Sleeping Problems - Woodbridge, VA

Had you introduced any new foods at the time this started? My daughter was sensitive to wheat and the main symptom was restlessness.

My little ones always had sleep disturbances when they were learning new skills. During the 6 month - 1 year span, they are working on many new skills....crawling, standing, walking, talking, etc. Mine didn't have constant disrupted sleep during that span, but sometimes it seemed like it because the "normal" sleep periods often only lasted a week here or there. Trying to really wear them out during the day sometimes helps - make obstacle courses with pillows and get down and crawl around with her.

Try to be really consistent with bedtime routine. Be sure to start quieting down about an hour before you start the routine. Little ones don't need a bath every night, but sometimes it's best to do it just for the consistency.

K.
even if there are no teeth in sight, they start feeling those months beforehand. she should be taking one nap a day. get her in a routine. and make sure she finishes her nap by 2 or 3 pm so that she gets tired by bedtime. also get her doing stuff during the day which should leave her physically tired and ready for sleep. set one routine so she becomes accustomed to that. dinnertime, bathtime, storytime, milktime and then off to bed. it will take a while, even if she fuses, it is bedtime so she may fuss but she has to do the fussing in her crib (with you present until she gets used to the routine)
at that time i still used to stay in bedroom with my girls until they'd fall alseep. sometimes, actually often times, i'd rub their backs gently.
just a few ideas.

vlora

K.-
I feel your pain! My daughter was the same way! She NEVER slept. My husband would often come home to find me sleeping in the car. She'd fall asleep in the car...and there was NO WAY I'd move her. If you can't beat 'em...join 'em!!!

We tried crying it out...and at 16 months and about 29 inches, she climbed out of her crib. After that, I converted her crib to a toddler bed...I gated her into her room and she climbed over that. I tried double gating her (one gate atop another), but that didn't work...So much for crying it out...

I tried the strict bedtime routine...which also didn't work...I read just about every book on sleep. I tried every technique, and while some worked, mostly I found that patience is a virtue.

I used to stand over her bed and nurse her to sleep. She'd fall asleep only to be up screaming in an hour's time. We went to visit my parents and she slept on an air mattress on the floor. She slept soundly all night. Albeit, she was often on the floor in the morning...but she was sleeping. And, hey, the floor was clean! Turns out, she was waking up in her bed because she was so restless that she would hit her head on the rails. When we returned home, she slept on the floor for a while on one of those Toddler Ready Beds (Hers was a Dora bed!). And, eventually, I moved her to a full size bed. I put her in sideways still do.

I don't really have any advice...All I can do is empathize! And, assure you that this too shall pass. One day...she just started going to bed with no trouble and sleeping MOST of the night. She still (at almost three) wakes up sometimes, but she's doing better....OH I alsmost forgot...one thing that did help was playing music in her room. I got lullabies and one of those relaxing CDs....

Good luck! Traci

A couple of thoughts that might help you get to the root of the sleeping disturbances:

Since you work 2 jobs, your daughter is probably in daycare. Try to stop in unannounced several times to make sure she is happy during the day. She is too young to tell you if she is having troubles with her care, but the stress can convey into sleeplessness. When she is sleeping, she is restless, which is another indication of stress. If the daycare checks out OK, then the next step I would recommend is to try a soothing nighttime ritual (try a warm bath, a small snack, reading, and baby massage). White noise in her room may also help her to stay asleep once she dozes off (an aquarium, a low volume radio, a running air cleaner, etc). Give that a week to see if it is working, and if it doesn't make a difference, then try looking at the foods she eats (including snacks at daycare). She may be eating something that is causing her to act out. She may have an underlying allergy to food or just a sensitivity. Some children react to red dye in food with hyperactivity. For more information about how foods can affect your child, go to www.feingold.org. They have a bunch of free information there, and it helped my family.

You should be able to rely on your pediatrician for help. I would recommend looking around for another pediatrician that is willing to help you find the cause of your child's unrest.

Good luck. I really hope you find the right thing to help your daughter get the rest she needs.

Hi! The no sleeping part may just be that you have a high energy child. But the part when she is sleeping and you say she cries in her sleep and struggles, could be a sign that she is having night terrors. Basically, they are nightmares, the good news...the child does not remember them when awake.
Generally the child will out grow the sleep terrors, but it is very difficult for the caregiver while this is happening. A child with night terrors sometimes will stare at you with eyes wide open, but is actually asleep. Most of the time, you can not wake the child during the terror. But watch him/her very closely and try to comfort him/her.

My grandson and my neice had night terrors. You should look them up on the internet and ask you doctor to reccommend you to a sleep disorder clinic. My grandson had his sleep dianosed. A very simple task. It took my grandson about 2 years to stop having the night terrors.

Good Luck and patients!
Bev

HI K.,
Wow this sounds just like me and my husband!! I'M SO SORRY :)
My son Declan is 10 months old and just started sleeping throught the night. I when I say through the night I mean he only wakes up once. My son never would sleep in his crib, he would fall asleep after i rocked him and then I would put him down in the crib and he would be up an hour later. This would go on all night. We decided to try and put him in bed with us, nut we only had a full size bed. So, we bought a king size (3,000.00) later, and he would sleep about 4-5 hours at a time. I was always a little nervous about it so we took the one side off of the crib and put his bed next to ours and voila SLEEP!!!!!!!! The only problem with this is that you have to go to sleep at the same time. I have now been letting him fall asleep on a blaket in the living room where I can still watch him and when I'm ready for bed we go up together. I hope this works if you decide to try it and good luck!! Don't worry, one day it will happen!!! - E.

PS. Don't you just hate those people who say "My son/daughter has slept throught the night since they were two months old!!! :)

Hi K.,

I think it's time to see a specialist. Ask your pediatrician for a referral.

Hi K.. I hope this helps, as I don't know your full story and I know how difficult it is when you feel that you've tried everything and then someone just suggests something you've done. Anyway, I'm a pediatric occupational therapist living here in Scranton and am a mother of two small children. I suggest this simple advice. 1) if a child is sleeping through the night, by age 15 months they do not NEED a daily nap, but often still will take a one hour, mid-day nap. Pick a naptime that works for your family (say right before or right after lunch) put your child in her crib, and that will be her naptime, no matter what. If she cries for longer than 45 minutes, this may not be a good solution for her. However, LET HER CRY for a good solid 45 minutes before you check on her. 2. Bedtime should be the same sort of thing. Pick a time, such as 8pm or 8:30, put her in the crib and let her cry until she goes to sleep. It sounds like she needs to learn how to self-soothe. On the other hand, if she's missing you during the day, this may be psychological and she's projecting her separation anxiety on her sleeping routine. ...I hope this helps. :) Good luck. It's hard, isn't it??

One of my twins had this problem too. Her pediatrician suggested raising her head a little with a pillow when she sleeps. he thought it may be a reflux action which occurs when the child is laying flat. I also used to give her a baby reflux formular - I used one from my home country, but u can check with your pharmacist for an infant one. Make sure to give her the antacid as prescried, and regularly. Hope this helps.

Hi,
You know your child the best and I agree that 6 months is more than a faze. Maybe you should be thinking about a 2nd opinion. The suggestions about routine are sound and worth trying too. But again you know your daughter if you feel there is something else going on go with your Mommy instincts and get another Doctor's opinion.

Good Luck,

J.

your child may have sleep apnea. My son had it and he had a very hard time sleeping and missed alot of sleep as well. An ear nose and throat specialist would be the one to tell you. Once my son had his tonsils and adnoids out it has been wonderful!!!! He sleeps quietly all night. Your child should be getting about 14 hours of sleep a night. Sometimes when children don't get enough sleep they get very hyper and won't settle down. Good luck, I hope this helps.