Becky, you are seriously doing the right thing by not CIO. A couple of other mums raved about how fantastic it was and how it straightened their LO's out and there was some pressure for me to try it but thankfully my Mum stepped in and told me that CIO never worked with me (in the end she used to go to the end of the garden so that she couldn't hear me screaming) she never picked me up as the common wisdom was that this would encourage me to cry and I still never slept until I was THREE. So much for it being an instant cure for NW's. She says that looking back she thinks I was probably reflux but docs assured her I was fine when she complained that I seemed to projectile vomit every feed.
The thing that used to get me was when I recounted my tale of woe to another mum and she'd say 'oh, yes, she's exactly the same (pointing at angelic looking baby), she had me up for half-an-hour last night, AND she was up twice last week' I was like WTF, I'd kill for a kid that slept that well!
I really hope that your thesis defence works out ok. I've no idea what's entailed but it sounds like big brain stuff. You never know, maybe your Intellectual Brain will take over from your Everyday Brain and cope despite the sleep deprivation. I know it sounds unlikely, I'm just being hopeful. (Hope that made sense)
