How do you get a 3 year old to stay in their room for bedtime? He just keeps coming out - for an hour or however long I play the game. I pick him up and put him in bed. He just thinks it’s a game. I speak firmly to him and he thinks it is a game. He goes to bed at the same time every night his entire life. I’m just so beyond frustrated I can’t take this anymore. We do not cosleep and we have never had to stay in his room to get him to go to sleep. If I lay down he just tries to play with me. Since this started we have ended up having to drive him to sleep and I’m just not willing to keep doing that either. I need a way to get his attention to listen.
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Just keep putting him back to bed. Don’t let him break you. My son did this I would be up for hours. But never broke. took a few days. But I sleep well now. Once he sees you break and give in
He knows he has you. And will continue the behavior.
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Get him a teddy bear,that plays music to soothe:+1:
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Bed time routine. Bath. Bedtime stories with low lighting. Kisses & cuddles. Bed. The winding down is important.
When he gets out no communication. The game is the reaction he gets from you. Take his hand & return him to bed every time he gets out with zero communication. He will test you. If you give in you set the whole process back. He needs to realise that you will not give in & he will be returned to bed every single time.
I had my daughter watch her videos at night to fall asleep
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My daughter is 7. She has adhd and bed time is horrendous. But her therapist said to switch up her routine a little. So about an hour before bed, we watch a movie. After a movie we play a game. Usually she wants this little piggy and some tickles. Then we cuddle for a bit and she’ll roll over and go to sleep. Other nights it’s a movie, then bath, a story, then bed. She just needs to get some of her extra energy out before bed. I always use transitions to let her know what’s coming next, so she’s aware of what comes after. It doesn’t always work, but majority of the time it does.
I also agree, to putting him back to bed without looking or speaking to him. He’s attention seeking and looking for a response. He’ll keep doing it so long as you’re giving in to him. I have to do this when My daughter has a tantrum. I have to just keep doing what I was doing until she’s ready to talk. Then we talk things out and go from there. Good luck!
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Disney movies worked for my daughter and baby Mozart music worked for my son:)
I had a little 
massager that I massaged either side of the spine for round 10 mins for my grandsons worked a treat.
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Keep putting him in bed over and over, with absolutely no reaction, and even no words if possible. Also, when we went through this we’d let the kids up so many times a night (2 or 3) for a hug, drink, ect- just so they had some sort of feeling of controll
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Baby gate and classical music
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Just keep being persistent in putting him back to bed
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We still hold my son til he sleeps and he is almost 3 and then put him in his full size bed sideways. His door is then shut and in the morning, he comes directly to our room with his shenanigans! He falls asleep with his “woobie doggie” which is a soft corgi blanket he chews on. He never took to a binkie.
We used a baby gate …take everything out of the room that they could hurt themselves with and they will entertain themselves and tire themselves out
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As hard as it is, be persistent. Pthe first time he comes out, pick him up and say “it’s time for you to stay in bed now. Goodnight. I love you” and then each time after, just pick him up and put him back. No firm tones no nothing. When he stops getting a reaction, he’ll learn. The other thing that helped us was a sticker chart. It takes roughly 2 weeks to build a habit, so have a sticker chart and each night that he stays in bed, he gets a sticker the next morning. 2 whole weeks of stickers and he gets a big toy. Make it something he wants and put it somewhere he can see it, but not get to it so you can remind him that he needs to stay in bed if he wants to get it. Sticker charts have worked wonders for many things for us
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Don’t fight it. Sleep with him in his bed till he falls asleep or let him sleep with you. Before you know it he will be all grown up. Enjoy the littleness.
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Do not carry him. Take his hand, lead him back, don’t inner act, don’t engage. Do not play a video or TV. Blue light tells the brain it’s morning and while they might stay in bed it will take them longer to go to sleep.
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The first time my kid comes out he gets another tuck in and me firmly saying bed time after that he just get deposited back in bed. I don’t say a single work just drop him on his bed and leave. He rarely get out of bed anymore took like a week for him to realize I wasn’t playing
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Children go through sleep regressions, this may be one of those. I suggest putting him into bed and laying on the floor next to him. Do not engage, just be present. Allow him to go to bed comfortably, ease your way out of that night after night until he realizes he needs to go to bed on his own. This is what I had to do & it worked.
At 3 yrs old…consistency is EVERYTHING. If you buckle NOW…prepare to buckle the rest of your life. They are testing boundaries…and actions. It’s normal…YOU be normal and correct the action…calmly. They are looking for you to be the leader. Or not. That simple.
The child that did this to me is now 39 years old, when I asked how to handle this, I was told just keep taking her back to her bed put her in it let her know she’s fine and leave when I asked how long I was gonna have to keep doing this. I was told that it could take two or three months, luckily, it only took 2 to 3 weeks. consistency is key, don’t give up.
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Maybe he’s going through a growth spurt and needs to hurt his energy before bed?
My nearly 7 year old daughter is a very very active hyper child, she can’t have chill out time before bed she bounces off the walls for about half an hour then she will literally jsjt lay down and fall asleep
Videos are the worst thing you can do. Please don’t start that awful habit. I always read to my kids until they fell asleep and my younger one was tough to nod off. He too would come out and walk around. Your sons brain is still moving quickly so you have to find a routine that relaxes his mind. Don’t give up - keep reading and staying with him. He will eventually fall asleep faster and faster and your instilling good sleeping habits.
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Have to be persistent eventually he will stay there
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My son who will be 3 in August does the same thing sometimes. Occasionally I’ll lay with him and yes he tries to play but I act like I’m sleeping and if he tries to get out of bed I tell him to lay down. I personally don’t like using any screen time of any sort because it cause sleep disturbances and studies show that you won’t get a good nights sleep.
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Baby gate, remove day time nap if still having one, push bed time to a little later if needed
Just keep doing what ya doing. Put him back but don’t talk to him or look at him. Persistence is the key. Kids love to try your patience. It may take a few weeks before he realises the rules, unless you talk to him, then he’s won. It’s a power struggle. Good luck.
Get a baby gate, shut his door. Swat his butt if all else fails, not hard just a tap will get his attention and let him know you mean business.
I’m not saying spank or hit or anything like that just a tap enough to get his attention…
He might have too much energy and that’s what’s doing it, he might need to let it all out before bed
I used to have to lay with my son and pretend to sleep…that seemed to be the fastest way for me😅just ignore everything
I have 2 boys and when they were younger we would let them pick out a movie and put on repeat. That is the only way they would stay in their room.
Could be 3 yr sleep regression. Consistency bed time routine. Gate on his room.
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Idk but for older kids, Bob Ross puts them right to sleep & they love it.
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This is temporary all kids go through changes, having patience is important. try to read a story, or play bed time song on radio.
Hes 3,maybe he needs some extra cuddles,maybe he feels lonely,maybe hes needs a stuffy or a night light,dont let it get too you, enjoy your child,try delaying bedtime until you see him yawning,ask him why he cant stay in bed maybe has a valid reason( to him)
Is his bedtime to early or to late? For me I believe when my baby was 3, bed time was 7 or so…?
Did you put a baby gate up.
Ahh. Co sleep seriously life is so short
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I plày YouTube lullabies and we have a sound machine that you can pick the noise. Fan, light rain, train, thunder. Whales sounds is another one. Very calming.
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Gate at the door and toys in his room.
Firstly please don’t reward staying in bed with toys or food, just the same as you shouldn’t reward sitting on or using the toilet or potty, it causes children to believe that happen in the normal course of their day will be rewarded.
You could try the ‘bedtime’ routine, first time they get out take them back saying “it’s bedtime now I love you”, second time “bedtime” and after that you say nothing at all and don’t make eye contact just keep putting them back to bed for as long as it takes. The other way is to change the bedtime routine to work better for you, maybe change the time, stay with him but remind him that you will leave if he doesn’t just lay down etc. Children often suffer with sleep regression at some point in their early childhood and it’s up to us to stay calm and help them figure things out but you do what works for you
Baby gate, sound machine, a cuddle blanket/toy that is just for bedtime.
Unfortunately, it takes consistent effort and redirecting.
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Put utube lullaby on tv he will fall asleep
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Still trying to get my 8 year old to stay there nigjt
My son left his children’s door open, but put a baby gate up. Child could get up/see out but at 3, he couldn’t open the gate.
Don’t speak to him at all, just return him to his bed immediately, sit by his bed if need be but don’t speak.
Read and then dim the lights and take turns talking about what you’ve read. Dont get trapped in that drive the car around business. That’s worse than them coming out 100x. Have more stamina than the kid, lay in the bed and read, even if he doesn’t want to, just focus on reading aloud, he’ll eventually give in. Don’t give in.
So you’re not willing to comfort your child while he goes to sleep & you wonder why he wont sleep
Jesus dont hurt yourself parenting 
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Child proof locks on the door and a baby monitor
Try a soothing sound machine that projects on the ceiling.
They have other styles/brands for younger kids too
Star Projector, Rossetta Galaxy… https://www.amazon.com/dp/B099ZRCGWW?ref=ppx_pop_mob_ap_share
My daughter needed weighted blankets and routine. We used to read a couple stories and then I would tuck her in with all her blankets (I just layered them with one heavier one on top) and I would wind up her turtle (had a music box in it), leave her night light on and let her go to bed. If she got up I would go back through the routine of the blankets and music box and repeat as necessary and remind her it was bedtime. Some kids need some extra support though and cannot self soothe. My youngest was the one I had to lay with until she fell asleep every night otherwise she would never stay there. Turns out she has horrible anxiety and other things going on. So follow your instincts with your kids because what your child needs from you may not be what other people are doing with their kids.
I literally have just gotten to the point I wait for him to crash on the couch and I put him in his bed, saves a big ruckus at bedtime. He’s typically asleep by 9.
My daughter went through a phase like this when she was three. She acted like a psycho at bedtime, before she turned three I never had a problem getting her to go to bed. I tried everything. She eventually just grew out of it. All I can say is be patient try to ignore the laughing, try the bed time techniques from super nanny.
Maybe he wants a cuddle? Go in and cuddle in with him a little while and then leave.
Read a bedtime story in bed. However i always rocked my daughter to sleep
I have been a mom for 40 years. I always said terrible twos and trying threes. I am so sorry how frustrated you are. I agree with everybody else. Just keep taking him back to bed by his hand. No interaction. My daughter put a gate across the doorway for my grandson. He spent a number of nights sleeping on his side of the gate but he learned not to cross the gate.
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Idk if this helps, but when I was a kid I loved harry Potter and was subsequently afraid of fluffy, the 3headed dog based off of Cerberus. They bought this toy that looked like fluffy and that was motioned sensored and would go off when I walked past it and idk it remember it encouraging me to stay in my room
When you find the answer please tell me, because my almost 7 year old is the sammee
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I had to read to my first daughter until she fell asleep. She was a rough one. My now 6 yr old daughter still likes me to read to her as well but she’s finally doing better with bed time this last yr since she started kindergarten lol find what works and stick with it. Also, my kids like me to sing the books. Llama llama and de Seuss are good ones for that lol
Bath, brush teeth, read a book, CocoMelon for 30 minutes, music machine, and a plastic fly swatter if necessary (I don’t even have to use it. I point it at them and they jump in the bed) for my 2 yr old twin grandkids. A routine is crucial.
We turned the lock around and locked ours in when needed
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Baby gate to his room? That way you can hear him but he can’t come to you.
Some of these comments are actually disturbing!! 
Your child may just need to let more energy out during the day. Try putting them to sleep a little later. And there’s always rountine, its huge to stay consistent. And If/when all else fails and you’re tired. Put them in bed with ya, they are only little for so long and will eventually want nothing to do with ya. Not a hug, not a smooch, nada…Teens are fierce. Love them while they’ll let ya. Good luck!
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Tuck him in…lay down with him…scratch is back, play with his hair, things that help him relax… these days don’t last long.
We have the exact same issue and he’s also 3
Read Books to him. He should get tired?
Talk to his pediatrician. They may have ideas.