first night he doesn't make a noise at all. He just lays there and usually falls asleep within a minute or two whereas with one of us in the room it used to take 20-30 minutes. Also we've only had the waking up one night, and then his teeth were bothering him. It's been wonderful! The odd thing is we don't know when he wakes up anymore. He doesn't cry or make any noises, he just sits up or lays there with his eye's open looking out the window. Now when we walk in he throws his arms out and cries out, but not until we go in. We didn't realize he was doing this until we witnessed it on the monitor the last 2 mornings. I guess that's one more thing we'll have to overcome!

Shana

[Military Momma]

Sorry for being late...Will has done the same thing! FInally as it was suggested earlier...He just watched us leave his room. Sometimes he would talk to himself and sometimes he would just go to sleep. He hasn't done this every night for about three weeks now but every once in awhile...he will wake up because something is wrong... i.e. wet diaper, hot/cold, hungery, etc. Other than that...he sleeps the night.

Hang in there girl...this too shall pass.

Lisa