My daughter (who will be 11 months at the end of December) is a trouble sleeper!!! Even as a newborn, she has never slept for long periods of time. She takes one nap a day - if we're lucky. At 7 months she finally started sleeping through the night (7pm to 7am), until she started cutting teeth and ever since she has been waking up 1 to 2 times a night (she still goes to sleep at 7pm but wakes up 1-2 times and is up for good at 6am because my husband and I get up for work). I'm not getting enough sleep and either is my husband. When she wakes up, I try and nurse her back to sleep but she thinks it's time to play or she has a high-pitch squeal that tells me she is overly exhausted but won't sleep. What should I do?? I'm at the end of my rope and need some much needed sleep!
I also highly recommend "Healthy Sleep Habits Happy Child" My son has always been a great sleeper, but I still refer to this when we have some hiccups. It is great! Best of luck!
check out the book "Healthy Sleep Habits, Happy Child" by Marc Weissbluth (sp?)
It has great advice on sleep for children from newborns up to teens.
Kids go through all sorts of sleep patterns- and sometimes you never know what triggers it.
However, I know my little girl (now 2.5) was never a good sleeper and a big part of it was that we were 'missing her window' and then she'd get overtired and it was impossible to get her down.
Once I got the "Healthy Sleep.." book, things turned around big time! It's been a big life-saver!
Good Luck!
My oldest daughter did the same thing. The only thing that helped we co-sleeping. The night she was in our bed for the first time she slept for 14 hours, so did I. It was the best choice for us and I don't regret it at all. She even went to her own toddler bed on her own and still sleeps through the night, unless she is sick, then she comes back in our bed.
just be patient. sleep is not a constant and it is not something that babies can just suddenly learn. it is something that needs to be nurtured. :D
just have patience.
babies will sleep, then they wont, then they will, then they wont.
:D
www.askdrsears.com has good information if you wanted to look it up.
good luck mom, and jst do what you have to do to get sleep. dont listen to outside advice that goes against what your heart tells you... your heart knows best!
Wow both of mine (10 & 8) didn't sleep through the night,7-7, until well into their 2nd year. So good job on what you have accomplished so far. Several things come to mind...Plenty of exercise in the day, no sugar ie. juice, etc. close to naps or bed time, warm baths before bed, dimmed or lights out when nursing at night, consistancy with nap and bed times, possible food alergies( sometimes certain foods being introduced can cause tummy issues). I hope these ideas are helpful! Good luck and keep up the good work!
Ok I just read another respone and I have to say that I do not think you should stop breast feeding! It is so commendable that you are still nursing and working. As hard as it is sometimes I encourage you to continue as long as you can. The benefits are big. Health wise but also for bonding. I mentioned above that mine didn't sleep through the night (7-7, 12 hrs)until later. Both now have excellent sleeping habits. And I want to emphisize habits because that is what you are building in your child...good sleeping habits. My 10 year old sleeps 9 1/2 hrs a night and the 8 year old sleeps 10 hr and they both can nap. I breast feed 2 years and 1 1/2 years and I am convinced that their sleeping habits are connected to that.
Thanks
My son would waken in the night when he was teething, too. It was exhausting! We did get some relief from Infant Tylenol and Hyland's Teething Tablets.
This is somewhat controversial advice, but at your daughter's age, I would just let her cry it out. Go in, check on her, change her diaper, offer her a bottle, give her Tylenol/teething tablets, then leave. The first few nights, she may be up for hours, but she will get retrained.
I was hesitant to let my own son cry it out when he was teething, but it was to the point that he was up for 3-4/hours every single night, and I was so overtired I was having fantasies of abandoning him at a train station. (Sort of funny now, but just showing you how bad it got.) It's hell!
He really cried the first night, then for a few nights he still woke up, but he would go right back to sleep after us checking on him. Now, he's not waking up anymore.
Another thing is to keep her wake up time and nap times the same--don't let her get "caught up" on sleep the next day, otherwise this will be a vicious cycle.
Good luck to you!
Read Dr Sears Night Time Parenting, it saved our lives with our first born. The Ask Dr Sears Web site is also wonderful and easy access.
Have you thought about taking your baby to bed? We loved the closeness and most importantly we all got more sleep! This is a fleeting time and your baby won't be in your bed forever. We miss having someone in our bed now that our pre schooler sleeps mostly in her room.
Take care and snuggle down!
J.
My daughter slept well until she started cutting her molars and it took forever to get her to sleep well again! We did cosleep with her until she was around 9 months and she transitioned to a crib great, when I tried bringing her back to bed with us (around 14 months) she thought it was play time. We changed her bedtime from 7pm-9pm and now she sleeps until 6-7am without waking. It took a lot of trial and error to figure out what she needed, and you are doing the best you can! We also got so frusterated that we begged grandpa and grandma to watch her for a night (even though she is still nursing) just so we could get one night of sleep (and sleep in the next morning). We just needed a break from it all, and wow did that help!
There are many great past posts on sleep that you may want to refer back to. My husbamd & I, like you work full time so we were strong believers in sleep training and letting them cry it out. My son has been sleeping through the night since 5 months becuase of this. I read the book "th baby whisperer" - and just followed the sleep chapter on the recommendation of another mom. The week you do it is a hard one and your little one may be a bit old for this and it may take longer than a week. I know some poeple do not believe in it, and neither was I until it worked and I got a good nights sleep!
Yry putting her to bed a little later and see if that helps. Don't jump up to get her at the first sound or first cry that she makes. Sometimes babies wake up a little and they go back to slepp with in a few minutes.
Google Ferber technique. BAsically, do your routine-do not nurse to sleep. When they fall asleep with you and wake up without you they are disoriented and mad! Let them cry for 3 minutes so back in pick them up, settle them back down and lay them down. Let them cry for 6 minutes this time pick them up but don't say anything. Settle them for a couple minutes lay them back down. Let them cry for 10 minutes and don't pick them up just lay them down and pat them. Most of the time it doesn't go to 10 minutes unless they aren't ready for bedtime yet so that may need adjusting. I wished I had known about this for my oldest. I have since Ferberized both of my daughters. There will be nights when they wake up and want you, but now it's more like once a week instead of 3 times a night. I have a daycare and I also recommend this to my clients and that is how I do naptime time for my older infants. I don't believe in letting them cry when they are younger than 8 months, but by a year they need to learn to soothe themselves to sleep. It's a rough couple nights, but I wouldn't change it for anything. Good Luck!
At 11 mo. it wouldn't hurt for her to be weaned from the breast and/or bottle permanently. I'd get a baby monitor so you can hear her but not have to get up, leave a baby bottle of water in her crib that she can get herself if she needs it, and let her play, squeal, etc., all night long if she wants to, by herself. She has you "trained" to give her attention during the night because she wants to be with you. Having a full time job with a baby is tough. Be sure to give her LOTS of quality time before she goes to sleep at night. Try to keep her on the same nap schedule that the daycare/sitter has her on, on the weekends when she is with you. Put books, quiet toys in her crib and let her read or play herself to sleep for naps. Again, use a baby monitor so you can hear her but do not go in the room unless she is hurt.
Teething is the best way to disrupt everyone's sleep! (Ear infections are a close second, only because you can get antibiotics and the pain stops shortly after.)
My kids go through large amounts of Motrin during these periods. Using only the correct dosing instructions, we are fairly liberal with Motrin if we suspect pain. It's the only thing that helps.
