7 months old, all over the place!

[4isstillnighttime]

Hi

I've had great advice from you guys before and we had reached a blissful state of 2 good naps and 1 NW. But since then we have had Christmas, an illness, a nursing strike and mastitis (me!) and we are in a state. Short naps, short A times, and many, many NW. To add into the mix, he is dropping centiles and is struggling with constipation 

He isn't an independent sleeper - he was (with a dummy) before all of this but now needs patting to sleep, with a lot of screaming in the process.

Can I just post you yesterday's EASY? Which was reasonably representative of what we have been achieving. Any help very welcome.

Up at 5:45. Tried to BF but still full from about 100 night feeds
Breakfast (BLW so some toast and weetabix, mostly on the floor)
S 9-10:15 in the sling. Resettled lots of times. Woke up raging but wouldn't resettle.

Tried lots of times to BF in the next A. Short snacks but no proper feeds. Had some dried apricots.

S 12:45-2. Short feed when he woke up, one side only.

Finally had a decent BF at 4 and fell asleep feeding. Slept for 20 mins, prob would have slept longer but I sneezed and woke him up.

Tried for early BT but my twins (2.5) got in the way. Finally in bed about 7:15. Had a feed just before sleep

NW 10:30 (fed), 1 (fed) 4 (fed). Up at 5:30. Tried and tried to resettle, finally managed by 6:30, woke up at 7:10. Fell asleep in the car on the way to nursery at 9:00, has just woken up at 9:35.

I'm at the end of my tether. Please help. I'm sat in the car with a McDonald's drive through coffee just to get some peace. He is exhausted and we all are suffering!!

[4isstillnighttime]

Actually he has gone back to sleep in the car. So he's done 45 mins at least. And I can finish my coffee.

Please also send some hugs, and if I need to sleep train please hold my hand with it. I had awful PND with the twins and I really do not cope well with babies crying. And I have the twins at home a lot of the time so can't spend ages resettling naps etc as they will kill each other or trash the house or wee on the tv or something!

[michaeljacknnugg]

Sending hugs! And more coffee!

I know how you feel as I'm in a similar position with DS2 (7 weeks). I'm not sure that you have millions of night feeds, from what you posted. But yes, it would be nice to get at least one of those gone.

I found with DS1 around this age that stretching the times between day feeds helped. Could you try that?

[4isstillnighttime]

Oh my word how is your baby 7 weeks?!? I've been out of the loop for ages with one thing and another, but still!!

When things were better the feeds were further apart so I think that is what I need to do....but it's hard because he will start, and my milk will come, then he will pull off and want to go and play and it's agony!! And I've had a blocked duct a few times and it hurt so much I nearly vomited! Plus am worried about his weight a bit....but today after he woke up in the car we had to do chores so he couldn't have a feed for a while then had a really good one, then ate loads of lunch, and has (possibly) just self-settled for a nap (too scared to go and look but he's quiet!!). So perhaps distraction is the answer! He got a bit overwhelmed at Christmas and wanted to feed for comfort I think, and he has had a high temp so has been thirsty I suppose.

I'll try it. And is it reasonable to do an A time of something like 3h15? Obviously not if he is really losing it but as something to aim for?

Good luck with the little guy!

[4isstillnighttime]

You're right as well - it's prob not an unreasonable no of night feeds (for a baby who fasts all day!!) but he is not really settling without a feed, and I worry it is a prop. Self settled for this nap though and got himself through the 45 min mark. 1h15 coming up......

[michaeljacknnugg]

That's ace! Yes, I think he needs to be really hungry to get a good feed in...your poor body though:(

I am no expert on A times but if you stretch him as much as you dare, that generally seems to work.

[4isstillnighttime]

  stretch it as much as you dare!!! I don't dare, that's part of my problem!! I need a stern talking to and specific instructions!!

He slept for 3 hours in the end this afternoon - lots of resettles including a 20 minute one at 1h15, but I think he was just exhausted. And he settled to sleep reasonably easily tonight - I was there but just a gentle hand, no patting. But tomorrow I have the grotbags and have bedtime on my own again so no nap resettling and he will have to go to bed with the others. I might try a sling nap for at least the first one so I can resettle him.

Thanks for the company and the moral support!!

[michaeljacknnugg]

Pleasure! Remember the sooner naps are done with the more freedom the whole family has. That's how I'm looking at it now, I do so hate getting babies to nap!

[4isstillnighttime]

I know, I find naps SO stressful!!! And the worst of it is that my angelic little baby has turned into a raging demon in the last few days too....which makes me think that something must be going on with teeth maybe. And he just wants to BF all the time - do they have growth spurts at this age?!? Wonder if my supply dropped a bit over Christmas when he was poorly and not really into it. The advantage of all the feeding is that my boobs are comfy for the first time in AGES.

Trying for a 3h15 A after a good nap, 3h after a bad one. I think I am going to have to do some weaning of night feeds and I don't remember how....do you off the top of your head know where I would find it in the book?

Gah. These babies!!

[michaeljacknnugg]

I think they do have growth spurts, yes. As to night weaning I'm not sure, the books left my house years ago (when we weren't having any more kids...). Maybe another thread might get more help with that?

I am trying to ignore A times or at least just use them as a guide to when he might want something. Otherwise I'll drive myself around the bend, yk? If he gets fussy I'll try for a sleep, if it's been more than 2.5hrs or so I'll offer a feed. Things like teeth can really mess with that though!