I Am MISERABLE...

It is sooo tough. Try Mylicon. Maybe he is having some bad gas? Do you give him a warm bath at night? Try also using some lavender scented bath soap and lotion to help relax him. I hope this helps!

Hi C.! I'm so sorry you're going through this. It really is the worst thing. I never did this method...we did Ferber I guess...ha. I never read the book, but just took advice from a few friends who did it and would only go in every 15 minutes. And NOT pick them up. I HATED doing this, but my husband really was the one helping me. The thing is that if you keep going in and picking them up and carting them around, you're really confusing the poor thing...and he keeps crying. It sends a mixed signal to them and it's really not fair to them...in my opinion. This CIO method should take no more than 3 days really...that's been my experience twice as well as the experience of friends. Of course when our kids are crying like that I always reverted to, well, maybe he's sick, or in pain. It's so hard. 6 months is a tough age because they are in active teething mode and you don't want them to be suffering as well...but I absolutely agree with you that getting up every 30 minutes at night is just too much. Both my kids were closer to a year when I tried this but I have many friends that have done it around the same time as you.
Anyway...it's a personal decision how to sleep train. I'm sure you'll get LOTS of conflicting advice on here because everyone parents differently. I totally know where you're at right now and how you're feeling. You're not alone!! The one thing I can totally testify to is that both of my breastfed boys slept 12 hours after letting them cry it out and learn to self soothe...they didn't love me any less because of it. My second actually would put himself to bed at around a year. He'd grab his bear and make his way to his crib and cry to go in. it was heaven. :) They both love to sleep...and they love me. :) So don't worry...the baby won't hate you in the morning.

I hope you have a great thanksgiving. I'll say a prayer for you today that there will be peace in your house tonight!!! :) God bless!

hi C.. i am going through the same thing with my 6 month old baby girl. the letting her "cry it out" is so hard and i feel like i'm going to throw in the towel. it is killing me but it is also killing me that i am so sleep deprived. my baby is pacifier dependent and goes to bed at 8 pm and then starting at midnight she is up every 45 minutes looking for the pacifier. it is so , so hard and i'm so, so tired. she is my first so i am new at this but i thought i would share your misery. good luck, C. k

At 6 mos. I nursed the kids whenever they cried at night. Usually this was 2 or 3 times.

Now they are 3, 2 and 3 mos. I usually go the bed when they do and nap if they do, so I get 10 hours @ night plus a nap (but I'm up at night still, and during the pregnancy I REALLY wanted the extra sleep). I know there is no me time but I cannot stand a lack of sleep. Some nights I stay up (like tonight). I totally understand that lack of sleep can be painful.

Hi C.,

Oh, boy, do I feel your pain as I have a son who did not really sleep until he was 1 1/2. If you can rule out any pain/medical issues, is there anyone (grandma, aunt, etc.) who is NOT sleep deprived who can stay at your house for two nights in a row and you can sleep somewhere else? You will definitely get a different perspective on things, and maybe, out of frustration, your baby will finally get back into a sleep pattern.

Good luck! B.

C.
Because you have a toddler too I suggest continue, but stop going in every 30 min. You're signaling your baby that eventually you will show up.
The going in every so often didn't work with my kids. I did not go in at all, but sat by the monitor and cried my heart out. THAT worked. But my kids were 18 months at the time :). So I delayed CIO as much as I could until i just couldn't go on without sleep.
My method worked within a couple of days, if i remember correctly it took 3 days. The first night they cried for over an hr. The next two nights they cried just for a few minutes. They knew I wasn't going in
good luck

Hi C.:

It would be helpful to address the issue emotionally. As a suggestion, look into Bach's Rescue Remedy Flower Essence. Place two drops in baby's water bottle and allow him to sip throughout the day, you can also add to water in spray bottle and spray home/where her sleeps, or place in bathwater right before bed.

It helps to balance any emotional upset. You may want to explore the issue further to discover the real upset. Contact my office for a consult, if interested.

All the best,
N.
Organic Mommy & Baby Healthcare Solutions
www.wholecreations.com/wombfull.html
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i agree with everybody who brought up teething, that was my first thought when i read this. his sleep pattern may be changing too which can cause sone disturbences during the night. i hate to say it and i know your tireed but 6mo may be a bit young for crying it out. i waited til just about a year to do it with my son and it was no fun for about a week but we got passed it. you absoulutly should go in at your schedualed intervals 3min,then 5, 10, each night making them longer but i would suggest not picking up. just let the baby know mommy is still here but it is bed time and you have to stay in your crib. also try somthing distracting - one of those light shows that project onto the celing and play music and some fun crib toys. good luck!

If your baby is suddenly waking and screaming and doing it at frequent intervals during the night, and nothing can soothe him, I'd suspect pain such as an ear infection. Have you had him in to see the doctor?

C.,

I went through the same thing with my daughter. Take him to the doctor it could be reflux, teething, or ears. When my daughter was 6 months she would be up sometimes a half an hour after I would put her down and that was with only two half hour naps during the day. Then she would be up around 5 or 6 times a night. The doctor never found anything wrong with her. She got sick while my doctor was on vacation so I had to take her to the covering doctor. Make a long story short this doctor told me he couldn't see her ears clearly and had to remove some wax. He pulled out a plug of wax the size of my pinky finger. Behind it was blood and puss. She had an abscessed ear for god knows how long. This poor thing was in pain and the other doctor never found it. Even though her ear cleared up she had constant ear infections after that and ended up with tubes in her ears at a year old. After one year of no sleep and I knew she was okay I did cry it out and it worked no problems. I would get him checked out before doing cry it out something must be hurting him. I know it's the holiday but I would try some tylenol in case it is ears or teething so he can be comfortable and you can hopefully get some rest. If it is reflux you can elevate his crib slightly so he is not laying completely flat. I know how you feel I would go to bed each night with a knot in my stomach wondering how many time I would be up in one night. I also had another child to care for, so do not feel guilty for doing cry it out. Especially when you have to be able to function for your family. Some people can survive with broken sleep I am surely not one of them, not with a house to clean, laundry to do, cooking to be done and another child to care for. I also was a stay at home mom. Get him checked out so you can put your mind at ease. Good luck and happy holidays.

I am SORRY! Obviously follow the advice to check into discomfor, etc, first.

Try putting him to bed a little later, or maybe even keeping him up for a little while after the first wake up and letting him play for a while(sounds crazy, but worked for us!). I don't think CIO is good, b/c it has not worked for you guys for so long. Good luck.

I'm sorry, you might not find this helpful, but go in! Your head and heart are telling you to do it so it can't be wrong. My little one woke up 3-4 times a night around 5-6 months old. This is after we had established a fairly good sleeping routine. He went back to normal around 7 months. I have no idea what it was or why he did it. I went in to him each time though. I totally feel your pain with no sleep although I only have the one child. Good luck.

I am sorry you are having such a hard time. My kids never woke up that often unless they were sick or in pain. But I know it is a nightmare to be so sleep deprived because I am an insomniac myself. Can someone help you with childcare for a few days so you can catch up on your sleep (at night or with naps)? Ruling out teething pain and an ear infection is not a bad place to start. You could also try a dose of tylenol or motrin with the bedtime bottle This and a little oragel as needed helped for much more peaceful nights during teething.

What was the sleep pattern before the waking up every half hour phase started? Anything else change around the same time? I don't know the Sleep Sense program. I have pretty good sleepers so I could get away with winging it. I would put the baby in the crib and stay in the same room for a while (usually reading with a book light) until they fall asleep. If the cry it out method is making you crazy check out some of the others out there. I think there is one called the No Cry sleep solution. Whatever you decide good luck.

I know it us hard, I went through the same situation but I always gave in an ultimately put them in my bed in order to get a good night sleep. That is not my recommendation, however, there is a product by Swiss Just called Melissa and it is a natural calmant. It is like an oil that you rub on their back and it helps to sooth the baby. It does not have any drugs in it and is totally natural. You may want to look into something like that.

Good luck.

Many cultures put the child in the bed with them or near them until they out grow the need to be close to you. The two children that I put in the bed with me out of my three children have moved away from home and the one that I put in the crib by herself turned out to never leave home. If you give him what he needs while he needs it he will grow up more confident and secure and you will get a good nights sleep many say it will spoil the child truth be told it allows them the security that they need. He spent nine months under your heart now you are trying to separate him from you be careful. Life will do enough separating him from you, so enjoy being totally needed and wanted, they are not small forever so what is the rush. He thinks the world of you so be there for him. He will out grow you soon enough and there is no replacing that

I am sorry, but I agree with Annie A! Pick him up. He's at the right age for teething and if he's in pain of course he'll cry. He can get some comfort knowing you're there or he can scream alone. I am sure lots of mothers will read this and say I'm ridiculous, but picking up my sons never taught them to cry for me. I know it can happen, but as they get older, you don't go in for every little wimper. I also agree it could be gas and that can be really painful. Don't know how you feel about meds, but Mylicon worked wonders for my first and a little pain relief for teething goes a long way for a baby who's teething. I know how it hurts, it hurt me too and I always picked up my sons. And they're fine (meaning sleeping through the night). Good luck and let us know what works.
PS Happy Thanksgiving :o)

He could be teething. Tooth pain seems more intense at night. It could also be ears. Does he have a doc appointment coming up (6 month check up)?
Don't worry, this too shall pass. It's so hard, but you know already, it will pay off.

He could be going through a growth spurt and/or teething. I don't think he should be screaming unless he really needs something or is in pain. If he is going through a growth spurt he might be getting hungry at night so he needs more calories during the day to get him through the night. I found a great book called The Baby Whisperer Solves All Your Problems. It really helped me with getting my daughter to sleep better at night and at naps.

Hi C.,
My daughter is 15 months and sleeps pretty well. We also let her CIO when she was younger. Every couple of weeks she goes through a period of waking up and crying even when I hold her. I chalk it up to teething. If she cries when I hold her, I think she is in pain. I just started asking her if she has a boo boo and she says boo boo now. At 6/7 months, your baby could be teething. It sounds like he has the sleep thing down. Try some Motrin and Orajel and good luck?!
D.

Dear C., I feel your pain as I have raised 5. Have you checked if baby is teething?? If this is so the stage will pass. My words of encouragemant are, you will susvive! We all do. I never let mine cry it out and the first 3 were each a year apart. Find out what baby needs. Grandma Mary

Dear mother, Happy Thanksgiving! I truly feel for your dilemma. I can recall giving my second born the knickname "scream machine". What I did not know is that she was born lactose intolerant and was allergic to all other milk-based formulas except Prosobee--Soybean instead. I am in no way suggesting this to you. Since I am not a doctor/professional. However, as a mom who developed nerves of steel from all of this, I just wanted you to know... 'You never walk alone' one suggestion, have you tried music played nearer to him at night. Or a lava lamp, beautifully-lit all night lamp with little moving objects? Seek a Doctor to see if it's a medical alert--please don't be. The symptoms for my daughter included lose runs, high acidity which created painful diaper rashes and pure "scream machining". Love From A Distance To All! Perfect remedy when all else fails.