My 10 Month Old Constantly Wakes Throughout the Night

Hi, I am in the same situation, except my little one is 13 months and we do co-sleep. I'm writing though to say that I have an older kid and he was the same way at this age and now (age 3 but really starting at about 1 1/2) he usually sleeps all through the night. He has gotten to be a more and more heavy sleeper too. I'm not sure--it's all a sleep-deprived blur :-) --but I think it started to change around the same time we gradually stopped BFing, so... can't say what your experience will be like, but maybe when you transition from nursing things will change. This does not mean stop nursing--I think we should keep right on as long as we and the babies all want to! any chance you can just roll with the new sleep-deprived you for the time being (it WILL end, I promise!) and try to nap during one of those day-time naps with her? If this is rambling, chalk it up to, yes, sleep deprivation ;-) Good luck!

Hi J., I see so many of these requests on how to get the babies to sleep and I hate to tell you this, but you really do need to let her cry it out. Seriously. I never liked that method either, no one ever wants to hear it, we all want the magic sleep solution that will be kind and gentle and cause minimum crying, but you must let her cry.
Now, I am NOT suggesting you do it cold turkey nor that you let her cry for an excrutiating amount of time. Rather, to do it gradually. Even more important than you getting some rest (which is definitely important!) is your daughter learning to soothe herself. Let her cry for 5 minutes, go in & pat/sing/reassure softly and then leave. Wait another 7-8 minutes & try again. Keep letting about 5 more minutes pass each interval. I would recommend doing it this way so that it is easier on both of you. I'm not saying it won't be heart wrenching at first, but you will have your sanity & rest and she will be better able to settle herself. If she's 10months old, she really doesn't need the milk in the middle of the night & is just waking out of habit at this point. YOu mentioned she's been teething, have you tried the homeopathic teething tablets? They sell them in any drugstore over the counter. We used to give our daughter 3 before bedtime and sometimes if she woke up in the middle of the night I would give her some & they almost immediately soothed. You may also want to give her a small dose of motrin before bed since it has an anti-inflamatory and the swelling of the gums causes them so much discomfort.
You'll be surprised how quickly she'll stop waking once you let her cry a few times. Good luck to you!!
N.

Hi, my name is K. Smith and I am a Sleep Consultant and Parenting Coach. I know I can help you, please check out my website and contact me. www.theindependentchild.com
Good Luck,
K.

I don't have a perfect solution; my 11 month old has a similar schedule of nursing and naps, but my mother-in-law is a pediatrician and she suggested not feeding him at every waking because it's like a reward for waking up in the middle of the night. He has recently started sleeping longer with fewer wakings (but they have not disappeared).
Anyway, I found it useful to not nurse him until 4:00am (or whatever arbitrary cut off works for you). I tell myself that before that I can be confident that he is not hungry; he just needs comfort. So when he wakes crying, I rock him and sing to him in his dark room until he drops off. He uses a pacifier which helps. I hope this is helpful and good luck.

Don't worry, my son was the same way. He is now 20 months old and was weaned from breastfeeding a few weeks ago because I am pregnant. He does sleep through the night sometimes, but usually wakes up once. He usually just wants a drink of water, a hug, or rub on the back and goes back to sleep quickly. Your baby's sleep will improve as she gets older, trust me. It's just hard getting through it - I know! I never did the "cry it out" method either - it just feels wrong. And you don't have to do it either. My son also sleeps in a crib and until 2 weeks ago, the crib was in our room. The period of time from 7 months until 12 or 13 months was the hardest! Teething was a big factor and the crawling/walking developments too - I think that just makes it hard for the babies to sleep. But the biggest factor was night weaning. Until I did that, he woke up a lot. He started to sleep through the night after I night-weaned him (I would only nurse him before bed and when he woke up at 5 or 6 a.m.) Then, later, I stopped nursing him when he woke up in the morning and only nursed before naps and bed. Does your baby have a "lovie," like a blanket or special cuddly thing to sleep with?

I just want to say that it will get better! However, teething is a real problem. Sometimes my son will still wake up several times a night - he just needs a little reassurance and will go back to sleep immediately though.