Support for Raising Spirited Babies Part 3

[Sweetpeasmama]

anielasmommy - I haven't had experience with one crying in her sleep, but I have lots of experience with friends and family telling me something I'm doing is crazy or something the baby is doing is not right.  Don't listen to them.  You're the mommy and you know your baby best!  What's right for one isn't always right for another and don't let them make you feel like you've done something wrong.  She's a beautiful baby and as long as she's developing well and seems healthy, I'm sure she's just fine!  I wondered about nightmares myself when mine wakes from a seemingly sound sleep screaming, but who knows what goes on in their little heads.  Don't let it worry you, it's just a phase like everything else.

[Whatbit]

Hi,
I'm new to this board.  My LO is almost 3 months.  He's full of energy and wiggles around like crazy!  Poor little guy also has reflux that we are in the process of trying to get under control.  I've also spent the last 3 months working on an EASY routine.  He eats great and plays really well but the sleep is horrible!!!  He cries like crazy when DH or I try to put him to sleep.  We've tried swaddling, not swaddling, arms in, arms out.... I dread putting him down- and after all the fighting and effort, he only gives us 30 minutes!!!  And then the vicious OT cycle begins.  I've been reading a bit on here and am so glad to see I'm not the only one who has a baby who doesn't want to have naps, who gets OT really easily and who wakes up screaming!  Sometimes I want to flush him down the toilet!    Any tips?  He does sleep in his stroller but we're in Canada and now the snow is piling up and it's really cold- I try to get out every day, but sometimes it just doesn't happen.  We also don't have a vehicle, so a drive is out of the question.  I do have a carrier but once he's OT and I really need him to sleep, he just ends up scratching my chest and screaming.  I plan on reading more of this thread later, but I wanted to post and before he woke up- I can hear him now!

[Sweetpeasmama]

Whatbit - we had to swaddle P pretty snuggly until she was about 6 months old and figured out how to get out of even the most creative swaddle.  Do you have the swaddlers with velcro on them or are you using a blanket?  I read about some mom putting a bit of duck tape on hers to keep it closed.

[sherry lynn]

Whatbit - we also HAD to swaddle. There was just no way around it, he just startled so badly. I can also say that at 3 months our A time was really really low. Absurdly low, otherwise he got soooo OT. So keep in mind that spritied LO get sooo OT and OS so easily and less A time tends to be the way to go. That seems to change when they hit 9 months or so. But before that most spirited LO I know tend to be really low on A times when they are young. Oh, and he needs to be in bed BEFORE his tired signs. So keep track of when he tends to show those sings, then aim to have him in bed BEFORE that the next day. That helped us a ton.

[Whatbit]

DS is really strong and would get out of the swaddle when he was little so I stopped doing it for a while.  Then I started using a bed sheet like I saw posted on the BW site and that has helped.  He has started to suck on his hands a lot lately so I've been leaving them available as he won't take a paci. 
Sherry lynn, I've been doing a 1 hr 20 -1 hr 30 min A time for the first A time of the day and depending on how that nap goes, I get shorter and shorter throughout the day, but I can only hold him off so long from getting hungry once he starts crying after waking up early and I don't want to start feeding him every 2 hours (he's BF)!!  I also feel like he fights me more if he's UT?  Is that usual?  Or is it pretty much just when OT?  I guess I feel like he fights no matter what I do at this point   Maybe I'll try a shorter A time first thing tomorrow- 1 hr?and see how that works out...

[sherry lynn]

No, they definitely fight when they are UT to. Well, in that cause you might want to try stretching out the A time to 1h40/1h45m.
At this age you do not want to be feeding before 3 hours A time. If you would like you can start a post in EASY where more moms will have a chance to look at your routine and offer advice

[Tweakster]

*sigh* Day 2 of PM nap refusal for a 9.5 mth old.  Did you Spirited mums find your little monkeys started the transition earlier than normal??

[sherry lynn]

Ours started at 9 months also. Sorry to hear you are having PM nap refusal. I read a tad of your thread, but Nicole seemed to be helping out   I think you are going to have to cut the AM nap. I know it stinks. Hopefully, the months will go by quickly  

[Whatbit]

I don't know, Sherry lynn.  I did 1 hr 10 min this morning because I had to do a 2nd diaper change and he was rubbing his eyes at that point in time.  Got a 30 min nap, so I think I may have missed the window and he isn't ready for that increased A time yet.  He's so intense during that short time anyways...  The rest of the day has been 30 min naps too.  The crummy thing is that he needs to be upright for 30 min after eating because of the reflux, so unless I feed him early if he wakes up early, I'm REALLY pushing the A time before the subsequent nap.  Sigh.  But you're right.  He doesn't NEED to eat early.  Just seems like the only thing that will calm him down once he's reached a major meltdown.  Anyone else have a spirited reflux baby?

[anielasmommy]

yes i do and honestly i dont worry so much about the whole keep her upright kinda thing, but then again shes not very spitty. my LO is 12 weeks and her A time is 1hr 40mins. shes a wicked bad napper as well lol i think a lot of it at this age is biology. i wind down at least 15 mins before our routine for naps. i will put her in my sling and walk around the house and sing a little. it seems to calm her down pretty well. then we go in our room which is very dark (the slightest crack of light and shes wide awake) and i turn on the radio(white noise) then i just stand and hold her completely still with her head in the crick of my neck and her body vertical for 5 mins. she usually cries for the first two then the last 3 shes calm. then i put her i the crib without saying anything b/c if i do shes wide awake again. shes usually out like a light lol but i must say our first two naps of the day are only on the hour mark and we are working on it. her late afternoon nap is at least 1.5hrs

[sherry lynn]

Whatbit - LizJ is on here, but she is also a moderator on the EASY board, so she is very active on there. She has a spirited reflux baby and she could help out a lot. Write up a post on there and different moms can really help out.

[SylvieA]

Whatbit, my DD was never good with a long A time in the morning. It was our shortest A time till about 8-9 months.


anielasmommy, babies this age have such a short memory that they wouldn't remember birth at all. Screams and cries in his sleep could be anything, maybe having just a little belly cramp, develpmental, or dreaming of the breast/bottle. But nightmares, I can't see how.

All4Finn, DD started her transition about 9months as well, an by 13 months she was on 1 long nap. During the transition we had days where our day was shorter due to nap refusal.

[Mum-of-Two]

DS has a short morning A time too -- even at 11 months (tomorrow).  It seems like he's happy to wake up, drink his bottle and go right back to bed LOL but I usually keep him up about 2.5 hours by the time we snuggle waiting for his sister to wake up, then get his sister breakfast, him fed, changed, burped etc he gets some play time on the floor then back to bed we go.

[Sweetpeasmama]

Oh good!  My LO has a short A time in the morning as well.  Usually around 2 hours and then we go about 3 hours before the pm nap.  I was wondering if that was okay, but no matter what time she wakes in the morning, she's ready for that morning nap at 10am regardless.  She slept until 8:40 the other day and yet, still went straight out at 10am. 

[Mum-of-Two]

Ah, that we are not as lucky with.  I need to make sure Oliver has his bottle by 730 or the whole day is confused.  Usually it equals a later morning nap and no afternoon nap (eek).