View Full Version : Night Waking - 5+ months
Hello Everyone, my first post :)
My DS Jack has had many different sleeping periods in his short (nearly) 6 months of life. Most of them good, the best being a period of about 6 weeks when he would go down around 8.30pm and sleep through till about 6am (heaven). I thought I had it made but since then he has gone through a period of waking around 3.30am for a feed, which was not so bad to now, where for the last 2 weeks he has suddenly started waking every 3 hours or so from 7pm through till 7am.
I usually end up getting up to him about 3-5 times. Of those times I usually end up giving him a feed at about 12.30 and then again around 4am. The other times I just pat his bum and he will usually go back off to sleep for a bit.
I know he is able to put himself back to sleep as I put him down awake for 2 daytime sleeps and when he goes down at night and he may grizzle/cry briefly but then goes off to sleep no worries.
Has anyone else had this happen to them? I would love to hear any similar experiences and suggestions for helping him to go back to his old (wonderful) ways.
Thanks
Brenda :o
Hi There,,.. my daughter, Scarlett, did exactly the same thing,.. At 6 months to the day she began waking 2-5 times a night. Never crying, just playing in her cot and squealing so loudly that I would have to go and put her back to sleep! Now at 7.5months she is waking once a night for a feed which is ok. She sleeps for about 10-12 hours a night with a feed at about 2:00. I can live with that!
Hi Jane
Thanks for your reply. Guess I'll just hang in there and hope it gets better as I have a feeling that nothing I try will make much of a difference.
When Scarlett went through this phase were you giving her a feed to get her back to sleep? or using other methods?
thanks
Brenda
lily's_mum
07-04-2005, 09:38
Hi Brenda
Just wanted to say that my little one Lillian (now 7 mths) has never slept through and I'm fortunate enough not to be working so have just got by with the lack of sleep. She is calming down a little more now and although last night when she woke up every 2 hours :mad: (whew) she normally wakes at 10pm then 2am and then anywhere between 5 -7am. I have been giving her quick feeds at this time although I'm sure it's more for her comfort than anything else. Being so tired myself I find this the easiest and quickest solution however everyone tells me that I will pay for it later.....I"m finding my motto at the moment is "whatever gets you through is right for you".... Hope you are faring better. :p
Take care
Victoria - Lily's mum
Hi Victoria
Thanks for your reply, its amazing how much better it makes you feel just knowing that your not the only one up half the night.
Jack continues to wake every few hours at night and last night I fed him at 10.30, 1.30 and 4.30. I did try at 10.30 to settle him without feeding him but in the end just gave in and after a 10 minute feed he was back off to sleep again. At the moment I'm still just living in hope that this phase will end by itself.
By the way, I love your little girls name. If we are lucky enough to get a little girl second time around we plan to call her Lily.
take care
Brenda
Hi Brenda,
My darling little girl Tayla is now 7 months and although she was sleeping through early on, she started waking at about 6 months for no apparent reason. We heard a lot of other babies her age were doing it too. I ended up feeding her back to sleep usually after a lot of crying, but we were simply too tired to do anything else and really she was tired too, but wouldn't go back to sleep.
I wanted to ask if Jack was on solids yet, because we were giving Tayla one meal of vegies in the 2nd last feed of the day, and ever since i introduced a lunch time meal of fruit (usually Apple or Pear), she has been sleeping through the night again, so i'm guessing it might just have really been hunger.. I know they say solids doesn't help sleeping through, but in our case it seems to have worked.
Best of luck, they do settle down eventually especially when you know they have done it previously, but it can be so frustrating and tiring whilst they are adjusting. I've heard that solids can muck them up a bit as their tummies learn to digest things which may have also been a problem for Tayla.
Keep smiling and there is nothing wrong with feeding back to sleep at night especially when you know ordinarily they can go to sleep on their own when they are happy enough..its just hard for them to do it when they are cranky.
Regards,
Carol (Tayla's relieved mummy now sleeping better at night!)
Hi Carol
Thanks for your post. I started introducing solids to Jack about 4 weeks again now, about a week after he started the night waking. I'd hoped it would maybe help with the waking if he was genuinely hungry but he is now on 2 solid meals a day, one at 11ish and one at 5ish. He eats quite a bit, just the usual stuff, pear, apple, pumpkin etc but it hasn't helped :(
I checked his gums yesterday with my finger, not something I do on a really regular basis and to my surprise I felt something sharp and discovered that a tiny bit of tooth (bottom middle) had broken through. Don't know if this could have had anything to do with it, although I'm not a real believer that teething causes problems for months before they appear :confused:
My biggest concern is that by feeding him when I do around midnight and 4ish so consistently I'm training him to wake at those times now :( It's just the quickest and easiest way to get us all back to sleep & I do worry that he is genuinely hungry :confused:
Thanks again for your thoughts.
Brenda
Hi there ladies,
I am devouring your stories as my daughter, Phoebe has started to wake and be unsettled at night now also.
It is interesting that so many of our bubs are doing this - there must be something going on in their little bods.
I know for a fact that teeth are bothering Phoebe even though she is showing no signs of being any closer to them than she was - just the amount of 'bumps' and drool and the super dooper calming effect of the bonjella - like the difference between refusing to eat and sucking like mad!
I've also worked out that she is hungry!!! I had no plans to start solids now, othr than a little taste, but she doesn't eat at all without them - she 'starved' for 7 hours and for 6 hours rather than take boob, but was great as soon as rice cereal offered! all a bit new to us. I think though that her digestive system is making her more unsettled. Either that or its an indepence thing - I had a theory that she was eating from something other than me, breaking that bond a little and she's reacting to that?
oh well not much to add. We are still sleep deprived here so not a lot of intelligent conversation
Kat
Hi all
It is so great reading everyones stories. It is comforting to know I'm not the only mother with a 6mth old not sleeping through the night. Nathan has always woken twice during the night for a feed but then about 2 weeks ago dropped to only 1 feed unfortunatly this was short lived and was back to two feeds about a week later. Now for the past week he has been waking every 1 to 2 hours. Most times I can resettle him but last night he feed 3 times :( I don't think he is very hungary as he only takes about 50ml each night time feed. People have told me to just give him water but he wont drink it and therefore wont go back to sleep. Ever noticed people who tell you what you should be doing have babies that slept through since 6 weeks. Anyway good to hear from others facing the same problems
willsmum
27-04-2005, 13:06
My 8 month old was sleeping 8-10 hours a night from about 8 weeks and I was SOOOOO relieved cos my 3 1/2 y.o didn't sleep thru til he was nearly 3. But I counted my chickens too soon cos for the last few weeks she wakes up anywhere between 2 and 5 times a night. Occasionally she will sleep from 10.pm to 6.00am but there is absolutely no consistency.
I've tried feeding solids at tea time, then a boob feed at about 7.00pm to settle, I've tried extra solids at 7.00pm to fill her up, I've tried roll-over feeds at 10.00pm. Nothing works so far. And I know she isn't hungry cos she eats more than her big brother does. And as for giving her water in the middle of the night - she just spits it out, then I;m up changing her PJ's!
I agree with the earlier post that those who are "experts" probably have kids who would sleep thru even in the middle of a hurricane and whatever they are doing is probably just coincidental.
Could this problem with our bubs be the change of season? The weather has changed quite a bit (in Qld) and wondering if the change of season is affecting their cycles?
Curious because Phoebe is still waking and I can't work it out.
One baby book says that they develop a more light sleepign pattern at this age, but its ridiculous - that doesn't seem a good enough reason for so much waking!!
On the topic of my theory that its some form of separation anxiety - she is staying asleep much longer periods when she is sleeping in bed with us or one of us - but I am not sure I want to do that forever either
how is everyone else doing?
Kat
Hi there
I had thought about the change in weather as a possible reason for Nathans night time wakings. We are still waking about 5 times a night with him. Very tiring. Lets just hope they get themselves sorted soon.
I have been very lucky that my five-and-half month old DD has been a fantastic sleeper (7pm-7am) since two months of age. But while she's still doing that, getting her down at 7pm has become increasingly difficult the past 2 weeks so I am starting to wonder if the wheels are about to come off at 6 months.
vonnie100
04-05-2005, 19:08
Hi,
just thought that I would add that Caitlin, now 13 months hasnt really ever slept though the night except on odd occasions :rolleyes: but I found that the times that she did wake offen throught the night was when she was teething and so I usually gave her a dose of panodole and then put her into bed with me and that worked well for us.
Hi Everyone,
Well, I feel that at the moment I no sooner think something about bubs behaviour and it starts to happen (I'm going to have to start thinking about him being the best little sleeper ever!).
Jack still continues to wake frequently during the night (I think it's been happening for about 7 weeks or so now). I was consoling myself last week and trying to keep positive by thinking 'at least his day time sleeping is still going well (he was having 2 day naps lasting 1.5 hours each), wouldn't it be terrible if that also went haywire' (I knew I should have touched wood when I thought it). I'd no sooner had the thought and within a day or so his day time sleeps went crazy. He has started fighting them again and having a decent cry before going off and when he does go off he is waking up around the 30 - 40 minute mark!
It's so frustrating cause I feel like I'm doing all the right things to encourage good sleeping patterns and he was sleeping so well both day and night and now I feel more frustrated and sleep deprived than when he was just a newborn and feeding all through the night!!
Maybe it is the change of season cause I can't figure out what else it could be - if only he could tell me.
Hope your all having a better time with your little ones.
Hello lovely mums,
I would like to encourge you all and let you know that just because your precious ones are not sleeping through now it doesnt mean they won't or can't. I am a mother of 4 girls and my youngest is 5 months old. She is currently waking at least 3-4 times each night too. This however is due to my own mistakes. I needed sleep so bad I found it easyer to just comfort feed at night. So now she is waking offten and wanting to be comforted back to sleep. Along with teething which often comes at 5-6 month. A little patients and loving and I am sure I can change this as I did with all the others. First make sure they are awake when you put them down to sleep day and night. This teaches them to fall asleep on their own. Dont be afraid to wake them and feed them before you go to bed. This will avoid the "I have only been asleep for 40 min and I have to get up already ". Then during the night when they wake check to see if they are cold/hot or teething. All babys, children and even adults wake up a few times at night the only difference is we know how to go back to sleep. Dont be afraid to let them cry a little and play in the cot. They will eventually teach them selves to go back to sleep. This is not a instant result it will take effort and time but it works. So far it has worked 3 times for me. I will let you know how I go with Brienita. :) I hope some of these tips help you. Also I hope that you stay encouraged. Remember this is such a short season in our lives.
Doon ;)
Hi Doon, thanks for your positive post.
Some good advice. When my DS Jack first started the night time waking I responded by feeding him back to sleep which seemed the quickest, nicest way to get us all back to bed but now I can see the habit I started. I certainly cant blame him for waking for cuddles and comfort feeds when that's what he got used to.
I have finally clicked that he is not genuinely hungry and does not need food throughout the night so have started to try and correct the problem by firstly weaning him off the night feeds. So far it has been surprisingly easy :D (fingers crossed it continues down this road). Last night he went 11 hours without a b/feed!!! He did wake twice at 10.30 and 2.10 but both times I went into him covered him up again, made sure he was comfy and left. I was expecting lots of crying as we had the previous night but to my pleasant surprise both times he let out a little cry then stopped and went back to sleep by himself :p
Am feeling very happy this morning!
Brenda
It is good to hear a positive story. My 7 month old DD is waking every three hours for a feed and cuddle - for exactly the same reasons as yours, and while I know that she doesn't need the feed, I have been dreading not feeding her, thinking that it would be hours of crying etc. But as I am dreadfully sleep deprived (because I also have a toddler who wakes at 5am without fail) I am getting to the point where I need to start trying to change our pattern - and hearing that it isn't always horrid is encouraging! Thanks!
Hi,
My daughter did something similar, and it is apparently quite normal for babies to beging waking at night at the age of 6 months. The problem is made worse if the child has a dummy.
While my daughter didn't have a dummy she used me as a human dummy to settle herself to sleep and by the time she was 18 months old we had to employ help from a sleep specialist.
Last July (04) Tizzie Hall came and stayed with us for 2 nights, and helped us solve all our sleep problems. My daughter was insecure and had a severe case of seperation anxiety (I couldn't even walk into an adjacent room), far less leave her in her own room to sleep at night by herself.
We were all sleeping on matresses on the floor (we were scared she would crawl out of bed during the night and hurt herself), I was feeding her to sleep (4-5 times during the night), and we were walking zombies...
We had a "no cry" policy household, therefore anything our daughter wanted we gave her, so she didn't have to cry. Our daughter woke several times during the night and was full of beans at 5am. During the day she would not settle for sleep, would not go in her car seat if she was tired, or sit in the pram when we were out. If she got upset the only thing that would console her would be a breast feed (and i didn't really have that much milk). She would not settle for a baby sitter, and even though we thought she was happy, it wasn't until she started sleeping properly that we realised she could be so much happier. At the time we had a loose routine, but we were really flexible.
Tizzie taught us that she needed to have some firm boundries and routines, and once these were established she was happy to sleep on her own in her bed/cot. The routine and boundries were a lifestyle thing, and she sometimes tests us again (about every 3-4 months), but when she realises we still have rules she settles. It took 2-3 visits to the shops to get a "happy to ride in the pram" child, and all her temper tantrums stopped (we had one last big one) in the car. She woke at 5am because she was cold (eventhough she wore winter PJ's and had a heater) so we needed to get her a sleep suit.
I'm not suggesting that every 6 month old who develops a sleep problem will need to employ outsider help, but at the time it is quite difficult to function and being a zombie isn't too nice.
Tizzie doesn't have to visit your home to help, she has articles and email support which you can use, or her routines can accessed through Practical Parenting (she is their sleep expert). She has specific routines for each age group which have been tried and tested which can help any baby in need. Actually one of her articles featured in a bub hub newsletter late last year... I can't remember what it addressed though.
Assumming that you've checked your child isn't hungry/thirsty, don't have a dirty nappy, is comfortable/safe, and not sick, be aware that children are very clever and they know how far they can push you. If you tell your little one that you are the boss and you expect them to ....(sleep through the night, sleep on their bed, sit in the car seat etc..), they'll test you for a couple of days to see if you're serious and then comply.
If you would like to get in touch with Tizzie (when I looked into private sleep consultants she was my choice) send me a PM and I'll forward you her details.
All the best
L
Hi Theresa
It took me about 8 weeks of sleep deprivation before I took my head out of the sand and realised things were not going to just change by themselves. Everynight I would go to bed hoping that tonight would be different but it never was.
I was absolutely dreading going down the path of stopping the night time feedings and put it off for weeks but finally realised that I would rather have a few hard nights/weeks than continue feeling like a permanent zombie. I purchased a book by Dr Richard Ferber titled Solve your Childs Sleep Problems which covered the topic of night wakings, sleep associations, night time feedings etc. This really helped give me the push I needed to sort things out.
I can only encourage you to bite the bullet and start on the path to getting a good nights sleep, I'll post an update to let you know how Jack and I are going :o fingers crossed it will be good news.
Brenda
:) Thanks Brenda. We did our own form of controlled crying with dd1 when she was about 9 months and it worked really well. Until now we have been telling ourselves that dd2 was too young, when the reality is that she is well and truly in control of us. So we need to sit down and work through what we want to do about it as a couple and plan it - we found that was the key to our success with dd1 . I haven't seen that book, so will have a look for it, as some extra info before we start can't hurt. And in the meantime I will watch to see how you and Jack are going. I think what has made us wait before changing dd2's habits are that what ever we do will involve some effort and feeding her off to sleep is so easy - but it also means that I am awake several times a night, so your message is a good reminder - the effort is worth it.
Well we decided to bite the bullet and I started putting dd2 to sleep yesterday morning without breastfeeding her to sleep. I decided to adopt the method I had watched in a video at the CH clinic of patting and leaving, patting and leaving, at increasing intervals, and for both day time sleeps she was asleep within about 10 minutes. For sleep last night she fell asleep straight away when I first put her down, then woke about two hours later and I gave her a feed then started the patting and leaving and again it took about 10 minutes to get her back to sleep. Then at 1.30 the real test came as no feed was the aim - and I went in and out, patting and leaving, and sitting reading bubhub in between, until 2.45 when she went to sleep - and she slept through until 6.30 and woke up very happy and chirpy. So - so far we are going okay! Today I am going to start moving the breast feeds further away from the sleeps, so that we completely remove that association, but I am feeling quite positive about it all and glad that we have started. Hope you are going well too!
Glad to here things are going good. Nathan has been going good until last night where I had problems settling him at 3am so I ended up feeding him. Hope you have success tonight aswell.
Hi All, Jack and I are going well. Last night we only had ONE :) wake up at 2am from the time he went down at 6.45pm to an early morning feed at 5.45am. At 2am I went in checked he was ok, covered him up, stroked his head for a moment and then left as I had on the previous nights. He had a bit of a whinge for 5 minutes then went back to sleep so we're up to 4 nights in a row without any night feeds!
Well done Theresa, the first night feed I cut out with Jack he also cried on and off for an hour and a bit but after that he has really only cried for a few minutes.
Jack seems much happier during the day also and went back to a 1hr 20 minute morning nap yesterday. Fingers crossed we'll soon be down to zero wakings but even if he continues to wake once it's so much better than 3-5 times. I'm starting to feel human again :D
Sending out positive sleep vibes to you all.
Last night went well - it only took about 12 minutes to get dd1 to sleep at 7pm, then she woke at 10.30 and it took about the same. At 1.30 it took 8 minutes for her to go back to sleep and at 2.30 it took 2 minutes. She woke again at 5.30 and I fed her as I had been invaded by the spirit of Dolly Parton and was ready to explode and she then slept again until 7am. The engorged breasts were more of a problem than her waking last night - I expressed at 1.30 from both sides but was still very swollen this morning and even after a small feed at 7 needed to express again on one side to relieve the pressure. Oh well - I now have a freezer fully stocked with EBM for the rare occasions when I go out without children!
So - we will continue on. Hope you had a good night too. I must say that I am feeling more human already, and more in control, and she is still happy during the day, so it is, as they say, "all good mate".
Had a much needed laugh at your post. Am pretty familiar with the Dolly Parton look at the moment. The first night I went without feeding Jack I thought I was going to explode at about 2am. I was looking around for my breast pump which I hadn't used for a while and had put away somewhere very safe, so safe I coldn't even find it so ended up trying to hand express into the sink :o for some relief.
We didn't have a very good night last night. Jack woke at about 10 o'clcock because his nappy leaked so I had to get him up to change his sheets and nappy. You would think he would be grateful right :o but instead he cried on and off for an hour and a half before going back off to sleep! He woke again a few hours later and then again for an early morning 5.30ish feed. He kind of went back to sleep after that for 40 minutes.
Anyway we're both cranky :mad: this morning. Fingers crossed we'll get back on track tonight. I was loving that well rested feeling so much!
Sorry to hear that you had a bad night. Hope that the day has improved for both of you.
I had hidden my breast pump out of reach of dd1 as she kept trying to express from her tummy after watching me - cute but a little freaky - but in my desparation this morning I found it and sat here in the study reading from the computer as I expressed. Thank goodness for the internet I say - quiet entertainment that doesn't need lights turned on in the middle of the night!
Woo hoo! We have had 3 nights of sleeping 10 - 11 hours straight :D
Theresa, I had a giggle when you said your daughter was trying to express from her tummy - very cute - but I agree, also a little freaky :) Hope things have been going well for you also.
Well done Brenda!!
We are not going as well - but I think that is because I haven't been terribly consistent - I have been feeding her when she wakes at about 4.30am, and am realising that just because I have become used to waking at this time with a baby and a toddler doesn't mean that it is the normal start of the day......so tonight I am going to be stricter on not feeding until about 6am. On the plus side she does now settle at other times without being fed back to sleep, so we have some progress on that front. We are getting stints of between 4 and 5 hours without waking, so that is an improvement at least. I have been using a pat and leave method of settling and think we may have to scale back the patting and leave her to her own devices more, and that might start things moving towards the longer periods of uninterrupted sleep!
I am glad we can provide some amusement - a good laugh can improve a dark day!
Hi All
Looks like we are slowly starting to have success. Nathan was just starting to go a few nights without a feed (just resettling 3 or 4 times) and now he has a cold :( so the past 3 nights have not had much sleep at all. Hopefully he gets back on track when he gets over this cold. Hope all the bubs continue to inprove their sleeping.
So much for my grand talk of making headway and being strict. dd2 , like Rell's Nathan, now has a cold and crying makes her cough and wheeze, so I ended up feeding and cuddling her to sleep last night at 11 and 4.30. On top of that dd1 had a leaking nappy so woke up wet at 4.30 and after we stripped her and the bed my husband made the executive decision to put her in our bed where she proceeded to kick and wriggle until we gave in and put the Wiggles on at 6am, and the complaining she did when he tried to put on the wrong video woke dd2. So I am tired, grumpy and feeling very dejected about the sleeping thing with dd2. :(
Some questions that you guys might be able to help me with - what CC method did you use Brenda, and which form of settling are you using Rell? I accept that I have to start from scratch again with dd2 once she is well and am not convinced that the patting to sleep will teach her to sleep, although it has helped her sleep without being fed. Any suggestions of methods that have worked with a 7 month old gratefully accepted!
Hi Draught
I use CC with Nathan and we have success most of the time. During the day we don't tend to have too much of a problem but at night I find it much harder becouse I am tired and just want to get back to sleep as quick as posible. Nathan is still wrapped (his 6 1/2 mths) and has a dummy so this is our rutine.
-Wrap him - he usualy starts crying as he knows this means bed
-give a quick cuddle
-Put dummy in and lie him in his cot
-walk straight out and close the door
If he starts crying
-Go back in put the dummy in stroke his head to calm him down and walk out.(you could pat their back or bum whatever works)Avoid eye contact and don't talk
-I keep going in every few minutes. If he wont settle by stroking his head I pick him up for a quick cuddle and put him down as soon he is calm.
-If after several time its still not working I unwrap him , go make my self a cup of tea have a few sips then start again. for some reason he usualy goes off straight away then.
In the middle of the night he tends to winge not cry which I actualy find harder to deal with. The past few nights it has been taking up to an hour to get him back to sleep. :( He isn't crying the whole time just on and off. If starts to take too long and its after 2am I offer him 50ml of milk and this usualy works. I still have him waking and talking for extended periods during the early hours and have know way of dealing with this. Any ideas?
Well sorry it was so long this is how we do it hope you can get something out of this.
Good luck
Narelle
Hello lovely mothers,
We have finally put Brienita into her own room. Yeah for me :) The first night was a success. She went down at 6pm, I woke her at 10.00pm fed her and then didnt feed again till 5.45am . She woke as she usally does 8pm,11.30pm, 1.30am,3.30am but within 15min each time she was off to sleep again. I checked her and made sure she was warm turned of the night light walked out and shut the door not to return. Now she is only waking a few times but she goes back to sleep very quickly. All my other girls were sleeping through well before this time (Brienita is 5 months) but I guess I have been holding on because she is the last for me. I so love it when she falls asleep in my arms. :o They are sooo precious. However I am getting to worn out and sleep is precious to. (I keep telling my self that). I just hope I can stick to it :D
May I suggest when you put bub down make sure they are awake. Dont give them a dummy if you can avoid it, or patt them every time they cry because you are then just replacing one method (feeding, cuddles) for another that still requires you to go to them all the time and they still dont learn to go to sleep on their own. It will happen. Just be patient try and focus on something else while they are crying have a cuppa or go to another part of the house till they are asleep. Only go to them if they are crying out of controll even then dont put them on the breast comfort by talking then back down they go. They will soon learn mummy is not giving in so they may as well sleep. ;)
My prayers are with you in this.
Doon
Thanks for that Rell and Doon.
I have been a bit more proactive this morning and have spoken to Riverton and my GP for some advice. dd2 has a mild case of viral bronchiolitis so everyone agrees that until she is better she gets put to sleep in the most comforting way possible for her and then we will start again once she is well.
I had been using a method, different from the one we used with dd1 when she was about 9 months old, of leaving her for two minutes, patting her for two, leaving her for three, patting her for three etc. While it was getting her to sleep eventually, and removing the need to feed her during the night, it wasn't teaching her to settle herself - she was just forming an association that she went to sleep when I patted her on the bum.
The nurse from Riverton also said that going in at 2 or 3 minute intervals wasn't going to help her as she will be expecting me to come in and settle her instead of doing it herself. So.......when she is well we will be using the method we used with dd1 , which is to cuddle and wrap (yes we do it too as a signal that it is sleep time but so loosely that her arms come out as soon as she moves) and put her down, then to leave her for 5 minutes before going in to calm her a bit, then leaving for 7 minutes, then 10 etc. Hopefully it will work as well as it did with dd1.
So - probably easier said than done, but I feel more in control about where we are going now. Now we just have to get her well again - luckily she is a happy girl despite being unwell, so she isn't hard work to be around!
thanks for your thoughts and advice
Hi Draught
I hope you find a method that works for dd2. That was basicly what we did for Jacinta when she was a baby but had to do some modifications for Nathan as he gets to histerical crying very quickly and if this happened we had little chance of getting him to sleep. Its funny just how different two babys from the same family can be.
Good luck
Dear All
I have read with interest this thread since my son Dominic
(5.5 months) has started to have shorter naps during the day and also waking at night every 4 hours since he got his first tooth ( 4 weeks ago - he now has two). I read a couple of books and tried to implement a modified CC from the Sleep right sleep tight book where you go in after 1 min and settle him for up to 10 minutes then leave again for 2 mins etc gradually increasing the timespan of leaving the room until 10 minutes. I found that this actually made him less likely to settle, I was also told not to wrap him since he was more than 4 months and moves around so could strangle himself.
Anyway we have had some success over the past 3 days and this is what I found works for Dominic:
During the day he is wrapt around his chest so that his arms are out (he has not allowed his arms to be wrapt from birth) and his legs can move but cannot kick off the covers. Then I give him cuddles and sing him a couple of nursery rhymes for a couple of minutes to relax him (doesn't always work), the I place hijm in his cot and tuck him under and turn on his mobile and kiss him and leave the room. I wait until the mobile is finished and then a couple of minutes see if he is quiet (about 5 minutes) and if he is only grizzling but relaxed I leave him and he is usually asleep within 5 minutes (well today he was for his two sleeps so far).
I found that if I went in to pat him it would completely wake him up and he would then call out expecting me to keep coming into him.
At night he is now sleeping in a sleeping bag and it is easier to go in and sing to him and pat him to relax him since it is dark and he cannot see either of us.
Anyway he is now sleeping for 55 to 90 minutes (instead of 40 to 45 minutes) for each nap and about 7-8 hrs over night before he wakes for a feed.
So I do not know if any of these suggestions are of any help but I have tried a number of things and this seems to work with Dominic.
Leonie and Dominic (2-12-2004)
cheeky boys mum
17-05-2005, 15:18
:confused:
Hi Girls
I have also been reading your posts and its great to see some success and know we all have challenges on different days.
My lil boy has started waking again...not that he ever really stopped but he has gone back to waking every 15-20min or so for a period of 2-3 hrs during the night.
He goes to bed at 7.30pm and will wake anywhere from 11 - 12.00pm??
He is no longer sleeping much during the day [ 2 sleeps 30-45min. ] I dont know if that has something to do with it but I find during the day it is very difficult to re settle him.
He no longer gets fed at night and If I have to get up once occasionsally I dont mind its just this 20 min thing I find difficult.
Just feeling a bit like we have gone backwards somewhere along the way.
I dont think he is upset, I dont think he is hungry?
Welcome any input. :) Julie
Hi All,
Draught, sorry to here that dd2 is not well and things have not been going well for you on the sleep front.
With Jack I gradually stopped his night feeds over a few nights. By that I mean that when he woke I got him up and fed him as I had been doing but I didn't let him feed until he fell asleep. When his sucking started to slow down (usually after about 4-5 mins) I would detach him then put him down awake. My CHN told me to do this and this is also what the book I was following advised (Solve your Childs Sleep Problems by Dr Richard Ferber). Obviously this was so they didnt have to go cold turkey but the association with falling asleep on the boob was being broken. The first time I did this he cried/whinged for about an hour and a half before putting himself back to sleep. The subsequent times he only grizzled for a few minutes then stopped and put himself back to sleep. I didn't want to drag this out for too long so on about night 5 I stopped the feeding altogether and when he woke went into his room, checked he didnt have a leaky nappy, covered him up (no talking or eye contact & no light), told him it was sleep time and left. I expected him to go for the crying gold medal but he didn't. He just cryed for a few minutes then stopped. I'm not sure if the gradual weaning helped or not? After that he went down to 2 night time wakings, then 1 and now he is sleeping through 10 -11 hours, waking about 5ish for an early morning feed then going back for another hour or so.
When he had longer periods of crying and when I first did CC with him to get him to sleep during the day I found that the more I went into him the longer it would take and the more worked up he would get. I found this even more so this time around as he was older and really working it - I could just tell he was seeing how much control he had over Mummy so I tried to be really consistent the whole time. I knew that weakening one night/day would only confuse him and drag the whole process out. Basically I didn't use the clock, I would just listen to his cry, after the initial cover up and walk out I wouldn't go back into him for 15 mins unless his crying had that really distressed sound to it. Usually he would start to wind down or have stopped crying after 15 mins. If not I would go in so he could see I hadn't run away and just quickly stroke his head, tell him it was sleep time and leave. After that he would usually have a quick burst of loud crying then stop and go off to sleep.
Hope I've explained that ok? & I hope dd2 gets well soon.
Funny thing for me is now that Jack is sleeping through I'm not! I think I'm used to getting up to him so now I wake up after a few hours sleep and find it hard to get back to sleep. Last night I was awake from 1.30 - 3.30 while DH and Jack were both sleeping peacefully! Crazy.
Thanks Brenda. Your explanation makes perfect sense. I am going to try and find a copy of Dr Ferber's book tomorrow so I can read it before dd2 is well enough to start again. I am just so tired!! Hope that you can find a way to sleep yourself tonight. :)
I would definitely recommend getting a copy of Dr Ferbers book. I found it very good and it gave me the confidence to stick to my guns. I had to order it over the internet as i tried several local bookstores and none of them had it.
Jack woke at 3am last night and instead of the usual couple of minutes of crying b4 going back off to sleep he was still awake at 4.30am and Ben (DH) ended up having to pat his bum till he went off. He just didn't seem to be able to fall back to sleep by himself. Oh well, I know that feeling and 6.30 to 3.00 is still a good block of sleep.
Thank goodness for coffee hey, hang in there.
I am going in search of the book today - thought I would see if the library have it otherwise will go on line.
DD2 , despite being sick, actually slept from 8pm until 4.30am last night. Of course, nothing is perfect as DD1 decided at 11.30 that she needed some attention and kept appearing beside our bed looking for things (?!?) so I am still a walking zombie today. Oh well - wouldn't know myself if I was fully rested etc!
8 - 4.30!! Thats awesome.
I can only imagine how much harder it all gets when no.2 comes along.
Thought I should report that with DD2 being sick all the good work we had done has gone completely out the window.......last night she woke and I fed her back to sleep every 2 hours. I managed to reserve the Ferber book at the library and went to pick it up on Friday only to discover that the library had sustained major storm damage during our wild Thursday night storms and was closed until further notice. (Isn't it always the way?!) So I am going to try to pick it up tomorrow, and then read it and plan how to tackle the sleep issue once she is well again. It is just impossible to try and let her settle herself when she is coughing and wheezing if she cries (poor little possum). In the meantime my husband looked after both girls this morning so I could sleep until 8.30 (how decadent). When he decides to do these things to help he does them well, bless him!
Hope you are having better luck with sleep than I am!!
Xavvysmum
23-05-2005, 07:36
My 6 month old was a great sleeper since he was born (7-7) and started waking several times a night, for about a month. The past few nights he has slept through. I have put him on a 4 hourly routine with 2 (2 hr) sleeps a day and a 45 min nap at around 5pm - Eat, Play (2 hrs), Sleep (2 hrs) and added a 'dream feed' at 11pm (during a growth spurt he would drink a whole bottle, now about 1/2). He is also on 3 solid feeds a day (I offer about 2 tablespoons of mush, sometimes he eats it sometimes not), inbetween bottles. I think he was hungry. If your baby has a whole bottle or full feed through the night when they wake up, they probably were hungry. If not, it is probably for comfort or they might be waking out of habit (is it the same time every night?) My bub also had very wet nappies when he woke, so I changed to huggies at night as I find them more absorbant. I also bought him some fleecy sleeping bags to sleep in. I put him in a light sleep suit underneath and a blanket over, as he tends to kick off his blanket and probably gets cold. Anyway, as you can see I made alot of changes to encourage my bub to sleep through again and something seems to have worked, unless of course it was just a phase! Fingers crossed for tonight.
Hang in there Theresa. Hopefully by the time bub is over her cold the library will have re-opened :) and you can tackle it with new found zest!!
I definitely reckon weaning her off the night time feeding will fix the problem. It was definitely the problem with Jack he is still sleeping really well from 6.30 - 7pm to his early morning feed at about 5ish. He might wake and cry out once during the night but puts himself back to sleep after a quick visit from me.
Hope she's on the mend & Good luck.
Thanks Brenda! We have the book, her cough is almost gone, and I am getting desperate, so am reading furiously and planning madly and hope to start again one night this week. So - will let you know how we survive. I figure things can only get better!
I started teaching DD2 to sleep again yesterday morning - using the Ferber advice, which is pretty much what we did with DD1 last time - and last night she only woke twice and didn't cry much - just grizzled a bit, then went back to sleep within 10 minutes. She has gone down for all three sleeps yesterday and today and for her last sleep this afternoon she put herself to sleep with only a little whinge, in about 1 minute. When I do go in to her I am patting her on the bum like I was a couple of weeks ago, but now am only doing it for 30 seconds or so - but it works to calm her down straight away, so all that patting was worth it!! I am quite happy with the way it is all going - particularly as my husband is away and I am doing it on my own (because if I waited for him to be home for more than a few days she would still be being fed to sleep when she started school!) I may get to sleep all night one day soon!
Hi Theresa - sounds like its all going really well for day 1 :D Did you feed her when she woke during the night or did she go all night without a feed?
Brenda
She has gone two nights now without a feed between 7pm and 6am - last night she woke once and settled herself before I got in there, and then a second time I went in once and patted her for 10 seconds and she put herself back to sleep - so it has worked very quickly!! Thanks for your encouragement - it has made a difference!
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