View Full Version : CC success stories???
lachies_mum
08-11-2006, 18:35
OK, I have a 6 month old, who is usually a good sleeper. However, lately he is waking twice a night, wants a bottle and wont go back to sleep unless rocked. He never used to need this, I used to b able to put him in his cot awake and he would fall asleep on his own.
I am actually tired of getting up twice a night, and want to try CC. Has anyone got any success stories? Would it be better to start CC his day naps before tackling the night sleep???
the_queen
08-11-2006, 18:40
A little off-topic - just wondering if he's on solids yet? Night-waking can be a sign of being ready for solids, or ready for more solids.
poshBecks
08-11-2006, 18:43
CC has worked really well for us. But defianetly not before 6 months.
In both cases (2 kids) it only took a couple of days for it to work.
twolittlegirls
08-11-2006, 18:44
A little off-topic - just wondering if he's on solids yet? Night-waking can be a sign of being ready for solids, or ready for more solids.
I was going to say the same thing. We have used CC and our DD is a fantastic night sleeper. We used it for night first, once she got the hang of night time, we tackled the day sleeps. It's definatly well worth the hard work!:yes:
Mummy'N'Bubby
08-11-2006, 18:45
I know how you feel...
My bub wakes all the time... At one of our playgroup sessions/meetings they brought in someone that deals with unsettled babies.
She told me that it could be a number of things
1. is baby teething
2. still somewhat hungry
3. dirty bum
4. that at the age of your bub, they are learning new and exciting things for example learning how to crawl, sitting up etc.... They wake up alot during the night as their little minds are taking it all in, and they wake (or dont want to sleep) as the take every opportunity to master their new milestone/achievements
I hope this helps you... good luck
lachies_mum
08-11-2006, 18:58
Thanx for the replies. My DS is having solids. He doesnt ever want brekky (but I slip a couple of teaspoons of rice cereal into his morning bottle). He has 3-4 bottles during the day (doesnt v often finish them, but I give him bottles as he wants them during the day). He has lunch (veggies/chicken/ pasta puree etc) and the same for tea. He eats all his veggies usually. Today he even had almost a whole jar of jelly on top of this, and two or three rusks! So he definetely gets enough food.
He is 7 months on 23rd November. Is this too early to start CC? My doctor says that as of 6 months, they dont need night bottles. He is the perfect weight for his height/age.
Mrs Potts
08-11-2006, 19:46
Lachies mum - it's definitely not to early to start CC with your bub. And it does work. We did CC with DS very early and had tremendous success.
It ISN'T easy. It ISN'T a lot of fun. But more often than not, it DOES work.
As for the night bottles, my DS was still having night bottles up until nearly 12 months old. He was a hungry bub so I wasn't about to not feed him. Your Dr needs to pull his head in. Your DS may not NEED a night bottle, but if he is hungry are you going to deprive him of that?
Having a night bottle doesn't mean that you can't CC. You just need to know when he's waking because he wants that bottle, or if he's waking just because. Give him the bottle as usual, then back to bed. Use CC if you need to. If he wakes again before morning you then do CC as you know he's had his bottle already.
As for whether to start during the day or evening sleeps, that's entirely up to you. For us it was easier to start on day sleeps as the crying seems easier to deal with during the day. But once you start you must be consistent. No rocking or cuddling to sleep, only CC.
hope this helps.
the_queen
08-11-2006, 22:38
Just on the night bottles issue - babies need their tummy filled when it is empty. Full stop.
Hey Lachie's Mum
Could you maybe try a bottle of water during the night during on of the time he wakes up? That way, if it is not hunger, and just habit of waking up at that time and getting a bottle he may start to think it is not worth waking up if he gets only water, (this worked for my best friend with her second DD), but if it is obvious it is still hunger, you have that bottle ready made on stand by...
Whatever decision you make - you know what is best for your bubs and perhaps you can tell by his cry whether it i a hungry cry or a tired cry or an attention cry.
Good luck!!
Wish_Bear
09-11-2006, 19:59
I was told from 6 months bubs don't wake up at night due to hunger. Think about it, we don't wake at night if we are hungry do we.
I have done CC for both my kids after 6 months even a little earlier I think and it worked wonders! It's not fun and it's hard work but it generally takes 3 nights (maybe 4) and bub will get the hang of it. If you just psyche yourself up to be awake (which you are anyway) then it's not really that bad. At least you are working towards something positive for all.
If you think he is cold can I suggest a Gro-Bag sleeping bag? They are great and there is no need for blankets etc. They are adaptable to all weather accept high summer.
But I say..go for it. It may take a few go's to get it right but then think of the sleeeep:sleeping: you will get!!!!Mmmmmmm...sleep!!:)
Hope it helps.
Oh and when DS was 6 months old he went through a horrid slepping stage and as I read a lot of posts there were lots of bubs doing the same thing. It may just be a growth spurt or something. Just a thought.
lachies_mum
09-11-2006, 20:38
Just on the night bottles issue - babies need their tummy filled when it is empty. Full stop.
Gee, I thought I would just let my baby starve if I thought it was hungry. Sheesh:rolleyes:
lachies_mum
09-11-2006, 20:42
Thanx for the replies guys. It really helps that there are some success stories like this. Most people who have tried control crying say it works wonders, so I am willing to give it a go, not only for our sleep, but to teach my bub to have good sleeping patterns.
Last night he had a full bottle at 12:00am, and then woke again at 4. I thought Id try CC, and he cried for half an hour. I wussed out a bit and picked him up, thinking that if he was not hungry, he would stop crying if held, but he screamed still. So I gave him a bottle and he drank most of it hungrily and fell back to sleep instantly. So it seems that my baby is still hungry at night.
Would CC work if I gave him the bottle with minimum fuss, put him back to bed and CC him after that if he wont go back to sleep? Atleased I know he wont b hungry then
This is what I did. I went cold turkey with night feeds when I started CC at about 8.5months. I was up feeding about 3-5 times per night so saw a paediatrician who said that babies do not require feeding during the night at that age (whether you agree or not is up to you). When I stopped night feeds daytime feeds increased. I started CC during the day and stuck with it, going in after 5 min, then 10, then 15 min and every 15 min thereafter. At the very worst it lasted 2.5 hours and it was agony for me, however it has paid off after 3 nights DS was in a new routine :yelclap: . The idea is that the baby can go to sleep on their own so they don't associate a bottle or whatever with falling asleep. You have to be comfortable with doing CC though.
Anyway I have never looked back and am now a happy mummy getting plenty of sleep and daytime naps are sooo easy to get DS to sleep :yelclap: We are both alot happier and I can notice the change in DS too.
Ange&Seth
09-11-2006, 22:36
We did what I thought at the time was CC but I've since been informed that it wasn't. Let me explain - apparently CC is when you put your baby to sleep and let them cry, even if they cry to the point of vomiting, then you should go in, clean bub up and change sheets with minimal fuss (and no comfort) then put bub back to bed and let them cry again. If they vomit yet again, then the process is repeated. This is NOT what I did :laughing: And I really don't know if this description is correct anyway.
What I did do, I started from about the 3wk mark (I hear you all gasp 'but that's MUCH too early, you cruel mother you :shame: ) and I started because I was sleeping when bub slept but he wouldn't go to sleep unless held so I basically hadn't had a chance for a shower in 2 days and I'm sure the neighbours could smell me!
So, I put bub in his cot, knowing that he had a clean bum, full tum and no wind and I went and had a shower. A very quick shower, prob less than 2 mins, and when I got out, bub was quiet! I snuck in to check on him and he was sound asleep. It probably took 3-4 days like the ladies have already said here, but I could tell the difference between a whingy tired cry, hungry cry, painful windy cry, or a dirty nappy cry. I'd put him down and if he cried, I'd go outside and walk around in the backyard for prob 2 mins, then go check on him, if he stopped crying when I picked him up or entered the room, then I put him straight back down and walked out again, this time leaving it for 5 min, then 10 then 15.
Even now, at 12.5 months, he cries sometimes when we put him to bed, but it's more of a yell than a cry. But you do have to be strong to get through it, and it's so worth it in the end!!
Can I ask if you're giving him a morning milk feed before offering breakfast solids? We tried that and bub would fill up on milk, so we just gave him food first and that did wonders for his night sleeps. I've heard that it's the amount of food bub gets all through the day that dictates how long they sleep at night, not just what they have before dinner. Perhaps you could try one weetbix with formula in the mornings before the bottle?
Hope this helps Chic - you'll find what's right for you and your bub :thumbsup:
AngeandSeth that is exactly what i did at around 7 weeks and it worked a treat! I am a cruel bad mother too but i tell you what i can handle that when my baby is now so happy!!!! Chloe goes down without fuss now the only problem we have is this 45 minute intruder thing where she wakes up after 45 minutes!! So now if she does i walk outside or deliberately have washing to hang out.... generally when i come back in she's put herself back.
honestly, CC was for me but its totally up to you what you do.
If your bub is still hungry at night then i would feed then p ut straight back down! maybe you could try feeding more regularly in the day???? and towards the afternoon especially?
About the nightfeeding issue...I just wanted to share my experience.
When we decided to start CC my daughter was 7mo. From 5mo to 7mo she was waking up all the time during the night so I would give her a b/f. I spoke to my MCHN about it and she said I should continue the night feeds until 6mo because my DD was very slow to gain weight (eg. she gained only 150g between 5-6mo). So I did that and I continued for another month after because I thought it was the right thing to do. I thought my daughter was hungry, which she probably was because she just wouldn't do anything more than a little suck during the day - she was just to busy and interested in everything else.
When we started CC (it only took 2 nights for us before she slept right through) she completely did a 180 turn and went to breastfeeding really well during the day again. So in essence the CC actually helped both problems. Since that time my daughter has been not only sleeping well but also b/f much better and is now gaining weight quite nicely.
While I think some bottle-fed babies can overeat, many don't and maybe if they are having lots of milk overnight they don't want much of their bottles during the day - therefore the cycle continues. The other problem with offering bottles overnight is that the baby could get tooth decay from the milk sitting around their teeth. I think this is one of the reasons that they don't recommend overnight bottles of formula (I could be wrong though :confused: )
lachies_mum
10-11-2006, 12:04
He has a cold now so the CC will have to wait a while! We were up most of the night... poor little thing. I will try to give him solids before his morning bottle. Thanx for the advice!
Mrs Potts
10-11-2006, 12:33
I was told from 6 months bubs don't wake up at night due to hunger. Think about it, we don't wake at night if we are hungry do we.
Actually, I often wake during the night if I'm hungry. So did my DS until about 12 months of age. When he'd wake and drink 200mls of formula during the night, I think it's safe to say he was hungry. Babies don't do that "for fun".
The other problem with offering bottles overnight is that the baby could get tooth decay from the milk sitting around their teeth. I think this is one of the reasons that they don't recommend overnight bottles of formula (I could be wrong though :confused: )
The decay thing applies more to older babies who are put to bed with a bottle of milk or juice. They will often fall asleep with a mouthful. Actually getting a baby up and feeding during the night doesn't have the same problem as the baby's mouth is empty when you put them back to bed.
Mrs Potts - Sorry I should explain myself a bit better. What I am saying is that I think babies definitely can be hungry overnight and need to be fed, but sometimes the reason why they are hungry may be because they haven't eaten well (bottle/breastfed/solids) during that day (because they were drinking bottles all during the previous night).
I know of some babies who wake up and are given say three bottles (or three breastfeeds like my DD) overnight just to get them back to sleep. Surely then the next day they aren't going to be interested in drinking as much...and the cycle continues. I know there are some babies that can just eat and eat no matter how much they have already had, but my daughter isn't one of those babies. She has never once vomitted anything back up through overreating - apart from the little possets that babies do when they are brand new.
It's also not that surprising (now I think about it) that my DD was not gaining a lot of weight because she would fall asleep on the breast during the night and not have the full feed. If she had been having those feeds during the day she might have been awake enough to drink a lot more breastmilk.
I'm definitely not saying that babies shouldn't be fed overnight. In fact, when I know my daughter hasn't eaten as much as usual during the day I do give her a breastfeed during the night if she wakes up (which sometimes happens). Also, when my daughter had bad gastro recently we co-slept and she basically fed nearly all night. When she was better she went back into her own bed with no problems at all. Obviously, she must have remembered that she sleeps best in her own bed.
I hope I have explained myself better :wizard:
Mrs Potts
10-11-2006, 18:59
Alison, it wasn't actually you're comment about babies not being hungry overnight that I was replying to. What you have said makes perfect sense.
Wish_Bear
10-11-2006, 19:53
Mrs Potts....Well you are the only person I have heard of who wakes because of hunger during the night. Can I ask do you get up and have something to eat before you can sleep again??
I am not saying don't feed a baby during the night, I am saying I don't think they require feeding at night after 6 months...well that's the way it was with my bubs anyway. All of this is just my opinion ok.
What I did do, I started from about the 3wk mark (I hear you all gasp 'but that's MUCH too early, you cruel mother you :shame: )
I did this with DS2 from BIRTH so I guess you'll all think I'm HORRID!!! From the time he was born he was a curious child and as such didn't want to sleep ..... he also suffers severe allergies so if I held him he was screaming with pain in my ears but if he was down in the crib he cried with pain (difference being the SCREAM as opposed to the CRY).... so horrible as I am I would wrap him, put him in the crib and walk away. I was the Mum pacing the halls muttering under my breath "I Will NOT throw him out the window, I will NOT throw him out the window". And one of the midwives actually said "Glad at least One Mum knows when a baby just needs to learn to cry". I have not had ANY issues with this boy going off to sleep as I have never moved away from the routine of sleep.
apparently CC is when you put your baby to sleep and let them cry, even if they cry to the point of vomiting, then you should go in, clean bub up and change sheets with minimal fuss (and no comfort) then put bub back to bed and let them cry again. If they vomit yet again, then the process is repeated. This is NOT what I did :laughing:
I was at Tresillian however with DD (guess that's why DS2 had such a hard time :p ) and this is what they had me do with her as she would sleep for 20 mins, wake for 40 mins, sleep for 10 mins CRY for 3 hours Morning Noon AND NIGHT and that was up til she was 5.5 mths and they only took me into Tresillian because she decided to totally stop drinking AS WELL. Anyway it was HARD to listen to her cry and not be able to go in to her. But the idea behind it (I was told) is that the child needs to learn WHEN it is time to sleep and when it is time to be awake. I had to pinch her heels and tickle her to keep her awake for up to 2.5 hrs then put her into the cot for 1.5hrs, then bck up for 2.5, back down for 1.5hrs. By day 3 I was tearing my hair out, her eyes were black and I was ready to go home, and thats when we had breakthrough - I wrapped her, put her in the cot, said "it's time to sleep, sweet dreams" and she closed her eyes before I even left the room. :smiliedance:
It works, but it's each to their own. You have to be willing to tell yourself "he can't hurt himself in his cot, he needs to sleep."
Night bottles I always woke my daughter (she wasn't drinking through the day so needed the fluids anyway) and made sure she had the bottle at around 11pm. Then she would sleep til around 6am. The 2 boys however cut that night bottle at around the 2 month mark.
Sorry for the essay
Tisme i vow to do CC from birth with my next one, however i can't even imagine putting myself through those first 7 weeks again - sounds harsh? yes, but my goodness the difference CC has made! to my baby, my fiance and me! we have a gorgeous girl who is currently having her morning nap at the moment will have another nap around lunch time and will go to sleep at 6pm tonight no fuss we'll wake her at 9.30pm for a feed and she'll sleep until 6am or later! she is so happy when she wakes up it is just beautiful to see, yes she cried herself to sleep while we were starting the CC but now not a peep!!! she knows sleep time and like your bub generally has her eyes closed before i leave the room... if she doesn't i know ok she might not be tired!
i have also found even if she is overtired it doesn't affect her too much, she seems to still be able to put herself to sleep.....
i am so glad i found this thread!! makes me feel good for the path i chose....
Mrs Potts
11-11-2006, 11:05
Mrs Potts....Well you are the only person I have heard of who wakes because of hunger during the night. Can I ask do you get up and have something to eat before you can sleep again??
Yes, on occasion I will get up and have something to eat before I go back to sleep. It might only be a biscuit or a couple of crackers, but I know if I don't eat something that I will have trouble getting back to sleep. It's not a habit either, as it doesn't happen very often, but when it does I eat.
I did CCing with both my boys and it works really well. I will also CC my next, but not from birth, that is just too young in my opinion. But on the night bottle issue, if he needs it give it to him. He could be going through a growth spurt teething anything. One thing I have found with both my boys is just as you think you have a fantastic routine going, teething, growing or getting sick will usually come into play somewhere.
If our 18 month old wakes at night and he wants a comfort bottle he is given a water one, but at 6 months I would def give him formula.
Good luck, it's never an easy road to take, but there are plenty of shoulders to lean on when you need one!:hugs:
Thanx for the replies guys. It really helps that there are some success stories like this. Most people who have tried control crying say it works wonders, so I am willing to give it a go, not only for our sleep, but to teach my bub to have good sleeping patterns.
Last night he had a full bottle at 12:00am, and then woke again at 4. I thought Id try CC, and he cried for half an hour. I wussed out a bit and picked him up, thinking that if he was not hungry, he would stop crying if held, but he screamed still. So I gave him a bottle and he drank most of it hungrily and fell back to sleep instantly. So it seems that my baby is still hungry at night.
Would CC work if I gave him the bottle with minimum fuss, put him back to bed and CC him after that if he wont go back to sleep? Atleased I know he wont b hungry then
I am glad to hear of a few other mothers that tried CC early and have had success. I CC DD1 from about 12 months old and it was the best thing for us and I wish I had done it earlier. With DD2 she was a fab baby and never cried but always went straight to sleep since birth, I am now usuing some CC techniques with my DS1 who is only 4 weeks (please dont slam me) and it seems to be going well so far. Bubs and I are alot more happier than we were 2 weeks ago before I tried anything..
Sorry for crashing the thread...lol
We did what I thought at the time was CC but I've since been informed that it wasn't. Let me explain - apparently CC is when you put your baby to sleep and let them cry, even if they cry to the point of vomiting, then you should go in, clean bub up and change sheets with minimal fuss (and no comfort) then put bub back to bed and let them cry again. If they vomit yet again, then the process is repeated. This is NOT what I did :laughing: And I really don't know if this description is correct anyway.
Call me crazy but that sounds a little like uncontrolled crying rather than controlled crying! This isn't CC at all. Your method is CC but lots of people think its modified CC iykwim!!
The point of it is that is is controlled. So you go in to resettle after a chosen time frame (mine was 10 mins). Some people do what you did and go for 5 then 10 then 15 etc. I'd say your method sounds more like controlled crying than what you described above.
As for succes stories....my DD is another one! I have heard of some parents who haven't caved and it didn't work for their bub but they are in the minority in my friendship circle. Usually if parents haven't caved it has worked.
Good luck with it.
Mischief
13-11-2006, 16:26
I used Tizzie Hall too! Oliver only took 2 nights to get the hang of it! :)
Worked a treat, at nearly 7 months he has been sleeping 7-7 since about 5 months old! :)
The thing that I lerant was to recognise the cries. babies have so many different cries ..the one they do wehn they dont want to sleep is an angry cry. I have lernt the difference between hungry/tired/angry and sad creis formy bubbies and I knew when they needed to be left to go to sleep and when they needed comfort or food.
I think this was the key thing for me, too. The thing is, its hard to sit back and objectively listen to the type of cry when you are so emotional. That's what I think parents find so hard when using CC.
I help my SIL with CC for her daughter and it was so much easier for me to sit back and say to her "now listen...can you hear that?.....she stopped for 30 secs and has only started to whimper now....etc etc" because I wasn't emotionally attached to the baby. When its your own its harder.
Once I sat back and was objective, it was a piece of cake.
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