New wind down worked magic for my DS

[Colesmom]

Hi everyone,

Just thought that I would share my success story.  My DS was on a 3 hours feed sched up until 2 weeks ago.  I had read BW and knew the principles...but didn't follow it exactly.  Anyway, my DS was accidentally parented into a host of issues, one of them being held to go to sleep and he had a paci.  Two weeks ago today I started pupd, pat/shhh and working to get him on a longer feed sched. and sleep routine.  We're still working up to a 4 hour easy-currently on 3.5.  Anyway, I'm rambling. 

After speaking with Mathew's Mommy and getting a great pm from Carasmom I tweaked a few things.  First, awake times.  I didn't think DS could stay up longer than 1.5 or 1.75 hours but the issue was that that wasn't long enough and he was overstimulated...even my wind down was overstimulating.  reading, singing...all the way up to the moment I put him down.  It was too much. 

So, the last few days my windown starts 30 minutes before his awake time ends, aiming at 2hrs-2hr 15 min. awake time.  I read a couple of books and then pop him in my sling (it's been a god-send, it's called New Native Baby Carrier) and either walk outside or do a bit of tidy up.  He seems to love the vacuum-lucky me as now I don't have to do this during Y time!  We walk for 15 min. or so.  I put him in his sleeper (I bought a Grobag but it doesn't fit just yet-too big on his head) and walk a bit more.  My goal is to sit in the glider no earlier than 5 min. before A time ends.  So then I sit for about 1 minute or 2 depending on his mood, whether he's yawning, rubbing his eyes, inchworming against me.  Then I kiss him and put him down.

Yesterday:  went down well for all three. 1.5 hr, 2.5 hr (with help-and it was too long i learned later), and 45 min.

Today: 1.5 hr, 1.5 hr and going on 45 min. for his catnap now.

What you need to know is this.  We had our deck started today...and they drilled six bolts into the house in the middle of the second nap.  I asked that they wait til he was asleep 15 min.  He didn't budge, even though they were drilling at the 30-45 minute mark!  And it was LOUD.  I think my DS has passed his nap graduation today    I'm so proud of him.

OH, and he had been waking 1.5 hours in the middle of the night.  He slept 9:20-3:50 (with DF at 11) last night.  I am really hoping it wasn't due to the late bedtime but we'll see tonight.

okay, is that enough info?  feel free to post any questions..

Traci

[GG]

That's awesome!!  Yay Cole!

How many times did you do this wind down before he went down easily?

[Colesmom]

gosh, i thinked it worked the first time!!!

[Erin (redstarfalling)]

AMAZING!!! That's the stuff I love to hear!!!!!

[Aisha's mum]

Hi Colesmom

That's really inspirational. My dh has a week off next week so he can help me start pu/pd with our 4 month old dd. She's very, very spirited and seems to get overtired really quickly. She's on 3 hour EASY but seems to start getting overtired at around 45mins so I start trying to get her to bed for then, but she really fights settling, and I usually have to rock her to sleep and then she wakes after the first sleep cycle and won't sleep unless I hold her (wakes up if I try and put her back down). It's awful! What was your ds like when you started winding down earlier? Was he showing tired signs that you were acting on, and does he still display these at the same time now that you've extended the A time?

Thanks!

Tara

[mommycarrie]

  :!: GREAT PROGRESS TRACI :!: 

After going through all that you did, I am happy you're succeeding!

keep it up :wink:

carrie

[Meg's Mom]

colesmom - i am so pleased for you both!!

I know you had a tough time to get here - so big happy hugs to you.

I am going to add this to the announcement above and i think you really hit on some excellent points.

[Colesmom]

one thing i just realized is that DS still wakes up crying...but I think that will come in time.  He's still getting used to his routine and likely catching up on sleep.

themothership:  since you dd is 4 months old she should definitely be able to stay up longer than 45 min.-closer I think to 1.5-1.75 hours. What signs of overtiredness is she showing?  You may be misreading her.  Cole was really hard to settle for a week when I started because I was putting him down too EARLY!  I guess I expected that if I put him down early he'd just coo and play until he was tired.  NOPE.  It would just get him all worked up and it would take forever to settle him with shhh/pat.  Also, what do you do during A time?  I play with him like crazy for the first hour or so to get him good and tired...then totally switch gears on him so he can settle.  maybe your lo needs more peace and quiet to stay up longer?  I'm just guessing here...hopefully one of the more experienced moms will chime in.

I have to admit that I wasn't sure what Coles tired cues were because at the slightest sign of fuss we plugged him up :oops:  I am pretty much going by the clock while I still learn his cues.  30 minutes before I know he is due to go down I keep everything very low key.  While I walk around I watch him like a hawk so I can see what he's like when he gets tired.  The wonderful women here have helped me recognize his cues: looking from side to side, not engaging/wanting to look at stuff, rubbing eyes, fidgets with left hand, arching back/inchworming against me.  So now I feel confident that even if I wasn't watching the clock I'd be able to recognize his signs.  I have learned so much about my precious boy in the past two weeks that I'm very proud of myself as well :wink:

I hope I've helped you a bit.  If you have any more questions maybe post a separate topic so it gets noticed more.  Also, you don't want to start pupd etc unless you are 100% sure of the method and are willing to follow through.  It wouldn't be fair to your lo to cry so much and not have you commit.  Have you read the sleep interview at the top of the forums?  There is also a great post on the pupd board by Jenapple with some good information.

phew.  i gotta go make dinner now.  It's so great to have my evenings free...our lo used to be up until 9:30pm!!

Traci

[Aisha's mum]

Hi Traci

Thanks for your advice - you're right, I should probably post a new thread. Just briefly - she's quite small, 12 lbs, 4 oz when she got weighed on Wed, so I don't know if this has got something to do with it. Been on EASY since she was 4 weeks, and tired signs are fussing or going really quite / hyper, yawning, and now that she's older, rubbing her eyes and shrieking really loudly (like she's really excited). She'll usually settle for a nap if I jiggle her, but wake after the first sleep cycle and then I have to hold her for the remaining hour or so because 45 minutes is nowhere near enough.

Anyway, I'll start a new thread. Hope things are continuing to go well for you and Cole!

[Colesmom]

hi tara,

just as an FYI...Cole took a 30 minute nap earlier today...I kind of extended it but he never really fell back asleep.  Anyway, I kept him up his regular 2.25 hours just now before catnap.  Just kept the last 60 minutes very low key.  pretty much just carried him around all over the house with me.  I put him down, he let out a brief cry and was asleep.

I am now certain that given textbook/angel babies the key is to err on the side of putting them down later...as long as the activity you're doing beforehand is calm and relaxing

hope you get better answers in your separate post.

Traci

[Deb_in_oz]

themothership:  since you dd is 4 months old she should definitely be able to stay up longer than 45 min.-closer I think to 1.5-1.75 hours.

just so you know - awake times really vary. Olivia could stay "awake" for a lot longer BUT then would not settle for naps.  until 4 months she could only stay up 1hr max if i wanted her to actually go down for a nap.  it took until 5 months before we were able to push that out to 1 hr 30- 1hr 45.  now at 6 months it is finally around 2hrs - 2 hr 25 but some days stil wantes to go down a lot earlier!

[Colesmom]

Debra-thanks for pointing that out.  i guess everything i've read about 4 months olds say 1.5 hrs or so!  sorry 'bout that :oops:

[Deb_in_oz]

i know - i just didn't want "the mothership" to stress about her lo awake time.  did not mean to butt in...

it is so annoying when you see what they "should" do and they don't conform.  i am foloowing your thread though because it sounds like you are doing well.  i have tried everything to get the first nap longer than 45moin but nothing is working.  past 2 days i have awake time at almpost 3 hours and still no change ! she ate a huge amount fo food so i know it is not hunger - often poop does cause her to wake so i can't figire out how to get her to poop when i want  :lol:

[Colesmom]

well it seems that nothing is perfect.  He had a 45 min. nap this morning after keeping A time the same :shock:   One day things are great, the next they fall apart.  I think I'm just learning not to stress.  It also helped that I had a 1.5 hour massage this morning...much needed as Cole woke every hour almost last night.

Is there such a thing as a 5 month growth spurt?

[Matthew's Mommy]

It's just a little blip.. don't worry, he's on his way! Chronic short nappers tend to regress a bit and then return to long naps.. they go back and forth like this all the time.

Glad you got a massage!! Lucky girll!