Need help to figure out reason for multiple night wakings

[ACsmum]

Thanks Clairebear, 7pm is already an EBT for him, his previous bedtime was 7.30/8pm, past couple of days he was up at 6 so I put him to bed even earlier at around 6.45pm. This morning he was up at 7 so I put him down later this evening at 7.15pm. He only needs around 11 hours so he will be up 6 ish I reckon.

Ideally I would like his bedtime to be 7.30am to 6.30/7am with his nap at around 12-2. But with his short nap our routine is messed up. I really want to have a set nap and bedtime and not chopping and changing everyday. Any idea how I can extend his afternoon nap to a minimum of 2 hours?

Mom2heath, I hope you get some advice on the NWs. With the thumb sucking, have you try introducing a comforter to replace his thumb. My boy never have a comforter and I am introducing one now (by giving it him at every nap and bedtime) hoping it will help with his independent sleep

[KiusMum]

Hi Mom2heath,
I second the idea of a comforter, you could try using it when you are b/feed and talk to him about it so that he knows what it is and feels safe and happy about it. It takes time , so dont worry if hes not responding, just keep trying and be sure to leave it in his cot @ bedtime and during the night. If its a soft toy, you could make a show of sAYINgd night and gd morning to him every night/morning to introduce more familiarity. Having said that, as your LO goes down well @ bedtime and naps, I think hes teething by the way hes trying to suck his thumb hard and not able to get to sleep. In my exp, teething does not affect much during the day as much it affects during the night. so dont worry if u r not seeing symptoms during the day. Can you try dreammeds during the night and see if it helps? Seep training might not work during the night if hes cutting molars or canines. They are ext. painful. But I could be wrong on this front. Let us know how you go with the comforter and meds

AcsMum,
could you post how exactly you put him to bed for nap and bedtime (i.e step 1)?? is he happy when he wakes up from the nap? or cranky>
what do you do to get him back to sleep when he wakes up from his nap?

[Mom2Heath]

I think you are right - he's TEETHING! I feel a little stupid that I didn't realize before now, but I suppose it is because he has been so normal and happy during the days while he is distracted and playing. There are no distractions for him at night. When I say I medicated him last night, I only gave him Camilia and perhaps it just didn't quite do the trick. Tonight he woke after 40 min into sleep and I gave him a dose of the children's tylenol right away. I think he is resting OK now, but I am not completely confident that we are not going to have another sleepless night. We'll see...

Thank you for the tips about introducing the comfort item. I haven't done this yet, and I would prefer him to have a teddy or blankie, rather than chomping on his thumb. I appreciate the detailed tips on how to do this. I hadn't thought about talking to the teddy or keeping it nearby during our morning bf. Great suggestions.

THANK YOU!

[ACsmum]

Hi kuismum,
A has been sleeping in our arms for at least 3 months now (started when he was on and off sick, teething and SA) we figured that it's going to take us some months before we can get back to independent sleeping, so far we have planned out 3 steps:
1/ hold him till his eye closed but not in a deep sleep, put in cot and hand on his back till he's asleep
2/ hold him till he's drowsy about to have his eye closed, put in cot and hand in his back till he's asleep
3/ hold him till he's totally relaxed, put in cot and hand on his back till he's asleep
Will take small steps at a time, not only we need to wean him off sleeping in our arms, we also need to get him to sleep without our help at all, no hand on back or staying in his room.
What do you think? I do wish we can make quicker progress but like I have said in my previous post, if I try to much too quickly, it's a long nighttime battle!!

When he wakes early from his nap, I will putting my hand on his back or let him hold my hand while he's still in cot, or sometimes when I am desperate I will pick him up and try resettle him in my arm, but nothing even work! Somedays he seems fine but sometimes he will be grumpy the rest of the day.

[KiusMum]

AcsMum,

Your GW plan sounds great, it should work, it takes time but it will work, set your own pace for implementing steps. I started GW 4 months back and I m still at it, not to discourage you but I was thrown off track with illness, teething, vacation etc. So it took time to again come back on track. Another suggestion is once you are sure you have succeeded in a step, immediately move to the next one, else you tend to get stuck on the same one.

When he wakes up from his nap, if GW is not working, I think its oks to resettle in arms just dont hold till hes in deep sleep, put down when hes almost asleep with eyes closed and then put ur hand on his back in the cot. Eventually his naps should lengthen. Has his naps always been like this ?? or is it because of some routine change? or since you started GW??