Child sneaking out of bed in the middle of the night
Children are waking up in the middle of the night to play video games, watch TV, or avoid sleeping in their own rooms. Forcing them back to bed risks waking up younger siblings, and taking items away only makes them sneakier.
What the numbers show
Counted from the threads quoted below. How we count
- People have been saying this in most months since September 2026.
What people tried
Every workaround mentioned in the threads below. We haven’t tested any of them — and nobody here is claiming they worked.
Found another way around this?
Share your steps and trade-offs so fellow engineers don't have to reinvent the wheel. No account required.
Child sneaking out of bed in the middle of the night
- 1Hiding electronics and remotes in the parents' bedroomDid this help you?
- 2Putting a lock on the child's doorDid this help you?
- 3Talking to the child and having them make promises not to do it againDid this help you?
- 4Considering a sleep studyDid this help you?
- 5Setting up a sleeping mat or small bed on the floor of the parents' bedroomDid this help you?
- 6Giving in and letting the child sleep in the parents' bedDid this help you?
- 7Using a heavy or weighted blanketDid this help you?
- 8Setting up a reward chart for staying in bedDid this help you?
- 9Giving the child warm tea before bedDid this help you?
- 10Adjusting the child's bedtime earlier or laterDid this help you?
In their words
Unedited, grouped by where they were said, most upvoted first within each place, each linked to the thread it came from.
“My 7yo constantly wakes up in the middle of the night to play video games or watch tv”source ↗
“It's like the more we take away the sneakier he tries to be.”source ↗
“My five year old has always been a terrible sleeper and has never slept through the night, but over the past few months he just seems to be getting worse.”source ↗
“Then at some point between 3 and 5, he's awake for the day. He will not stay in bed, and if we try he'll end up waking up his 3 year old brother and 11 month old sister.”source ↗
“Our daughter is 6 and a half and we were struggling with this until 2 weeks ago.”source ↗
“Same! I had a little one who woke nightly… in the end I made him a bed on our bedroom floor and agreed he could come in anytime at all.”source ↗
“Even with the things we have in place our 5 year old goes in waves if not wanting to sleep in her own room.”source ↗
Where this came up
People with this problem also raised
- 6Why does getting kids ready to leave turn into a battle?
- 7Is it okay to pull a child out of school for a long vacation?
- 36How to handle toddlers waking up at 4:30 AM
- 6What age can my child go to the park alone?
- 2Why is my tall toddler refusing to walk unassisted?
- 40Why is my toddler staying up until midnight refusing to sleep?