Toddler Sleep Regression or Ready to Drop the Nap? Our 4-Month Bedtime Battle

When Bedtime Became a Battlefield (and Then Finally… It Didn’t)

For the longest time, my two-year-old was that kid. The one who basically begged to go to bed by 5 or 6pm. Other parents would look at me like I was some kind of magical toddler sleep whisperer. And honestly? I started to believe maybe I’d just nailed this part of motherhood. I was consistent with my kids schedules from the beginning and I was proud of how those efforts paid off.

Aside from a few sleep regressions where we had the usual wake-ups and unsettled nights, he was always pretty content to go down early, nap well during the day, and sleep through. That midday nap? Non-negotiable. He was wrecked by 11am. Full-blown tantrums, whining, clingy, over it. The nap was saving all of us.

So when bedtime started creeping later and later a few months ago, I didn’t panic at first. I figured it was a phase. Maybe a week of 7pm bedtimes and he’d bounce back.

But he didn’t and bedtime turned to 7:30, then 8:45, then 9:30.

The Longest Toddler Sleep Regression of My Life

Before we knew it, bedtime had turned into a full-blown war zone.

I’m talking three to four hour standoffs. Every. Single. Night. There was yelling (from both of us), tears (again, both of us), and an endless parade of bedtime excuses: “I need my water,” “I forgot to brush my teeth,” “Can I just get this one toy?” “Actually, no, not that toy.” I was beside myself.

I hated that nearly every night ended in frustration. I felt like the worst version of myself. No matter how calm I tried to be, I was just done. And I know he was too.

Because by the time he was finally asleep, it was often close to my bedtime. There was no exhale moment, no time to reset, no space to even have a thought of my own. I’d collapse into bed only to be woken a few hours later by his baby brother, and then start the next day at 5:30am, already dreading the battle waiting for me that night.

We Tried Every Toddler Sleep Trick Out There

I’m not kidding. I trawled every parenting forum on the internet. I downloaded toddler sleep guides. I spoke to every mum I could find. We tried:

• A solid bedtime routine (bath, books, bed - textbook stuff).

• Cutting out screen time completely.

• Bedtime charts and reward systems.

• Changing his diet to include “sleep-friendly” foods.

• Removing all additives, colours, and preservatives.

• Fully emptying his room except for his clothes and nappies, completely out of his reach.

• Keeping the house dim for an hour before bed (we literally sat in the dark).

• Ignoring the drama and silently returning him to bed.

• Moving his bed to the middle of the room so he couldn’t grab curtains, or kick the walls.

• Letting him pick where in the room he slept, even if it meant the middle of the floor.

• Praying… half-joking. But desperate times…

And yet nothing stuck.

I couldn’t wrap my head around it. He needed the nap. He was exhausted without it. So why was bedtime turning into this circus?

Dropping the Nap: When He Was Finally Ready

And then, just like that, two weeks ago, he decided he was done.

I offered the nap. He politely (and firmly) declined.

And that was it.

Just like that, he stopped napping. He powered through the whole day with no nap, and yeah, some afternoons were rough. We had a few overtired meltdowns, and he’s definitely still adjusting. But the difference?

He now goes to sleep without a fight. Every night. Asleep by 7pm at the latest.

No more bedtime battles. No more long, exhausting evenings. No more googling “toddler won’t sleep until 10pm” in a panic while trying to parent on autopilot.

Toddler Sleep Schedule Real Talk: It’s All Just a Phase

And honestly? This post isn’t about sleep strategies or a “how-to” guide. Because if I’ve learned anything from the last four months, it’s this:

Everything is a phase.

That one season where you’re drowning in toddler sleep regressions and bedtime resistance? It ends. Not always when or how you think but it ends.

Sometimes you just have to ride the chaos until your kid is ready for the next thing. And sometimes the hardest part is letting go of what used to work, even when your gut keeps screaming “but he still needs it!”

Maybe he did need the nap… until he didn’t. Maybe it wasn’t something we could fix. Maybe he just needed time to figure it out for himself.

Whatever it was, I’ve never been more relieved to say bedtime is no longer a battlefield. For now.

Because let’s be real, there’s always a new phase waiting just around the corner.

If You’re in the Trenches, You’re Not Alone

If your evenings are long and loud and emotionally draining…

If you’re losing your cool more than you’d like…

If you’re Googling toddler sleep tips at midnight…

If you’re crawling into bed with a lump in your throat, wondering if you’re getting any of this right...

You are.

You’re in the thick of a hard phase, and it will pass. Even when it feels like it never will.

So here’s your reminder: you’re not failing. You’re just parenting a tiny human doing their best to grow. And that kind of growth is rarely neat or predictable.

Keep showing up. Keep trying. And don’t forget to breathe.

You’re doing better than you think.