Sleep, Please! - Austin,TX

I feel for you. I have 2 yr old who did the same thing until 2 months ago when we stoped the in the middle the night bottle. I also bring her in my bed if she wakes up seems then she sleeps till 830-9am. hang in there and it gets better

Was your baby ever sleeping through the night or has then been ongoing? My youngest son who is now 23 months did not sleep through the night until he was 15 months old!! I felt like a zombie day and night. I tried the cry it out (Ferberizing) thing when he was about nine months old and soon realized he wasn't ready and neither was I. It wasn't worth the anguish of hearing him scream. Sleep wasn't that important. So, when he was about 15 months old I tried putting him in his crib in his own room. I left the tv on mute and turned on a desk fan for white noise. It was the best night of sleep in my life. He was ready and it made all the difference. I promise, this too shall pass.

My daughter was the same way. She loved to nurse, ALL NIGHT LONG! ;) She's always slept with us & would wake from time to time to nurse throughout the night. She did that until she stopped nursing at 16 months. We actually found that putting a box fan, for white noise, helped tremendously. I agree with not letting your child cry it out and have found many of Dr. Sears books to be very helpful in attachment parenting. There's also a website www.askdrsears.com. It may seem like you'll never get any sleep, but his too shall pass. Good luck & happy holidays!

S.,
I have a two year old, and when she was about 6 months old I was crazy and depressed because she didn't sleep more than 2 hours at a time - ever. A friend recommended "Healthy Sleep Habits, Happy Child" (sorry, don't know the author's name) and it changed my life. It doesn't force you to make them cry it out. Within a month she was napping better and sleeping at least 7 hours at a time; within two she was sleeping through the night. Good luck.
C.

I don't believe in "crying it out" either, unless it's obviously a temper tantrum....which is unlikely during the night. When my babies were babies (one at the time), they slept in between me and my husband. I still had to get up to feed and diaper, but there was very little crying for no apparent reason. This did not always help with my youngest, who was asthmatic and sick a lot, but I would hate to think how things would have been if she were sick and lonely during the night. I've always believed that babies need to be near their parents a lot.

Hi, I am a single mother of two. A six year old and a 20 month old. Believe it or not, my 20 month old has only been sleeping through the night for about two months.

I am a single mother, so I cannot take turns with anyone or do not have any help. I used to get up every time she cried and was up multiple times throughout the night as well.

I couldn't bare to let her cry, so I would come to her rescue time after time, only depriving myself of sleep night after night.

I finaly gave in to the idea of letting her cry. I know you don't agree, but please read on and you will see the results I encountered with this method.

First, I removed baby the monitors. With the baby monitors, I was able to hear every breath that she took, and I would wake up everytime I heard any kind of odd movement or even a strange breath she would take. So I started with that. It helped me to not be so paranoid, and I could still hear if she really needed me.

Then, I realized that I had been rocking her to sleep everynight. If she wasn't ready to sleep, and I was, then I would be forced to stay awake with her until she was ready. Even then, she would cry as soon as I put her down.
I work. I need my sleep. At times I would rock her until 11:30 and still would be up through the night. So I decided she also needed to learn to sleep on her own, without mommy rocking ehr to sleep. So when I was ready to sleep, I put her in her crib, kicking and screaming.

The first night she cried for two hours straight. I had to go to my own room and close the door! I couldn't stand it. I cried a little, myself. But eventually, she fell asleep.

The second night, she cried for 30 minutes. Then she fell asleep.
The third night, she cried for 10 minutes. Amazed, I peeked through her door, and saw that she was playing. She eventually fell asleep, without my help.

Now, when I am ready to sleep, I tell her its time to go to bed, and I even say goodnite, and tuck her in. She says goodnite back, and blows me a kiss, and either closes her eyes and goes to sleep, or plays with the blanket and stuffed animals, until she falls asleep. From time to time she calls me in the middle of the night, but when she realized I'm not coming, she entertains herself until she falls back to sleep.
I learned that she had been too reliant on me for comfort, and I became sleepless and frustrated because of it.
Now, I sleep throughout the entire night. I wish I would have done this sooner! I also make it a point to feed her before she goes to sleep so she doesnt' get up because of hunger. A bowl of cereal or even a glass of milk with a bannana or something light. Make sure the diaper is clean, and if necessary, a bath before bedtime. But most importantly, spend time with your child before bedtime, so he/she doesn't feel abandoned by you when its time for bed. I hope my own experiences will help you and your situation. Good Luck!

I was in your shoes not to long ago. My son was doing the same thing so at 9 months old I was so tired of it. My mom told me to put him on a schedule. Do the same thing every night at the same time. Pick a bed time for him and lay him in his bed and he would cry his self to sleep but it would take a few nights maybe weeks for him to get use to the whole thing. I didn't like the idea of him crying his self to sleep but I was so tired and needed sleep I decided to try it. We picked 9:00pm for his bed time and started getting him ready at 8:00pm. I bought some relaxing bubble bath with lavender & chamomile and use it everynight in his bath, still do. I would let him sit int he water for about 15 min. Then after his bath I would rub baby lotion with lavender & chamomile on him to help relax him. I was told that rubbing lotion on your baby relaxes them. Then he would want to nurse alittle then at 9 we would put him in his bed. I bought a Fisher-Price Ocean Wonders Aquarium that plays music and attatched it to his bed and he loves it. It helps him sleep. He cried for a few weeks and it was so hard but each day he would cry a little less and less and then he just would lay down and sleep. I didn't think it would work or that I could make it through it but it really works. At first he would sleep for 10 hours. I have been doing this since January of this year and I love it. It works and I get to sleep. He still sleeps for about 8-10 hours everynight. I know this was not the advise that you wanted but it works. Its hard at first but stick with it and it will pay off. I hope this will help. Good luck.

My 9 month old has been sleeping through the night since he was 9 weeks old all thanks to an amazing book!! BabyWise!!! Hope this helps!
He now sleeps 11.5 hours every night.

Hi S.,

The book "Babywise" has been the greatest tool for us. Our 3 month old has been sleeping through the night for about a month now. I understand each baby is different, but I'm positive he has the potential to sleep through the night :) Give the book a chance... and hang in there! Let me know if you have any questions!

L.

have you tried putting baby cereal in the bottles. or you can try using a heating pad right before bed time. put the heating pad in the crib for about 10mins before you put your baby down take it out the bed and let it cool off for about 2mins and slip the baby right into a warm bed this will make the baby think it is your body warmth . hopfully it will help them sleep longer atleast. first try it during the day to see if it will work. good luck

S.,
God can I relate! When I was 21 my first child, Jerry Dean, had the same problem. I could not let him cry because it just hurt me.
Family and friends are the key. I swear.
My name is J. and my hubby is military toooooooo.
Call Me if you need me. ###-###-####. Call me anytime, day or night. I usually don't answer and I have a nasty message, but please feel free to leave me a message. I check my messages immediately, so I'll get your message immediately!

Hi S.. I'm so sorry that you are having a hard time. I've been there and it is a very tough place to be. We read "The No Cry Sleep Solution" by Elizabeth Pantley. It is a good book that has a bunch of ideas that you can use to fit into your family and what works best for you. I hope it helps you out. Also know that there are other parents out there who do not let their children cry it out. I know when we were dealing with this stuff with my daughter, I felt like I was the only mom I knew who didn't want to let their child cry it out. I felt very alone, so if you want to send me a message to get some encouragement, feel free. It's definitely been a process, but our precious little 2 year old girl is a great sleeper now - thanks in huge part to Pantley's ideas.
- P.

Do you know why he/she is waking up? Is it psychological (wants comforting) or physiological (needs food, diaper change, etc.)? The physical needs can't always be helped, especially if the baby has sensitive skin, or if you want to keep breastfeeding exclusively. We didn't let our daughter cry it out either - partly because we didn't have the heart, but also because she was a reflux baby and would projectile-vomit if she cried more than a minute. Each child is such an individual. I believe the nighttime approach has to be individually matched to their needs, so determining what they really need/want is key.

To increase time between diaper changes at night, we applied Bag Balm to her skin before her last fresh diaper. For her psychological need for comforting, we tried these approaches:

* transition object - stuffed animal given to her just before bed and to sleep with for self-soothing.
* night light - the LED kind, which gives a soft glow
* white noise - we used a HEPA room filter, but anything with a constant ambient sound can work. Helps drown out traffic, family, etc. that awaken baby.
* association - we use her bedroom for sleeping only, not for playing.
* black-out drapes - especially useful for daytime naps

Our daughter was "high needs," meaning she did - and still does - have a need for a lot of physical contact and comforting. Honestly, we broke "the rules" and put her into bed asleep until she was over a year old. Then we transitioned into staying in her room until she fell asleep in her bed. Now (age 2) we can put her in bed and let her fall asleep on her own; we coincided the changes with toddler bed and big-girl bed respectively. Ironically, her nighttime awakenings have decreased with each increase in independence.

One book I heard was helpful is "The No-Cry Sleep Solution." I can definitely empathize with your frustration. Best wishes for a speedy solution and a good night's sleep.

I know every one is different but I tryed the book but my little girl did not. This is what I tried let her sleep with you of a while. The sound of your heart beat will let her sleep. It worked for me. I hope it helps.

Hello, My name is C. and I am the mother of three beautiful children. 9,6,and 1 years old. I understand what you are saying very well. Try your public library for: The Sleep Book for Tired Parents by R. Huntley (Parenting Press, 1991). This will help and also you can find out more details that will help you at: http://www.urbanext.uiuc.edu/baby/sleep_all_night.html
I hope this helps you sweetie. C. Garcia

All of my kids have gone through this at one point or another, and during these times the solution was simple-I'd let them sleep in their mechanical swing. I'd either bring the swing to my room, or leave it in the living room & sleep on the couch, and the swing helped tremendously in soothing the kids into a nice, deep sleep. I'd pack blankies and pillows around them to be more comfortable, and they loved it. Two words of warning on this-first, never leave the baby alone for too long while they're in the swing. Stay in the same room while you're sleeping so that if something's wrong & they start fussin you're there to hear it. The other thing is not to leave them in for too long. I found this out with my daughter-after letting her sleep through the night in her swing, she woke in the morning with swollen feet. Dangling feet can cause the blood to pool, so I wouldn't recommend letting them sleep for more than 4-5 hours in the swing.