Suddenly not settling at night - developmental?

[bexandlucy]

Hi, my little bundle of joy is now 6 months and I can't for the life of me work out whats going on at bedtime!!

She used to self settle beautifully every night and we had a great routine. About 3 weeks ago we moved her into her nursery and like magic she started sleeping through. Very happy with that!  Then a few days later my mum babysat  and she woke up and my mum had to resettle her (the first time that neither dh or i have been there when she woke). Ever since bedtimes have been a battle. Its by no means every night (some nights she'll go down first time) but its becoming the norm that we're up and down resettling her and then give in and bring her downstairs for a bit then when we take her back up she'll go down.

I've no idea where to start, it could be an easy issue - she's on about 2.25 hrs A time and I'm wondering if it needs increasing but she's always sooo ready to sleep after 2 hrs.

Could it be that the night we weren't there when she woke has traumatised her and she needs reassurance that we're still here?

The other thing is for about a week now she's been rolling over onto her tummy to sleep, but she can't roll back yet, should i try placing her on her tummy straight away rather than her trying to roll over. Could this all be developmental? And if so, shall I just ride it out.

Don't know if its related but her reflux has been worse for about a week - although this never affected her sleep before, I've been up a few times and she's been sick and lying with her face in it.

In a bit of a muddle here!! Oh and naps are good (*touches wood*) 2 naps of at least 1.5 hrs and a 30 min catnap. Settles well.

Any help would be appreciated xx

[Love, laughter, & PJs]

My first thought is that this is related to her needing more A time.  As you said, most are doing around 3h at this age.  It's also when most are starting to drop the CN, and when the don't it can really make things wonky.  What's she like when you try to push the A times a bit?  Do naps suffer at all?

Could definitely be related to reflux, though.  Can you see the doc to talk about her meds (if she's on any she might need an adjustment for her weight).

Could also be worth a shot to put her on her belly, if you're ok with that.

I suppose it's possible that that night a few weeks ago made a difference, but I really doubt it.  If it was just once time, and your mom was right there for her, and you've been there for every NW since then, I wouldn't think she's really fixated on that. (That's an easy go-to, though, with Mommy guilt! )

Definitely are a few possibilities here, but I'd start with thinking about her EASY.

What do you think?

[bexandlucy]

Thank you

Well tonight's drama is in progress!! I tried putting her down on her tummy but its made no difference. She seems so wide awake and ready to play. I'm thinking you're right, it could well be her A time. Her bedtime routine is: bath and creams & meds and dress for bed. Then she has her last feed. She's always really sleepy during this last feed and sometimes falls asleep during but if she does then I take her off straight away. WE then try a bit of wind down, a story and a quiet song but this seems to stimulate her even more. Have tried nothing but rocking but its no different. Could that sleepy feed be allowing her a  little longer to stay awake after it?

The other thing I'm scared of is that we're bringing her back downstairs with us after a couple times of settling, could she be getting used to this as part of her bedtime routine??

OK back to basics I'll try and increase her A time. She seems so tired after 2.25 hrs but I suppose I've to increase it gradually? xx

[Love, laughter, & PJs]

OK back to basics I'll try and increase her A time. She seems so tired after 2.25 hrs but I suppose I've to increase it gradually? xx

Definitely.  Add 5-10 min (starting with the first A time of the day) every 2-3 days and see how she does.

As for falling asleep at the breast, if she does, just wake her gently and put her down awake.  You don't need to do a whole routine after it, especially if it's stimulating her a lot.  I would definitely try to avoid taking her back downstairs and stimulating her more.  Just get her in the bed!

[bexandlucy]

Hiya, sorry i haven't replied for a while we've been away for a few days over xmas. I fear though, that this has messed her up even more!!

I've been trying to extend her A times, but not having much success, seems like we're all over the place at the moment. Have got to about 2 hrs and 25 mins. But now the ONLY time she is self settling is at bedtime (go figure - i can't work it out!!) and naps are a nightmare. She's getting a little too used to being soothed to sleep (the only way we could get her off while away). So bizarrely she has self settled (albeit a little grumpily) the past 3 nights running, i don't know if this is a fluke or not, because naps have been hideous today, I fed her to sleep and let her suckle for an hour and a half just to get her to nap earlier (i don't intend on making a habit of this). I'm thinking teething may be an issue for us at the moment too.

I've no specific questions really, just a lot of mess. I'm gonna trawl the site a bit and try and find some answers!
xxxx

[Love, laughter, & PJs]

Oh, big hugs.  If she's teething, you might have to roll with it in a bit.  If not, sounds like some PUPD might help?