Desperately need help - about to abandon EASY

[anna*]

((((hugs)))) another wonderful update. I can't believe the change in your 'tone of voice' you sound so much happier and calmer - just read back to the beginning of this thread!!

I agree with you, the night wakings were more than likely from OT. And a big poop in the morning - well, that spells 'wake up time' in anyone's book. But what a wonderful nap this morning, I bet he felt so happy and refreshed after that.

Hope you have a wonderful rest of the day and a great night too.   

anna
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[Skipperg84]

Just wanted to post again and maybe troubleshoot with some of you - the last two weeks have been more of the same, some naps are great, others not so great but I'm learning to just roll with it and I think that's why we've both been a lot happier!  My husband will be gone for another 5 weeks so I'm just doing my best to stay sane and not drive the both of us crazy in the meantime...

We still have either one of two days - either he is up at 5am (or earlier, yikes!) just playing around in his crib - if this is the case, I keep everything dark and quiet, feed him (change him if I HAVE to) then put him back down so at least he gets the point that it's not time to wake just yet...if he wakes at 5:45 am or later then I let him be in his crib until about 6:30am/7:00am where I will then get up and start the day.  I really think if I am able to fix the reason for the EW everything else will fall into place because I now have a good idea of how much A time he can handle (I think we are at the 2 hr 15 min. mark - does that sound about right for a 5.5 month old?)...because he is waking so early (and is sooo quiet!) I can never tell exactly when to put him down in the morning, this then screws up all the naps and gets him OT and then he needs an early bedtime which then causes the EW since he does sleep for about 11 - 11.5 hours each night without waking!  I would love to push his bedtime back a bit because 5 am is too early for me!  Do you think I should try w2s??  I am terrified of doing this!  Anyone have any success?  I have tried keeping him up, putting him to bed early with no change in the wakeup time...I usually put him to bed early so that he can get his full night's sleep...

I am also thinking of getting a video monitor so that I can sneak a look at him in the morning and during his naps to see exactly when he is waking or falling asleep - anyone else have one and recommend a brand?  They are quite pricey so DH is not too thrilled, but it would be a tremendous help because if I go into his room and he sees/hears me then he thinks its time to play and will not go back to sleep!  I have also started to leave him alone if he wakes early from his naps, even if he starts to cry    I have found that he can get himself back to sleep better than I can, even if he has to cry a little first.  It breaks my heart to listen to him, because I feel horrible that he is alone so much in his room trying to sleep, but if I go in there it just distracts him too much and is almost impossible to get him to fall back asleep!

So you haven't gotten rid of me yet Anna!  I am still on my quest for a happy rested baby! (and happy rested Mom would be great too!)

[hjrmom01]

I'm not sure where you are at and what brand of monitors are available to you....but I LOVE mine and it was definitely the best purchase we ever made.  We have a Mobi cam video monitor and I love it.  My DS would wake up silently as well so I never knew when he was awake or asleep...and then when he would wake up and occasionally cry, I could look at the monitor and watch to see if he was settling back down or not.  It's a life savor in the middle of the night, too!!  It wasn't as expensive as other video monitors, either.  It does have a lot of options if you want to buy other cables (it can connect to your computer or TV) but we didn't do that option.  I don't usually carry it around...I just bring it downstairs with me in the morning and then plug it in and set it on the counter or by the couch so I can see it.  In the middle of the night if you leave the screen on it can be bright, so I turn it off but if I hear DH I can turn it on to look and then turn it back off.  And if you have another child or plan on having more, you can get another camera and the monitor can switch between the two!!!  So, that's what we have and we really like it.  We got it at Walmart, but again, I'm not sure where you are and what's available to you.

[anna*]

I'm glad you're continuing to do well. It only takes a glance around the sleep board to discover that 5-6 months is a crazy time for sleep - but it will pass.

OK re the 5am wakings, I think you are doing the right thing to treat them just like a nightwaking. If he's just awake and quietly playing, I would leave him to it - he might just get himself back to sleep again and a little playtime in the early morning is actually quite common. Then if he starts to cry, quick feed and resettle and only change him if he is poopy. Would shh-pat help him back to sleep in the morning?

Re your A times, 2hrs 15 sounds spot on for 5.5 months, although of course (and as always), it will need to be less after a short nap.

I've used W2S for early wakings a few times. For night time sleep you don't go in 10 mins before the waking like you would for naps, but go in an hour before. Give him a scritch between the shoulder blades, or stroke his cheeky gently - just enough so that he sighs and stirs - then sneak out the room.

I should warn you though that it's only really good for habitual wake ups - so if he's always waking at 5, no matter the bedtime. If it's sometimes 5 and sometimes 5.30, W2S isn't going to help you.

You have my sympathies, early wakings are pretty hard on a momma and in my experience they've been slower than any other sleep habit to break. Let us know how you get on.

anna
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