Lock Down

In early May we were going through another rough patch with Samantha.  Bedtime took over an hour, she dragged the whole process out and usually it all ended with a tantrum and me or Dave holding the door shut while Samantha threw herself at the door and had a terrible fit.  I will say, she is a smart little girl.  She didn't just scream anything.  She always stopped half way in and yelled how she really needed help or she was hurt and needed her Mommy.  The whole thing was maddening. 

A friend of ours had gone through a similar experience and encouraged me to change her door knob so that we could lock Samantha in her room at bedtime.  It sounded awful to me but the idea was simple, no negotiating at bedtime.  After our pleasant bedtime routine, we would lock the door from the outside and that would be the end of it. 

I switched the door knob with Samantha by my side (days later she was going to all the doors with a little screwdriver explaining we needed to fix the doors).  She did try to exit the room with her daily excuse and sure enough, she couldn't get out.  She threw a fit and I was determined not to go in there.  The tantrum lasted about 20 minutes and then I could hear it fading and later checked that she was in her bed sound asleep.  The next night I prepared myself for another 20 minute show and I waited anxiously. Nothing. Not a peep, not a struggle, no throwing herself at the door or even trying to get out.  It has been over a month and I continue locking it but she has yet to make a peep. 

Dave and I keep saying this is very much like the whole "crying it out" phase.  It is painful for the few days you do it but once you reap the rewards, all we can wonder is what took us so long to do it.