What did your 18 month sleep regression look like?

[First mum]

Hi mums, just after some info on what your 18 month sleep regression looked like.  I think I cope a bit better when I can put what is happening into a "normal" box 

Keen to know how the regression affected your lo, what you did to help them and how you coped.

TIA

[Kellyjs]

Argh, it was rubbish. Honestly the worst one yet. Playing around at BT worsened. Call backs, pretend crying. Had to sit outside her door and repeat a phrase telling her sternly it was time to go to sleep.

NW's, unsure if this coincided with the canines erupting too, but again, they worsened.

Nap refusal some days but not often with us as it has been for some. I tried tweaking the routine but tbh nothing worked. It was a few months later that I had to cap the nap as she reverted back to better sleeping after 6weeks or so during the regression. So sorry, it's probably not what you wanted to hear all this, but I hope it helps prepare you xx

[First mum]

Thanks Kellyjs, I think we are on the fringes but just wanted to get an idea of what to expect and how people coped.  I find reading other peoples experiences and stories really helpful.

Interesting what you say about the canines.  We have had all 4 come through (plus 3 molars) since the 21/9 and the nw have increased to the point my husband and I are going a bit crosseyed and questioning what we are doing wrong    I got a really good look in her mouth tonight when we were playing and she did a massive laugh and her mouth is looking very sore and very full of budding teeth!!

[Kellyjs]

I hated the canines. Touch wood, the second molars haven't been as bad if that helps. 

I too felt like we had a newborn for awhile there with all the NW's. Repeat the mantra 'it is a phase, it will pass' and medicate as much as possible with ibuprofen. Oh and someone suggest elevating the mattress slightly with a couple of towels and I think that helped. You will get through it hun, it's strange just one day you wake up and think, wow that was a good nights sleep, and it reverts back to normal again! Xx

[cath~]

With DD1 it started in the run up to the 10th WW (so at 16-17 mos?) and lasted until 19 mos I think.  It was gruesome. 

She had previously been an independent sleeper but the big development leap gave her huge SA and made her more sensitive too (dev leaps always increase her sensitivities) and, I think mostly due to SA, we ended up staying with her, right next to her and with a hand on her until she nodded off.  I think part of it was also that she had much more on her mind and was restless at BT and couldn't unwind and relax.

She would also wake up and come into our bed each night (we'd not co-slept with her at all before, but it was just taking too long to resettle her in her cot for all the NWs and we were shattered - so co-sleeping gave us all more sleep).

I tried GW at one point but she still had lots of daytime SA and sensitivities, and she got v upset, so I abandoned that.  However, maybe 2 wks later I tried again and within 3-5 days things had improved and she was settling independently again and STTN in her own cot.  I just had a feeling that she was passed all the upset at that point though and so was ready for it to work.

Oh, and it also coincided with a drop in daytime sleep needs so capping the nap also helped BTs. 

I think the main reason it was so hard with DD1 was because she's highly sensitive, spirited and also LSN (so she wasn't quite tired enough at BT). 

With DD2, it was much better.  She still took longer to nod off for a while at BT but I think it only lasted for about 4 wks and she could still settle herself, it just took longer.  She was cutting her canines though so we got lots of NWs which I think were mostly due to teething but I suppose could have been due slightly to the regression.

[First mum]

Did anyone experience their LO sleeping between 7-8 hours overnight and then waking every 20-40 minutes?  She seems easy to settle each time but it is starting to wear on hubby and I.  Last night was wu at 2am.  Hubby is sick so its on me and my back was killing me so brought her into my bed at 4.  It took her a bit to settle and then she woke again at 6 and I ignored her and she went back to sleep till 6:45.

This has been for about a week now.  Its an improvement on nw 11,1,3, 4:30 and 5:30 which we had for nearly 3 weeks when all the canines came 

We have had 7 teeth in 4 weeks and the last one is bulging.  When I say 7 teeth, 3 of the molars have cut, I can feel one edge but 2 still need to come down.  The canines are over half way down.

Does this sound like teeth pain or is this part of the regression and we just need to muddle through?

[Martini~]

Here the drop in sleep needs was needed. We were on 7-7 routine with uncapped nap (usually 2h). I waited 3 weeks of that rubbish sleep in a hope he will self-regulate but one day, he just short napped and huhuhu first good night! I capped the nap for 3-4 days, nights were ok so once again I let uncapped nap. And it was followed with a crappy night. So from that moment we cap the nap at 1.5h (1:45 was too much). After next 3-4 weeks I think he could be back with uncapped nap as he is already waking by himself after 1.5h and if tired I let him once sleep longer and night was still ok. So altogether yes, 6 weeks - manageable after 3 weeks when I decided to cap the nap.

Our crappy nights were: protest at BT (the longest wiwo in my life lasted 1:45!!! from 7pm till 8:45!) and waking at 5:40 = after 10.5h of sleep and having problems with falling asleep. If finally he did, he was asleep at 7am when I was waking him for nursery...:/.

[cath~]

Did anyone experience their LO sleeping between 7-8 hours overnight and then waking every 20-40 minutes?  She seems easy to settle each time but it is starting to wear on hubby and I.  Last night was wu at 2am.  Hubby is sick so its on me and my back was killing me so brought her into my bed at 4.  It took her a bit to settle and then she woke again at 6 and I ignored her and she went back to sleep till 6:45.

This has been for about a week now.  Its an improvement on nw 11,1,3, 4:30 and 5:30 which we had for nearly 3 weeks when all the canines came 

We have had 7 teeth in 4 weeks and the last one is bulging.  When I say 7 teeth, 3 of the molars have cut, I can feel one edge but 2 still need to come down.  The canines are over half way down.

Does this sound like teeth pain or is this part of the regression and we just need to muddle through?

sounds like it could def be pain-related.  How have things been the past few days?

[ginger428]

Hi firstmum! I had been wondering how your DD was doing. Sounds like the last several weeks have been brutal for you guys. HUGS. We're probably about to hit another rough patch with teething ourselves. It does seem like pain for your DD as IME, M always woke around the 4/5oclock hour and would sleep on and off from then on when teething.  I'm rooting for you guys and hoping this all passes soon!!

M is 18mo tomorrow, but for the last 2+ weeks we've had consistent NWs... around 11/12, 3 and/or 5. So not as frequently as yours. He would wake crying and screaming, and seemed frightened, which was unusual. I first thought it might be canines... so I medicated and it did not help.  I think it was/is WW10 and 18mo reg overlapping. Coincidentally a couple weeks ago, he started to fight naps, but after 2 days of fussing and me keeping to his nap schedule, it was okay.  The last few days, he has been taking 30+ mins to fall asleep at BT, which is unusual, too. Typical 18 mo. progress stuff? The last 2 days he has shown symptoms of teething so medicated for today's nap.

Yesterday was our first full night of 11 hours WITHOUT NWs! Hooray! I can see the light! However, it was proceeded by a self-capped 1.10 nap (is usually 1.30-2.00). I think we're probably heading in the direction of capping naps. I was chicken today and let him sleep the full 1.50. Eeek... we shall see what happens tonight!

Incidentally... I've been working to push M's schedule later by an hour or more to solve EWs (early for me that is) and in prep for DST.

What are your A's before and after nap? Just curious... M seems to handle 6 in the am and needs at least 5.5 in the pm.

[First mum]

Hi Cath, some improvement with only 1 nw for a couple of nights but a small cold is brewing and last night we had lots of coughing.  I've also gone back to using pamol instead of nurofen before bed and pushed for an ebt most nights and it has stopped the earlier blipping in the evening. Everything crossed 

Hey ginger yip it has been pretty rough! I day dream about sttn at the moment   our schedule is pretty much the same regardless of nw but with the yucky ew the last 2 days have gone a bit wonky.  Yesterday she had a cn at 8:45 for 15 mins and normal nap at 11:30 but only for 1.10.  Today lost the plot in the highchair as so tired so into bed and asleep at 10:50 she blipped at 35 mins and I managed to resettle for another 30. SHe then slept on me for another 1.15 so all in all it wasn't a total fail!!

Her normal schedule is
wu 6:15 (ish)
nap 11:30 1.25-2hours (max)
bt 6:30

Do you think I need to shake up her a times?

[-Maya-]

We are approaching this dreadful 18mo sleep regression. I am scared because DS night sleep was quite good in the last week or so. I have noticed that he asked me to be tuched (i.e. hands on his back) to fal lasleep a couple of times. But I usually stay in his room until he falls asleep. No touching, no talking, just stay in his dark room. I think he know I am there because he listen to me breathing.
Odd enough, we are approaching 18mo with 2 naps!

[ginger428]

Do you think I need to shake up her a times?

Hard to say with all that's going on currently, probably not at the moment. Didn't DD usually sleep 11-12 hrs at night? DS has always been a 10-11 hr guy, with 1-1.30 hr naps usually so our days have to be a bit longer.

[First mum]

Odd enough, we are approaching 18mo with 2 naps!

Oh that sounds nice Maya!!  Are you looking to make any changes or just keep rolling with it?

We had a good night Ginger! Based on the previous weeks :-)  Down at 6:20 and nw 2:15 and awake on and off till 4 with hubby and I taking turns.  Other than the initial crying she was ok, just didn't want us to leave her.  Awake again at 5:15 and slept in bed with me till 6:30. I think hubby an I go 5 hours sleep in a row!!! 

Am thinking maybe too much day sleep yesterday but who knows really.  Its been awhile since we have had such long nw, she is usually pretty good.  Will watch and see!

[First mum]

Typical jinx, last night was horrid.  Bt 6:20 wu 9pm 11pm (for 3 hours) 4am and 5:15???  No idea what was going on.  Feeling trapped with nw like this as she becomes so distressed when we try to leave the room.  We used to be able to sit beside the cot with the occasional shush but now she performs if we are not touching her.  Its been like this for over a month now with the nw.  Not sure how to break this, or if now is even the right time to try but it is always something..... between teeth, leaps and illness I'm not sure there is ever a right time.  I've had one of those days where I imagine having to settle my lo to sleep for years and years to come!!

Our saving grace is she is such a pleasure during the day but I feel like come night time I turn into this angry tired monster whose patience is running very thin 

[cath~]

Her normal schedule is
wu 6:15 (ish)
nap 11:30 1.25-2hours (max)
bt 6:30

Do you think I need to shake up her a times?

If she does a 2hr nap at that time then it looks like that morning A time is working well.  However, when she starts sleeping better at night you might need to push it a bit later.

(((hugs))) for the rough night the other night.  That sounds really tough.  How tired is she at BT on her usual day?  I wonder if you need to increase that afternoon A time a bit..?  Or is she unwell?

How was the next night?

(((hugs))) 18 mo sleep is really tough as there is usually so much going on.  It does get better again though, eventually!

[ginger428]

Sorry to hear about the long night! What a relief she is a joy during the day, considering! I know how you feel about it never ending... but having a taste of the good nights gave me the energy to keep believing. Haha. I hope you have more of the good nights (consecutive) to be well rested again. I know that makes a difference in how you can manage and handle the rough ones.

Thanks, Cath, for the encouragements... much needed! And good to know you came out on the other end shining! We had another rough night as well. Up about 5 times. Bedtime and naptime shenanigans. *sigh*

[First mum]

Hey Cath thanks for the support!  The last 2 nights have been much better  Monday night was only 2 very short nw and last night was 1 at 10pm and back to being easy to resettle.  The ew are back but don't think this will change until I can get a later bedtime.

We tried pushing her bedtime later about a month ago but got lots of ot blips early on in the evening.  We do ebt on Monday an Tuesday as her nap is usually 30 mins or less at the childminders.  Tonight as she is home with me I will aim for 6:30 an see what we get.  Am pretty sure we are over the worst of her tooth pain and the long nw are more developmental as she doesn't ask for pamol or gel anymore.

I also haven't had a 2 hour nap for a few weeks now (I think).  We are only getting between 75-95 minutes which usually means she is up around 1pm.  Not sure which A time to tweak at the mo as she is so tired come 11:30 we have had a few close calls with her nodding off in the highchair at lunch  same with evening tbh.  Hubby does her story and has gotten really good at spotting when she is starting to lose it.  I breastfeed before sleep and have to work hard most nights to keep her awake for a good feed.

Think I'm getting better at getting on top of her ot quicker so it doesn't impact later into the week but with the last 6 weeks or so am feeling pretty wrecked myself that the thought of tackling a tweak fills me with dread!!

[First mum]

Oh Ginger sucks what you are going through but makes me feel so much better to know I am not alone    We have had 2 good nights!  Long may they last.  Need to put some effort into getting my sleep back on track too!  I'm still feeding before bed at night so reluctant to take any sleep remedies, do you take anything?

[cath~]

How are things going? x

[First mum]

Little improvements Cath.  Still a couple of nw, but very easy to settle, usually with teething gel and meds if time.  The ew are really kicking my butt though 

Hubby an I decided other than Sunday morning no more bringing her into our bed.  Its been 4 days and I haven't seen any change.  This morning was 4:30 I gave gel and pamol and despite 4 or 5 resettles and wiping her nose it was 5:50 before she went back to sleep and woke at 6:40.  I know her overall sleep needs are changing but I really don't think 10.5 is enough.  Especially when on a good day I am only getting 90 minutes day nap.

[cath~]

I really don't think 10.5 is enough.  Especially when on a good day I am only getting 90 minutes day nap.

It depends on her sleep needs.  Both of mine are on the low side.  If DD2 naps 1hr30 then no way would she sleep more than 10hrs at night now.  (So I keep her nap shorter so she'll still do a reasonable night).  However, you're right, for (most) others they do need more!  I've just always found with mine that too long a day nap and they gave (really) short nights.  Better to have a shorter nap and then get a much more reasonable night length.

What have her sleep needs been like in the past?

If it's not sleep-needs related then my guess would be teething.  That always gave EWs with DD2.  Just had to wait it out...

((hugs)) thouhgh, it's tough