my lo only sleeps less 8-9hours a day

[tingmom]

my lo's nearly one years' old. she doesn't sleep well since she was a new born baby. the total sleep of one day's only 8-9hours, i'm very worried that it will do bad to her growth. what can i do? (it should be very quiet when she sleeps)

[anna*]

That isn't enough sleep - don't worry we can help. Have you read any of the Babywhisperer books? I definitely recommend The Babywhisperer Solves All Your Problems for Toddlers (because your little one is more than one year old.

What is your routine? On a normal day, what time does she wake up, sleep, eat etc?

[Love, laughter, & PJs]

I'm going to move this to Sleeping For Toddlers to get more eyes on it.

[momtonb&ab]

as anna asked, have you read any of the bw books?  those are a great jumping off point to getting started as is being here.  if she needs quiet to sleep, have you considered a white noise machine to block out the exterior noise?  that usually works brilliantly for little ones who are easily woken or have a hard time settling.

what does your day look like?  what kind of bedtimes/naptimes do you have? 
does little one sleep in her own bed or with you? 
how does little one get to sleep?
how does little one eat?
is little one sad/cranky or content after certian sleep times?

it may seem like a lot of questions but it will help us help you!

[tingmom]

That isn't enough sleep - don't worry we can help. Have you read any of the Babywhisperer books? I definitely recommend The Babywhisperer Solves All Your Problems for Toddlers (because your little one is more than one year old.

What is your routine? On a normal day, what time does she wake up, sleep, eat etc?

thank you , i've read some of Feber's ways of solving the baby's sleeping problems, and i trained her to sleep by herself when she was 6months old, it worked after she cried for two days, she began to sleep for 4--5hours (not every 30minutes). but things had changed when she was 7months old because of teething. it changed a little better this month ,everytime after i breastfed her, she would play by herself for about 30--40minutes and came to sleep on my stomach( we share bed) then i'll move her aside. but usually she will wake up after one hour( sometimes just 40minutes), then sobs and come to my stomach again. here's the routine:

from 5am sobs every 20-30minutes , no matter breastfed or not;
7am:get up( breast feed)
8:20:breakfast( about 50cc porride,she doesn't want to take it at all ,looks very sleepy and rubs her eyes a lot)
8:40breastfeed ,then play for 30minutes or sometimes more than one hour
9:00am/10am--11am: nap( the longest 1and a half hour, the shortest just 30minutes)
11:00-12:30:play
12:30:lunch (about 100cc porridge, it's very hard for her to take any food except breast milk, she will vomit if i feed her solid food)
1:00-1:40:play
2:00 pm : breasfeed
2:30--4:00 :nap( wakes up every 40minutes but sleep again if i tap and comfort her,sometimes just sleep for 30minutes)
4:30--7:20:play( seems sleepy again)
5:30:fruits
7:30:dinner :100cc porride
8:20 :bath
8:40:breastfeed
9:00-9:50:play(no matter how sleepy she looks, she still wants to play)
10:00pm: sleepy
she wakes up every one and a half hour at night( somtimes 40minutes or one hour),  takes at least 3 times breast milk( she will cry out and wake up totally if i don't breastfeed her ,then play for another one hour).
one more thing, she will wake up if there's a little sound, so we have to be very quiet if she sleeps. i;ve tried some white noise, it seems wrok  llittle~

[anna*]

I really recommend you look out Tracy Hogg's books. This site is all about promoting her methods and supporting parents who are using them. It is a much gentler method than Ferber, and we really don't support controlled crying.

The other issue aside from her sleep is eating. She really needs to be eating a varied diet by this age - fruits, vegetables, carbohydrates, proteins. What does her Dr say about her eating? Has she been referred to a specialist?

Do you want her to sleep in her own bed? The first thing I would say is that she needs much more sleep. She needs to be having two naps per day, a long one and a short one, and 11-12 hours sleep overnight.

I would suggest you try sleeping with her to help her catch up on sleep, and then when she is getting some more sleep you can move her into her own bed.

Is she awake from 5am? Or from 7am?
If she is awake from 7am I would suggest you try giving her a short nap (about 45 mins) at about 10.30. Then a long nap (1.5-2hrs) about 1.30pm. Asleep for the night at 7pm.

[momtonb&ab]

wow, it sure sounds like things are rough right now!

have  you talked to the doctor about her vomiting when she has solids?   i think there could be something going on there (maybe reflux?) that is waking her?  i don't know much about it but will see if i can get someone over here to have a look with you.  i can't help but think that she is waking and unsettled because she is hungry!  by this age they are taking mosty solids and milk is getting to be supplementary to the bm they get.  in fact, milk won't hold them as long any more by this age, so only fruits and porridge won't be enough for her.    as i said, i am no expert on reflux but will see if we can get someone who knows more to have a look and give some thoughts.

i strongly suggest reading the bw books.  she advocates gentle ways to teach independent sleep with little ones.   lots of moms sleep with little one and that is certainly your choice to make, but you may find that teaching her to sleep longer and independently will require you to teach her to sleep on her own.  do you hope to continue to co-sleep or do you want to have her sleep in her own cot/bed?  if you want to teach her to sleep on her own there are gentle ways to do that without losing her trust or leaving her to cry on her own .... lots of moms here have done it quite successfully.  

at a year old your little one will thrive with much more sleep than she is getting.   here is a link to give you an idea of what a daytime routine could look like for her   http://babywhispererforums.com/index.php?topic=164031.0

i have to dash for now (have lo's needing some lunch) but start there and we can keep working on it...  you can get more sleep for your little one (and yourself)!!  

here are a few links that may help you figure out what she needs.  

[MummyToBen]

Just wanted to say hello and send you some hugs.  You will get some great support from these ladies 

[Shiv52]

Huge {{{hugs}}}

The first thing I would do is speak to your doctor re: solids and eating.  I think the reason for the short naps and wakenings at night is hunger.  At one year LOs are typically on three solid meals and snacks.  They also eat a wide variety of foods.  This is important, not only for growth, but also for practice with chewing and using all the muscles in their mouths to help develop all the muscles for speech.  IS there a medical reason she's not eating solids?  Breast milk, while still an important source of nutrition, even  at 1 (I bf until 22 months) is not enough to sustain them and give them all the energy they need for the day.  Does she vomit after every solid food?  Or just the porridge?  Does she vomit after the fruits too.

Do you sleep with her for naps during the day or does she sleep in her cot?  Will she sleep for longer in the buggy if you are out walking? 

Lots more {{{hugs}}}  You must be exhausted but you'll get lots of help here to help your LO sleep and eat better and get some well deserved rest for you too xx

[Alison_3]

Big {{{hugs}}}.  It does sound like you're going through a really rough time.  Glad you're here and we'll do the best we can do help you get things sorted out for your and your LO. 

I agree that she really needs more food and I would bet the hunger is waking her. 

Does she only vomit after solids?  All solids or only certain ones?  Is  it a large quantity or just a little bit?  Does anything in your diet affect her?  Have you mentioned her vomiting to your doctor?  Maybe she does have reflux and/or food allergies/intolerance.  Does she have a rash ever?  How are her diapers?   Is she happy during the day? 

Sorry for all of the questions! 

I would really put a call into your doctor and talk things over.  (possible reflux, vomiting w/solids, sleep, etc.)

So for now I would do whatever you can to get some sleep for her (and you!) and get out of this OT cycle.  If that means a long walk in the stroller, holding her on the recliner, etc.  I really think getting her eating more will help with the sleep and we can then work on the sleep after she's eating more. 

 

[tingmom]

thanks a lot everyone!! i've tried some of the gentle ways to train my lo to sleep but didn't work.  pickup and putdown is not suitable for her ,either, cos she cries more seriously if i pick her up. anyway, it's not a big problem now.  from the beginning of this month, she will play for 40minutes and come to lay down on my belly and sleep. (she will not sleep if she just lies beside me.  i think she wakesup a lot not because she's hungry nor because of co-bed. First,  though she only takes porridge, i do try to feed her some more fruits in the evening such as banana and apples and grapes. no matter how much she takes, she still wakes up and wants breastmilk. Second, even though i go away and read books in another room ,she still wakes up after 1and a half hour. i do wish to put her in her own bed, but she cries more if she's awake.
anyway, i'll try some of your suggestions and follow some new routines to see if it works. 
about eating, she doesn't chew a lot, so it's easy for her to vomit. i don't know how to help her.

[miasmum79]

Hi, sorry ur hving a rough time. I'm no expert but had a few thots/ questions. Does lo actually vomit or is it a choking episode followed by vomiting? I hv a few friends whose Los didn't do well on solids and it was vomiting after- but on observing, it was a choke followed by vomit- I guess they had a strong gag reflex. They overcame this by introducing loads of finger food and gradually adding textures. Sorry if this dosent relate to u but just thot I'd put this up