son getting up multiple times a night saying he's scared

My son is 5 years old and normally sleeps through the night, no problems. But, now we're on week 2 of him getting up in the middle of the night (between 1-3am) and not wanting to go back to bed because he's scared (the reason why he's scared is constantly changing, i.e. scary noise (it was raining, he's heard the noise before!), there's a dot on his wall, etc). DH and I are running on low sleep and lack of patience (doesn't help that I'm 30 weeks pregnant and not sleeping well anyway). Has anyone else gone through this? Any advice?

Does he have a night light?

Maybe get him one of those sleep animals and something that makes nice lullaby-type noise and a flashlight?

My son does this too. We have a few various night lights in his room and it seems to help

Does he have a lamp or night light? You could try getting him a twilight turtle/animal or something along those lines. Or something that plays music that he can turn on himself while he's in his room.

Our LO has this, it helped for a little while...

http://www.amazon.com/Cloud-Twilight-Constellation-Night-Turtle/dp/B000BNQC58/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&qid=1361291824&sr=8-1&keywords=twilight+turtle

My dd has a night light and a pillow pets dream light thing. Sometimes she likes music on too.

we've tried the night light thing and it was too dark for him   He sleeps with his light on.

My son had night terrors for awhile, it was quite awful, but there wasn't a whole lot we could do besides just be there for him. As for just being scared, perhaps a bright nightlight would help, make sure he isn't over tired when he goes to bed (I find my kids tend to wake up more often if they are over tired), he could also be compensating for his nervousness over a new sibling, as that can cause some kids anxiety while others just roll with it. If you can find the root of his disturbance and reassure him in those areas I bet the night waking will cease and you'll all sleep better. Well, maybe not you, big bellies can be quite the nuisance when it comes to sleep, lol.

Quoting sambugjoebear:" we've tried the night light thing and it was too dark for him   He sleeps with his light on."

Having the lights on while he's sleeping can actually cause him to wake more often, as our bodies naturally react to light as a signal to wake up. We use a rope light in my kids room it is multicolored and while it brightens the whole room, it's not so much that it causes sleep disruption. Also, avoid blue lights, as those can cause wakefulness as well. My SO is totally obsessed about sleep so this is the reason why I know as much as I do about this stuff, lol. I listen to only about half of what he says. He still can't convince me to use blackout curtains though.

My son did that for the longest time. I let him choose a stuffed animal at the store (he picked one his size that he could barely carry) and I wrapped a string of Christmas lights at the foot of his bed. It's helped a lot.

Quoting sambugjoebear:" we've tried the night light thing and it was too dark for him   He sleeps with his light on."

My LO sleeps with his lamp on now too. If we turn it off after he falls asleep, he ends up turning on the brighter ceiling light whenever he wakes.

I wouldn't think it's because of the baby. He's been nothing but excited ever since he's found out that we're expecting. Not an hour goes by that he doesn't rub my belly and give it kisses. And whenever we go somewhere new, he's always telling them that I have a baby in my belly (with a big grin on his face).

My husband had night terrors when he was a kid and this is nothing like that. DS will walk calmly and quietly into our bedroom and ask if he can watch tv, we'll say "no, go back to bed. You have 3 more hours until you can be up." That's when he starts saying that he's scared and makes a lame excuse as to why he's scared.

<blockquote><b>Quoting sambugjoebear:</b>" we've tried the night light thing and it was too dark for him   He sleeps with his light on."</blockquote>

We have a lamp and I put a blue light bulb in it. It's brighter than a normal night light but not as light as a white bulb. Plus it's a fun color  

<blockquote><b>Quoting motherofboys:</b>" Having the lights on while he's sleeping can actually cause him to wake more often, as our bodies naturally ... [snip!] ... about this stuff, lol. I listen to only about half of what he says. He still can't convince me to use blackout curtains though."</blockquote>


Oops haha. I just posted dd has a blue light. It hasn't interrupted her sleep. But it's something I'll be aware of if it ever does.

<blockquote><b>Quoting sambugjoebear:</b>" I wouldn't think it's because of the baby. He's been nothing but excited ever since he's found out that ... [snip!] ... 3 more hours until you can be up." That's when he starts saying that he's scared and makes a lame excuse as to why he's scared."</blockquote>

Dd is more than excited about our new baby but it has caused her some stress too. She was getting in trouble a lot at school and stuff.

Quoting sambugjoebear:" I wouldn't think it's because of the baby. He's been nothing but excited ever since he's found out that ... [snip!] ... 3 more hours until you can be up." That's when he starts saying that he's scared and makes a lame excuse as to why he's scared."

It sounds like you need to just sit down and talk with him about getting up in the middle of the night. It's kind of a delicate matter, as you don't want him to feel like he can't come to you, but you also don't want him waking you up simply because he doesn't want to go back to bed. My oldest went through this for a little bit when he was around 4 or 5, I ended up sleeping on the couch for about a week so that I could catch him as soon as he got up and send him back to bed before he could fully awaken. Your son may be having a hard time returning to sleep because of the over head light, so if you can, try to turn it off or use a less bright light after he goes to sleep. For a while, i did have to wait until my son was actually asleep before I'd turn the light off, now that he's 9, he's starting to request a pitch black room just like his father, lol. granted he doesn't get to since his little brother is in the same room and refuses to go to bed without a light. It sucks living in a one bedroom house, I wish I could give them their own rooms sometimes, it would make things so much more peaceful, and I wouldn't have to convert my second living room into a bedroom like i do now.