Your toddler and sleep Eileen Hayes Questions about sleep are among the main reasons parents seek help from health visitors and doctors in the early years of their child's life.

Almost all babies have erratic sleep patterns to begin with, which most parents expect, but in the latter half of the first year new issues can occur. Some children start waking in the night when they had previously slept through, for example. It's very common for toddlers to wake in the night, and to have difficulty in settling to sleep in the first place. Early waking is a frequent issue, too.

Simple ways to help with settling:

• Create a simple and familiar routine for bedtime - for example, feed, bath, bed
• Allow toddlers time to settle - if they make a fuss, don't go back into the room immediately, but don't leave them for so long they get very distressed
• Some toddlers settle better if you keep things quiet in the evenings, while others are better if you keep natural house noises going, as it's reassuring to know you're nearby
• Make sure your child winds down before bed, this will make the transition from lively toddler to sleeping child easier
• If your toddler keeps getting up after you've put him to bed, you need to be firm and take him back again - it may take time, but eventually he'll get the message

Dealing with waking too early:

• Use thick blinds or curtains to make children's rooms darker so the morning light doesn't wake them
• Provide safe toys for your child to play with in the mornings, so he can play quietly until he hears the rest of the family is awake
• If your child's a natural early riser, you may just have to be patient
• Once children start nursery or school, they tend to sleep for longer

Waking in the night:

• Be realistic and remember everyone's sleep needs and patterns vary - some people need eight hours or more, others can manage on five or six and this creates a different picture of what 'sleeping through' means, even in one family.
• If you've always rocked, stroked or sung your child to sleep when he first goes to bed, he may find it difficult to get back to sleep on his own if he wakes in the night.
• When you go in to comfort him, keep the lights low and use a soft voice - don't encourage play (you'll probably need to do this several times).