June/ July 05 Mom's Chat

[Superman'sMom]

Hi everyone I just found this forum! I am sorry I missed it! My ds, Aiden will be 5 months in two weeks! This week he rolled over, sat by himself,and  started cutting a tooth(ouch!!) Yes I am not getting anysleep.

Pictures for Christmas was my idea! :wink: Maybe cookies as well
 :lol:

[Lara's Mum]

hey there... it's great to know that we're not alone in this. Lara will be 7 weeks next thursday, and i  know exactly how u all feel. only thing is she seems to sleep well if she's with my mother, but if i'm the one sleeping with her she's up almost most of the night!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! :?  :shock:  :shock:  she was 7.11 lb when she was born and 10.2 on her first month check-up. the doctor told me she was pudgy and that i should cut down on the feeds, but my milk didn't come in except around the second week pp and even then it wasn't that much so i had to top her off with formula, and sometimes she screams so much from hunger that i really can't cut down on her feeds. i'm really looking forward to her turning three months as they say that that is the beginning of their playfullness (hopefully). good luck to u all and will pop in whenever i can.....Sweet dreams even if its for a little while

[alison toms mum]

seaflower, sorry things are so tough right now, your lo is just the same age as ds was when his sleep (night and day) went up the wall. It was also the time when i started to feel really bad, aparently around 4 months is when our hormones go up the creek. I saw my hv who is now comming to see me regually (shes no help on the sleep issue, but it helps me to talk through my own feelings, i was scaired it would make them more real but its really helped).

I know it doesn't help much, but it seems all babies (or most) seem to have sleep issues at this age :roll:  it helped me to know that and remember its not my fault, it will get better

I wish i could give some advice and tips on the naps, but i wasnt able to beat them myself....although now ive changed his routine (not actually easy any more now easa  :oops: ) i dont worry about the short naps as much. Have you tried the sleep boards.... i found them usefull for advice, although dont get to hung up on solving the prob (i did and it made me feel crap)

Anyway i hope you get some sleep soon

[daisymelan]

Welcome and hello to Supermans mom. 

Congrats on the tooth Amy.

Seaflower... so sorry to hear of your sleep issues.  It will get better..... just think how fast the past 5 months have gone.. it's only a blip in the whole scheme of things.  Hard to remember, but that's what I try to tell myself.

Things here have a been a little off.  Owen started having BM only once every few days, which is much different than his 4 or 5 times a day. 

Plus he's been having sleep issues.  He usually goes down ok for naps, but at night.... wow... how does he know its sleep time and not nap time?  it's been like this for 2 weeks at least.  Once we put him down he fusses for up to 2.5 hours at which point i nurse him for DF.  For the first week we didn't change anything but he didn't go down, so we started nursing him before he slept in case he was hungry.....  still the same thing.  He usually has about three naps a day 1.5/1.5/1 hrs.

Any advice is welcome.  I will also post this on the sleep forum.

Lastly, poor DH......  He is getting frustrated because Owen won't go down for him at nap time.... only me.  I feel like we already have some separation anxiety or something, but it's much too early for that.

But other than that, life is wonderful!  lol

[Critter]

Ok, I have tried posting on the sleep forum, and I never get any responses, so it's up to you all to solve my problems!  :wink:

For the past week, Luke is waking up at 3, 3:30, 4, 4:30, 5, 5:30, etc...He'll go back to sleep once we get the paci back in his mouth, but he doesn't STAY asleep.  Also, his naps are WAY off.  10 minutes here, 20 minutes there...all this from a sleeping CHAMPION.  What gives?  He typically goes to bed around 6:45 or 7 and USED to sleep until 6:30 or 7 the next morning (with a dream feed).  Now he's all over the place.  What do I do?  do I keep him up later at night?  We were thinking of trying to drop the dream feed, but I don't know if that will just mean that we're up at midnight and then again at 3, 4, 5, 6....

[Superman'sMom]

Hi

Unfortunatly I am in the same boat for sleep problems. Daisymelen my ds is doing the exact same thing at bedtime. I haven't gotten any help on the sleep borads so :roll: .

I had a question about teething. For two day Aiden has been showing all signs of teething. I mean I couldn't feel a tooth but he had all the signs, was even using the cool rings to sooth himself. Then this morning it magically disappeared. What gives? I am confused.

[daisymelan]

Amy:  I don't have an answer as you see by my last post I'm having my own troubles, but waht about weening him from the paci?  Ds wouldn't take one for me at first, but now he will and we started using one to get him to sleep at night, but then we quickly noticed how his night sleep was digressing.  We put it together and stopped with the paci.

Maybe it's the same for your lo.  They are waking up and unable to soothe themselves back to sleep. 

But i know if wasn't getting good nights sleep, the idea of weening my lo off of a paci would probably not sit well.

I don't think dropping the DF will do much and rather than keeping them up later, maybe fewer naps? 

One last thing, did the sleep problems start around when you started giving food?  Not that I have experience in that, but I heard that that can upset things and know ppl who have stopped solids once they started because of sleep troubles.. (but i think it was more upset tummies)

Hope this maybe gives you some ideas.

Wishing you luck and sleep!

Jodie

[Critter]

I wish that I could pinpoint one thing that has changed or disrupted his sleep patterns.  He's been on solids since late September, so I know that isn't it.  The only new thing is his tooth.  But, why would that totally rock his little world in just the past few days?  He's been working on that chomper for a month now!

As for the paci, he's always used it, but ONLY when he sleeps.  I just don't understand why all of a sudden he's unable to do without it.  He's been spitting it out and still sleeping through for months now.  Sorry if it seems I have an excuse for everything, it's just that I have thought of these things too!

Just a question for those of you who have already weaned off the paci....how did you do it?

[jswerczek]

Hey amystoker- we just got rid of the pacifier. Jake sounds like Luke... was only using it for sleep and would spit it out and sleep without it. But then all of a sudden a few weeks ago, he was having problems getting through his naps... when the paci fell out, he would cry until I put it back it. It drove me crazy because I had seen him sleep without it many times. So I just decided to get rid of it now instead of later. We went two whole days without it. He was very hard to settle for naps and at bedtime. He of course cried more but that is to expected when you don't have something in your mouth. The third day we had an early wake-up. We don't have those too often and in the past I had always went in, gave pacifier and patted him back to sleep. Well, determined not to give in, I tried to put him back to sleep for an hour and no luck. I felt horrible but I finally gave him the pacifier. Of course he went back to sleep. I felt like I had broke the rules on him and confused him, but then for his first nap that day, he was fine without it. We have not used it since and that was two weeks ago. I am sure he has forgotten it by now. My advice is just to do it. In a couple of days, he will not even remeber what the paci is! There will be a few more tears and a little more work on your part, but it is worth it.

I send out big hugs to all... it sounds as if all the babies are on a sleeping strike! My best advice is stick to the sleep boards, they will eventually answer you and give some good advice. I would suggest looking at the whole day and your routine and see if anything has been off lately. I know when Jake's naps started getting shorter and shorter, I realized I was putting him down too early and started to keep him awake longer. It seemed to work. If anyone would like to post their baby's day, I could sure try and help out 

Also, I know those early morning hours are tough, I think that is when they are in their lightest sleep. There are some mornings when Jake is awake off and on from 4-7 am. Sometimes he needs resettling, but for the most part, he just makes all sorts of noises and sleeps off and on.

[Critter]

I am also seriously considering turning off the monitor in our bedroom and just leaving the one in the kitchen on.  I have to have one b/c no way can I hear him cry from our room (even if he screams bloody murder) b/c we have a sequestered master.

I think I have just decided to do it.  Daycare might not like it, but they have to helap me out, right?

[Critter]

OK, daycare said that he didn't take a paci AT ALL today, so we all agreed to just quit using it cold turkey.  My LO is in there screaming his brains out (it's time for his late afternoon nap and there is nooooooooooooooooooo paci!)  I feel like a mean mean mama, but I know that it will all be ok in a day or two!  I just HATE hearing him cry like this!  Pat/Sh isn't working and neither is PU/PD.  I finally just walked out.  I go back in every five minutes or so, but I am wondering if that is making it worse!

[daisymelan]

Hang in there Amy, it gets worse before it gets better.  Isn't that the way babies work?

Thanks jswerczek.

Here is his schedule.... now I don't have set nap times... they vary in length and at which time, each day.  I just follow his cues.
And he is EBF

E 8am
A 8:30
S 10:15
E 12
A 12:30
S 1
E 3:30
A 4:00
S 5:30
E6:30
A 7
E 8:15
S 8:30

I feed him around 10:30 but he wakes and I feed, not a true DF
Then he wakes to feed another 1 or 2 times in the night.  falls asleep before in crib after feeds or settles easily.

And actually, his naps are becoming the same as night sleep.  He fights and fusses,ssometimes cries.  He used to just fall asleep after some small fusses or just some awake time in crib(angel)  No teeth yet and none that I can see coming.

Any ideas are welcome.

(my fingers are sore from typing)

Thanks

[Critter]

Well, after 45 minutes of crying, I finally went in there and rocked him until he fell asleep...I know, I know....don't create another prop, but a girl's gotta do what a girl's gotta do!  Now, I just hope this doesn't keep him awake until midnight!  Usually he will sleep from 4:30 - 6ish....he didn't go to sleep until 5:45  :shock: I am anxious to see how this goes.  His normal bedtime is 6:45.  I have been wishing that he would stay up a little later so that we could go out to dinner every once in a while....I should be careful what I wish for, huh?

I can't remember who asked for a schedule, but here is our "ideal" day (up until last week!)
6 or 6:30 bottle and then right back to sleep for an hour
9ish - Nap
10:30 bottle
11:30 fruit and cereal
12:30 nap
2:30 or 3 bottle
4:30 ish short nap
5:30 veggies
6:00 bottle, bath, and in bed by 6:45 or 7
10:15 dream feed

[Critter]

Ok, ladies!  No major meltdowns at bedtime without the paci!  YEA!  Maybe it only took one BAD fit???  Cross your fingers! :wink:

[ry,cait&alex]

Hi girls!!  I have been popping in and checking the thread, just haven't had time to respond to anyone in detail.  Sorry. :oops:   I am packing and rearing children and about to pull out my hair.  I hate a household in chaos. :roll:

If it makes anyone feel better, Cait is having sleep issues too.  She wakes anytime between 4-6 am and has a party in the crib till she starts crying and then I have to get up to feed her before she will go back to sleep.  Good news is that once I feed her, she burps and I sit her up a bit to prevent reflux.....I go stick her back in her crib FULLY awake and she puts herself to sleep.  WHAT IS UP WITH THAT??  Why can't she do that the other 20 times I put her down during the day?

Anyway, we are closing on our new house today and moving.  I won't be able to check my mail till Thursday afternoon when I am at work.  Good luck with getting the kids back in line.  I really think we need to start limiting their phone calls to one another.  The long distance will start causing as many problems as their NOT sleeping!!!!! :roll:  :wink:

see ya in a couple of days.

bj