Is this normal? Toddler inconsolable upon waking?

[countrymouse]

My older DS did this a lot when he was about 2, and sometimes still cries when he wakes from nap (he's almost 4 now). I think when he does this that actually his blood sugar is low because after I get him to drink some juice or eat a snack, he snaps out of it.

My younger DS (1 yr old) will sometimes wake up like this now too- just in a really pissed off mood and throwing himself backwards when I try to hold him. Usually a snack and a distraction will calm him down.

[Hello Kitty]

My DS is like that too. It definitely depends on the amount of sleep he gets and the problem is usually nap time. For us, getting some food into his quickly seems to help. Something like fruit, yogurt, with some easily digestable sugar.

I didn't intend to go the TV route and we would let him watch a 5 minute tivoed show, but we stopped doing it when he'd be more and more demanding/irritable when the show was over and it was time t move on.

[diam124]

A year and a half later and my DS is usually ok in the morning now but he still freaks out probably twice a week when I wake him from his nap. It happened yesterday actually. I think it happens because it was the "wrong" time in his sleep cycle and he's still tired. I bring him into our family room because it's very bright and let him lay on the couch while he wakes up. I've also learned not to schedule appointments or anything right after his nap in case it's one of those days.

[mcgwigan]

Same here -sometimes when DS2 wakes up and is inconsolable I take him either to the couch to try to get him to lay back down or my bed and if he can go back to sleep then all is good, but if he doesn't go back to sleep -watch out!

[Gia]

Mine do this too (one more so than the other). It is almost freaky it is such intense screaming and nothing seems to stop it. I agree with whoever said it was when they woke up before they were really ready (mcgwigan?), and they've been doing it a couple of times a week for the past year or so, so I am not sure it is teething related for mine. They will now say "Gwump" (for grumpy) one they've snapped out of it.

But I have to wonder.... one day a couple of weeks ago the 12 yr old neighbor girl got here just as they were waking up from their nap (she comes over as a mother's helper sometimes and they LOVE her). William was waking up in a screaming fit and I went up there and said "Guess what! Becky's here!" and he immediately bolted upright and smiled and said "BECKY!!!" and was ready to go downstairs.