Sleep Habits of My 7Mth Old

The first thing I want to bring up is teething...

If she is teething, all of these sleep issues are normal, and there is really nothing you can do other than teething tablets and Tylenol.

If this is not the cause, I do have some advice for you. An overtired baby will not sleep. I know this sounds insane, but it's true! If you wait too long for the first nap(about 2hrs after waking) it gets difficult to get them down, the rest of the day is thrown off, and the crazy night follows!

The transition to the crib is tough- I've been through it too! You have to find which method works for your unique little baby. I have my own page on this at http://www.squidoo.com/sleepingbaby1. I think you might find some of the advice there to be helpful.

I have to take a moment to commend you for being a SAHM. It is one of the most under-appreciated, yet most rewarding jobs you could ever have! Please don't give up! I know how it feels to do it virtually alone, as my husband has been in Iraq for the first year of my daughter's life. But women are strong, and we can do anything we set our minds to! I hope your family gets some much deserved rest soon! :)

hi L.,
i personally do not believe in crying it out. there are ways to get your baby sleeping better without tormenting them. my daughter slept with me for the first year of her life. at 7 months she was still waking every 2 hrs at best on a rare occasion every 3 to nurse. i know she was hungry because at around a year old she startiung eating more solid food and sleeping longer stretches. that being said, instead of ignoring your daughter's cries i would try to figure out what the problem is. also, i did not have a good daytime routine or bedtime routione established and that helped too. i highly recommend the "no cry sleep solution" by elizabeth pantley. do not worry about cosleeping. my daughter is 18 months and sleeps in her own bed now by herself. if she sleeps longer with you then i would keep on doing it. or slowly transition her into a pack n play beside you or side car her crib next to your bed. other things that worked for us...white noise in her room, soft music before bed, dark room and dim lights before naps and bedtime, sticking to a routine, and solid daytime naps.

good luck, i know how awful it can be!

My son had so many sleep issues, I don't even know where to start. Every time I thought we had figured it out, something else disrupted his sleep whether teething, illness, etc and we had to start from the beginning. So, this is a culmination of all our experiences. I'll just try to give you some ideas and maybe you can walk away with one that will help you.
I transitioned my son to his crib after co-sleeping by first putting him in his pack'n play for naps which was right next to my bed. I stayed next to the pack'n play for each nap and my presence somehow seemed to soothe him. After a few days, I started to leave the room which worked well. Then I put him in the pack'n play at night. This was a little tougher but he eventually was okay. Then came the switch to the crib. At first it all seemed to go okay, then he didn't want to be in the crib by himself anymore. So, we added a plush animal which calmed him down. I also started to play with him in his room more during the day so that he got used to his surroundings. That seemed to help. Throughout our sleep saga, I have resorted to laying down on the floor next to the crib at night when he would wake up which was a huge comfort to him. Sometimes he would stick his little hand out so that I could hold it. More than once, I ended up falling asleep and, when waking up, was able to leave the room while he was still sleeping. I tried out different bedtimes which took forever! Other moms tried to tell me what their bedtime is and I took their example. Nothing worked. So I started working on his nap during the day. First we tried different nap times until we came to 1:30 pm. He will sleep for about 3 hours. From that I took his cues when he got tired. Early signs started at about 9 pm. I established a fun-for-him bedtime routine. We do the same thing every night and he loves it. Anyway, we now start his bedtime routine at 9 pm. We are in his room by 9:20 pm and he is in my lap by 9:30 pm. We cuddle and I rock him to drowsiness/sleep and then xfr him to his bed. Most nights, he is okay. Some nights, he still wants me to stay w/him in his room and if I'm tired, I just lay down on the floor next to him. Usually no later than 10 pm he is out and he sleeps until at least 8 am or 8:30 am sometimes even longer. I did try out Dr. Weissbluth methods: mainly the one where he talks about napping and a regular nap time which worked for us. As I said, from there we started working on the bedtime.
Also, my son always had prbls w/gas and/or tummy aches which sometimes woke him up at night. It took us a long time to get where we are. He now sleeps through the night, mostly anyway.
Another thing I introduced (besides the plush animal) when he was about your daughter's age, was a crib toy that plays music. He loves turning on the music. It has such a soothing effect that he goes to sleep w/it. And since he has always loved his bouncy seat (which plays music), I put his bouncy seat all the way up to the railing of the crib so that he can reach through the railing and turn the music on. So, when he wakes up during the night, he will at times, turn on his music and go back to sleep without crying.
I want to encourage you to just go w/your gut when it comes to your daughter's sleep habits. Don't let other people tell you what to do or h/t do it. She may have completely different habits than other kids and it just doesn't work with "normal" suggestions. Watch her intently and take your cues from her. It may take you a while b/c it may be like a puzzle where you have to put the pieces together w/out having a picture to peak at, you know? But you can do it. I put up w/the sleep deprivation a lot longer that you did. My son was 18 months b4 I read Dr. Weissbluth's book! I think from there, he was about 19 or 20 months when we had a good nap schedule down and by 22 months or so, he started sleeping through the night. (We had introduced the music toys when he was between 6 and 8 months old). I figured out a lot of band aids when I listened to other people and some did work but I was never able to put it all together until I stopped listening to other moms and started to "listen" to my son. Anyway, be encouraged. You can do it. You'll have some hiccups throughout, especially when she is teething, but overall, once you have her sleep schedule down, she'll pretty much stick with it.

I have not tried the sleep trial that you mentioned. However, I can tell you what helped with my boys.

My boys are pretty high energy. They love to laugh, play and run. When they were little, I used to play a game I call "lion and mouse". I would chase them around the house as if I was the lion. Then they would chase me around like I was the mouse. We would do this for about a half hour or 45min. They absolutely loved it. It was great exercise for me, and we bonded during the fun. It took about that long for them to become red faced and exhausted. Then I would put them in bed and they were ready to relax and calm down... probably just so they would catch their breath...lol. However, because it was late at night and they were already tired, they would fall asleep rather quickly.

Before our game, I would get them to change clothes for bed and take baths. When they were really little, the baths used to help calm them down. As they got older, the baths kind of wound them up from playing with all their toys.

I use pretty much the same bedtime schedule everyday. We eat dinner, play games or go outside, about 8pm lights go out in the house and maybe only the TV on or a dim light in the background to see. At 8:30pm we go upstairs to take baths, change clothes, read books, then nightlights are out by 9-9:30pm. I convinced my kids to play the quiet game. We try to see who can be the quietest. Sometimes I will laugh or tickle them to say who wins. My guys are so competitive that the quiet game works really well for them to gain control and stop chatting at night. Sometimes I change the game and we look for something blue, something big, something small, something soft, something hard. I just add in whatever pre-school or kindergarden things I can think of.

Not to knock the old wives tales but current study says not to let them cry it out. It does something to the brain and can cause learning disabilities. I never let mine cry it out no matter how tired I was.

Ok, since you were co-sleeping with her she is used to feeling you there. Here is something that might help. I know all the doctors argue against this but this was the only way to get my son to sleep in his crib. We were not co-sleeping but the transition from bassinet to crib was not a smooth one for him. He started needing to be held to go to sleep and then when I tried to put him in his crib he would wake up and we had to start all over again. His Daddy works third shift so I was alone with him and after several nights of no sleep I needed to do something about the problem! I know there isn't supposed to be anything in the crib with them but to me that's a cold flat empty space. It's no wonder after being cuddled to sleep that a baby would be unhappy with being stuck in there. So when I cuddled him to sleep in bed with me I put a pillow under him. He's a Daddy's boy so I used one of Daddy's pillows because it smells like him. After a little bit when I was sure he was sound asleep I transported him, pillow and all, to his crib and bunched up a blanket at the side of him where my body was. He cuddled to that and stayed asleep. We had the first peaceful night in his crib. I kept a close eye on him that first night, worried he would pull the blanket over his head or something. That was more than 3 months ago and he has not done that once. I switched out the blanket for a teddy bear that's as big as he is and if he's on his side I put his back against it so that he doesn't roll off the pillow and scare himself. He is happy and peaceful and sleeps thru the night with no problem. Like I said, Doctors will tell you that there isn't supposed to be anything in the crib with the baby. But if he's happy and healthy and it's not hurting him any then I don't see the problem. Maybe this will help you too. The only problem we have now is that every once in a while we have to trade pillows with Daddy again because his pillow loses that Daddy smell after awhile. LOL But he's going to be a year old in 2 days. He's very happy and very healthy. He sleeps great except of course if he's sick. I say go with what works. I found something that works for us. Hoping that maybe it will help you too. Good Luck!!!

Hi L.!

Dr. Weissbluth's methods have worked like a charm for me and all the moms I know that have tried it. I would say as hard as it will be, you just have to be consistent and after a few days it will get better. It might feel harsh....I had to cry myself through letting my daughter cry it out but it was well worth it. She is a very happy girl and it is SOOO worth it for YOUR sanity! Good luck to you.

Hi L.,

First I want to say "Here is a hug!" I remember the days of my daughter screaming her head off with colic and not sleeping. I also breastfed her. One thing that helped her leave the warmth of nursing to continue sleeping in the crib was when I placed a heating pad on her crib sheet to warm it up. During the winter months the change in temperature from my body to the cold sheets would be enough to signal "a alert response" and she would not sleep. Also, we later found out that she had allergies and what I was eating was irritating her. God Bless and Good Luck!

My first was an easy sleeper. He was up every 3 hours for the first 6 months and then started sleeping through the night on his own. The second? Not so much...

Co-sleeping didn't work for us so we didn't have that transition, but he was in a PnP next to the bed and he was up ever 1.5-2 hours most nights until 9 months when we finally put him in his own room. It helped some, but he's still up 1-2 times a night (which is significantly better, but not like it was with #1).

I don't have a lot of advice except that I just keep telling myself it will get better. I've never heard of elementary school-aged children needing to be nursed every 3 hours at night :) I don't let my children CIO, I think it's an awful way to train a child to forget what is biologically ingrained in them. The book "The Baby Whisperer" was helpful for me. She doesn't know squat about breastfeeding (says that a 2-3 month-old breastfed should sleep through the night and doesn't need to be nursed - we all know that's a crock of s**t) but has very compassionate ways of responding to crying and sleep issues without making them lay there and scream.

Here's a hug:) This, too, shall pass...

You are not alone L.! My youngest is 8 mos. and he also will not (most nights) sleep through the night in his crib.
My first son, now 2 1/2, sleeps wonderfully. I am also a SAHM breastfeeding mom. When my first boy turned 6 mos. I talked to our nurse about him not sleeping through the night and she suggested trying the CIO method for a few nights. We would do our same routine; bath, breast, book then bed. But notice, he would nurse before we read, that way I could put him down sleepy but not asleep. It worked great. 3 nights of 15 then 10 then maybe 5 mins. of crying and that was it. He pretty much slept through the night every night thereafter.
Every child is different! This did not work for my youngest! He cried for much longer and it continued for many nights. I could not allow him to just go on crying, something was not right. I sought counsel from a dear friend who is a clinical psychologist. He is a terrific man in his 70s and I highly value his advice. He made it pretty clear to me that letting a baby cry, without responding, for longer than 10-15 mins. can be very damaging to their sense of security and more. Some babies are more laid back and don't get too upset about being alone in a crib/ room but others are acutely aware of this aloneness and it is VERY frightening to them. They don't understand that you are still there and will get them in the morning.
He suggested that I first try giving him a blanket. (He was still sleeping w/out anything else in the crib due to SIDS concerns) He did actually sleep through the night that night. But the next night it was the same old thing. So, his other suggestions were to either nurse him and put him back or sleep with him again. He assured me that once he is on his feet and older in general he will wear himself out and sleep much better in the future. So, some nights I attend to him then return him to his crib and some (most) nights I just sleep with him. Note; my husband is not able to help me at night so I have always done it alone too. Anyway, when I decided that this is what I needed to do for now, we ALL started sleeping better at night. Now, I do have a comfortable couch that I am able to cosleep on rather than in our bed. Since it is just the two of us I am much more at peace and able to rest and so is he.
I hope this helps some. Trust me, I know what you are going through. Do what is best for you and your baby and remember, though it feels like forever right now, babies are not babies for very long. That has certainly helped me through many days and nights!
Stay strong! God bless you and your family!

L.,
Read "The Baby Whisperer" by Tracy Hogg. It is a quick read and if you use it, it will turn your life around! My daughters slept "like babies" because I read this book. I have recommended it to every woman I know, and the only ones who have had good sleepers were the ones who implemented the steps in the book. Do your family a favor and try it. Good luck!
C.

Our little girl was the same way and my pediatrician told me she was over tired and at that point was unable to fall asleep. It took a few weeks to get her adjusted but it worked. We started putting her to bed earlier in the evening (6:30-7)- so while she was crying it out the rest of the family could be downstairs and not have to listen to her while we were also sleeping. I cut out her evening nap and would not let her even cat nap past 4 pm. She is now a great sleeper and requires more sleep than our other kids. Good luck- it is very hard but be strong:)

When my son was that age, we had some sleep issues, too. Mostly with sleeping through the night, as I'm lucky enough to have kids who will actually voluntarily nap if they're tired. My mom suggested that he may not be sleeping through the night due to hunger, so at night when we went to give him his last bottle (and the one that I fed him while I rocked him to sleep) I gave him a mixture of formula and baby food bananas. I know you said the baby is breast fed, so you'd probably want to do a bottle of breat milk and mix it with the baby food bananas. It makes kind of a smoothie that sits heavily on the belly and helps them sleep.

As far as what you're asking about the 3-day sleep solution, I've never heard of it. And when it comes to following Dr. Baby Guru's advice (and this is anyone who claims to be a baby expert) ....half of them don't even have kids. The answer isn't going to be found in a book or pamphlet. Its going to just be more trial and error. Also, one thing that I've learned in my seven years as a mother is that... A) Yes, sometimes you have to just let them cry it out and B) If you don't take care of yourself, you can't take care of anyone else. See if you can find a friend or relative to take the baby for a few hours so you can take a nap and get yourself rested. Even if you don't nap, and you just do something as simple as take a long shower...just something to help YOU to feel rested. Because otherwise, its going to make this process that much more tedious. When my daughter was born, she didn't sleep through the night, and my son was old enough that he didn't take naps, but couldn't be left by himself...so needless to say, I NEVER SLEPT! I was up all night with my daughter, and up all day with my son. It was hell, so believe me I know what you're going through, being exhausted and feeling unable to take care of yourself, let alone two kids. So....try to get some sleep. Try the banana thing to help your baby get a "fuller" belly when its sleep time...and then, if you know that he's fed, dry, and just tired....let him cry it out. If he's bulking at sleeping in the crib, and everytime he cries, you take him out and give him what he wants, then he learns that crying gets him what he wants. Even though it sounds silly to say about a baby at that age, its still true. Once he's fed, changed, and laid down, just leave him laying down. If you have soft music you can play, play that for him. Those little toys that attach to the crib and play lights and soothing music are great for that. You may even want to lay him in there when its NOT naptime, and let him look at the lights and listen to the music, just to get used to it, so that he finds his crib to be a soothing place, instead of a terrifying place. Does that make sense?

I hope that I've helped in any way, and I wish you the best of luck. Just remember....it can't last forever, and eventually "this too shall pass". lol. Even though right now its probably about the last thing you're ready to hear.