Sleeping
The Controlled Crying Method
Decide who is going to take on the task of going into the room to check your child as there needs to be continuity in the process and if you change between mummy and daddy this will leave your child even more unsettled.
I would recommend that the other one listens to some music or goes for a relaxing bath as having to hear your child screaming can be very hard.
Before starting any method you need to establish a bedtime routine, and a regular time which your toddler goes to bed, allowing at least an hour for the routine which should include, bathtime, milk or supper and settling.
Before your child gets too sleepy settle them in bed and kiss goodnight, leave the room.
More often than not your child will sit or stand up screaming at the top of their lungs.
Allow a good five to ten minutes of crying before re-entering the room to reassure your child. This reassurance should be kept to an absolute minimum, you can say shh, its night time now and on the first night you can stroke them, but DO NOT pick them up to cuddle, they must stay in their cot or bed at all times, and avoid eye contact. Exit the room after 2 minutes.
Continue to re-enter the room as necessary every 5 – 10 minutes of crying for the first half an hour.
If your child is still crying after this time, increase the amount of time before you re-enter the room by 5 minutes each time, up to a maximum of 20 minutes.
One golden rule is to NEVER allow your child to fall asleep whilst you are in the room
A Time Plan Example:
Continue every 20 minutes to go in and settle until the child falls asleep.
On the Second night of the process, try to avoid stroking your child, and stick to a minimal amount of talking just enough to let them know you are there and that it is night time.