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Your questions answered by Jo Tantum of Greatvine.com

Q: My 14-month-old boy has a bath then comes downstairs to have his milk in front of the TV. He then runs around and doesn’t seem tired at all...

... When he wears himself out he has a cuddle with us on the sofa and falls asleep. When we go to bed we put him in his cot, he then wakes at 2am and won’t go back to sleep. Help!!

A: Your little boy is overtired and over stimulated by the TV. This is why he runs around the room; it’s not that he isn’t tired he just doesn’t know how to switch off. Starting a bedtime routine with your little boy will help him wind down and understand its time to go to sleep.

• Start at the same time every night. Give him a bath and get him ready for bed in his room, with low lights and soothing music.
• Then give him his milk while reading him a story and settle him in his cot. He will soon start to enjoy his story and bedtime routine.
• If he wakes up during the night, go in and reassure him all is ok, then give him time to re settle himself. As he is now falling asleep in his cot he won’t be startled at his new surrounds (as he would have done when he fell asleep in your arms!) You will find that he sleeps very deeply as he learns to fall asleep by himself and night time wakes will be a thing of the past.

Jo Tantum

Author of the best-selling book “Baby Secrets”, Jo Tantum is a baby sleep and twin’s specialist and the sleep expert for Prima Baby magazine. Jo’s own pioneering sleep technique, “Spaced Soothing” is a failsafe method that teaches babies to enjoy their sleep and empowers parents to understand their babies better. For individual advice you can trust, book a private phone call with Jo at www.greatvine.com/jo_tantum

* The information in these answers is not a substitute for examination, diagnosis or treatment by a Health Care Professional. If you are worried, please consult your HCP.

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