2 hours to get 6mnth old to sleep - SA or what?

[erinsmum36]

How old is your child?  6.1 months
What’s his/her daily routine? 4hour easy. started solids 2 weeks ago - mainly first purees at 11am
What’s nap routine? 2hr am and 2hr pm normally
How long are naps?
What's bedtime routine? Time? aim to be in cot at 7 latest.
Do you bottle or breastfed?? bf
How much? or how long? 4 x day
If breastfed.. one side or both?? (at each feed) both first thing - only 1 with solids
How many wakes per night? 0 - slept thru since 4 months
What’s your LO like when waking at night? How long is he/she up? no wakings
When you go to him/her is she fussing or crying? Or is it a mantra cry? crying at bedtime
What have you tried to settle?? everything! radio, stories, lights on, hand holding, cuddling, gradual withdrawal
What do you do for A time and how long is it? 2 - 2.5 hrs. walker, play gym, outings, etc
Are there developmental issues such as teething or milestones? playing with hands alot
Have you introduced cereal? Why, how much, and how many times a day? (for LO’s under 6 months)
Do they have a prop? If so what is it? not really
Do they have a lovie? yes



please please help! We have been battling to get our LO down for the night for over a month. she goes down fine at nap times (literally put her in cot, say see you in a while and leave), she sleeps well thru the night and wakes up chatting not crying and she is on 4 hour easy with solids.
she used to go down relatively easily - a little fussing occasionally but otherwise after bath, feed and a cuddle would go to sleep. it is now taking up to 2 hours to be able to leave her - if i even make for the door she starts crying. but then 2 nights ago i was still sitting with her, holding her hands and she started. i have played with naps and left 2, 3 and 4 hours from last nap to bedtime and no difference. she is definately tired as she rubs her eyes and yawns.
unfortunately, in the last week things have gotten crazy personally - my mum has been diagnosed with cancer and i am having a breast lump investigated, so i am finding it hard to deal with the bedtime routine after a stressful 12 hour day.. i need some time in the evening tobe with my mum etc. i cannot think of what else to try, dont even know why this is happening.. everyone says it is early for SA, and yet nothing else was going on when it started 5 weeks go. now i dread bedtimes!
we eventually got her to sleep tonight by taking her out of the cot and laying her on the spare bed in her nursery. she went to sleep 5 mins later and then i transferred her to the cot an hour later. if it is cot phobia i would expect her to act the same for naps, but it is as if she knows that this is the long sleep of the night and doesnt want to be left... any ideas!!!!??

[Kimberly®]

Can you send me your routine? that may help.

[Katet]

I had a phase with ds#1 when he was really hard to settle, turned out when I offered him an extra milk feed the problem was solved, he dropped the 10pm feed (I didn't df) that day... I'm wondering if it isn't related to hunger/thrist esp with solids they sometimes need more "liquid"

[erinsmum36]

7:30 wake up and bf (prob been awake for 15 mins just lying in cot)
A - walker, chatting, floor time etc
9:15 - 9:45 nap starts.. if cues are obvious i put her down earlier otherwise i aim for 2+ hours activity
2 hour nap (sometimes wakes after 1 hour and 'noises'. usually if left will go back to sleep)
11:30ish dress and now solids (was a bf before solids started 3 weeks ago)
12:30 bf
1:30/2pm nap - again, going by cues
3:30/4 awake and bf. (nap is more often than not 1:30 - 3:30 rather than 2 -4, although have tried the latter more recently to see if it helps - not obviously tho!)
play
5:30 ish sometimes more solids - just rice or fruit as still mainly on 1 meal a day
6 - 6:15 bath
bf
cuddles
6:45ish in cot

at this point it falls apart. I tried putting her down by 6:30 a couple of days ago and still was with her 2 hours later. otherwise the routine is the same... I chat, try reading, holding her hand.
When this started there was nothing really going on developmentally. in the last week she has been playing with her hands a lot more, and one night I had to hold her hands by her side for her to nod off. Even when she did, it was obvious she was fighting sleep.. she kept forcing herself back awake and even crying in her sleep.
I wonder if she is having too much sleep on the days that she has 4 hours of naps. Then I wondered if she was overtired and yet putting a catnap in if she wakes at 4 is really tricky. One night she did sleep for 20 mins in the car at around 5pm and it still made no difference.
After sitting with her for 2 hours last night i left in despair for  a breather and she was crying. After 3 mins she was silent and fast asleep. other nights i have tried the same thing and the crying worsens to sobbing and I go back.
absolutely clueless to this. Otherwise she is an aangel baby - sleeps thru, doesnt cry unless in pain and very happy in the day.

[Katet]

OK my thoughts here... 4bf a day is pretty low for a 6mo, I think it is in part her 6mo growth spurt, which isn't so much about "quantitY" but changing the quality of the milk to adjust to the solids & differing needs

2 things I'd suggest trying... It is actually recommended that solids are given after milk until at least 9mo as milk/bf is the main nutrient sourse, so I'd suggest giving the bf at 11.30am & then the solids at 12.15 (they are a "taste" at this age)  the at night giving her the bf the solids at night (one side) & the give the other after the bath.
Your milk suplly does drop at night & I wonder if she just doesn't feel  comfortably full & then when she does drop off it is from exhaustion.
In my opinion the day sleeps are longish, but mot lo's who go to 2 naps at 6mo ususally do  2 hour naps.
You are expecting her to do over 12 hours a night, so I would try extending the first nap out to 10am as well. & get her bedtime closer 7.30pm Or alternatively get her up at 7am... 11 -12 hours is about normal for a 6mo (although 10 is still ok)