I'm back too
Not quite so bad but it's just the first chance I've had to come on here in ages - I've been pretty OT myself recently and have been desperately trying to get some EBTs!
Claire - funny how we've both ended up on a similar routine, although it seems like O is just moving on from that and M has back-tracked a little due to lots of things making him a bit more tired (teething, stomach bug, noises from flat downstairs, going away, etc). So we've been doing 7:45pm BT for a few nights to help him catch up - we had got to the point where we were always waking every morning and after every nap, and I felt like he could have done with a bit more sleep but was scared of UT/OT. I'll be following O's progress with interest - I like to plan ahead, even though things always happen differently to what I've expected! I'd been mulling over the following 3 scenarios:
(i) Just as you've said - keep waking at 2:30 even if he went to sleep later to shorten nap and preserve BT/night
(ii) If he still gets to sleep at 1pm but needs longer to BT: shorten nap in 15min increments to preserve night
(iii) Wake earlier in the morning in 15min increments to preserve nap time/duration but at the cost of night sleep (10.5h min!)
How's it going?
Melissa/shresmummy - teething is horrible! I'm sure it does influence sleep needs, even if we don't actually hear them in the night I'm sure they don't sleep as soundly and need to make up for it either with longer naps or earlier BT - I tend to favour the latter unless there's illness too. Often I think it's more a matter of working out our contingency plans and then trying to ride it out.
Shresmummy - I'm sure the meds do wear out and if it's paracetamol/ibuprofen you can always give it again after 4h or alternate if they need something earlier. But I do know what you mean about giving meds too often - I'm sure I'm guilty of that but I do find it hard to know when it's most needed. Often he'll have a really screechy BT/night and I know it's pain so will start giving it at BT then before I realise it's been several nights in a row and I'm wondering if I've given too much! I guess it's always best to ask your doctor/pharmacist, but I kind of think that if it's ok for some kids to take them regularly due to some underlying health problem then it probably won't do any harm as long as you stick to the dosage limits. But I know others would always look to more 'natural' remedies and you could probably argue it either way. *I am not an expert!*
Anyway the main things I've taken from the 18mo sleep regression are SA and *decreasing sleep needs*. Our experience of the former was fairly short-lived, but the latter does seem to persist! For the SA, I'd started noticing it during the day and began to realise that it was contributing to BT troubles. So I deliberately did lots of 'object permanence' stuff during the day, peepo and leaving the room then coming back, etc. I also had a sweet 'chat' with him during his BT bf, just explaining that he was safe and loved and that there wasn't anything to worry about, we were just in the other room etc etc. He just looked up at me with serious eyes and nodded, and went to sleep that night with no trouble! I can certainly say that the SA peak at 18mo did subside and now he's really confident and can play independently for much longer than before.That's not to say there won't be more SA peaks later, but for us it was just a passing phase.
The decreasing sleep needs on the other hand - I'm only now feeling that we've caught up with them! Really, what I thought he really needed before, he doesn't any more, it was a complete surprise and I was very slow to catch on. EBTs don't really work any more, if he's more tired than usual then we just PD 15mins earlier, that's all. And A times stretch, for us especially the morning one needed to - as Claire often points out, to 6h and eventually even longer. Shresmummy - how's his appetite during the day? Is he struggling to eat as much as usual because of the teething and then making up for it at night, do you think? Could you give teething gel or something before his meals? Are you posting on a night-weaning board for this? I would guess that the later NWs are pain/hunger and if he wakes in the early evening that's usually OT. Do keep us posted and I really hope things settle down for you soon...
Ok another question (I've been saving these up!): Whose LOs have a cuddly toy for their naps/nights? When did they start and how do you think it's affected their sleep? M has had a soother/comfort blanket from around 6mo (when he left our room) and still uses it, but about a month ago (maybe less?) he became very attached to 'Bear' and started asking for it for sleep. At first I was reluctant as I feared he'd just play, but he's slept with it at night for a couple of weeks now and for naps for about a week too. A few times he's also asked for 'foo foo' (that's the sound a dog makes, apparently!), and seemed ok with that although he then stopped asking for it and just has Bear and his blanket. But I have heard more stirrings recently where he's obviously talking to Bear and now I'm wondering how much it might be disturbing his sleep, or if it's more likely that he wakes anyway and then talks to Bear for comfort? I'm especially unsure of how having two toys (aside from the small comfort blanket) would affect his sleep since it must surely be harder to move/roll without one of them getting in the way and waking him?? He's been stirring a few times this evening, don't think it's OT as he had a good 1.5-2h without a peep, but he's chatted to Bear each time! Or could he even be sleep-talking??
