I would just like to say you have described my son exactly!!!!! :shock:
I think he chews his hand as a self pacicying thing as he hasn't quite found his thumb yet. he seems to scuk or chew his hand, and any material he can get hold of like a muslin or the sheet of the cot.
we foudn he would only settle on his tummy about a month ago and have given in on that one. He settles beautifully if we literally plonk him in his cot on his tummy and walk out, no matter how much he is screaming he will always settle himslef from that but if we trya nd ocmfort him he gets woudn up. Today for example he was fussing nd i didn't want him to go to bed yet as it would have messed up the whole day, so i cuddled him for a while. you would hav thought i was trying to murder him the screming that he did ! he strained and fought and yelled until i gave in, nd within minutesof bing put down he was asleep.!
he doesn't settle with pat sh either it definatel over stimulates him. he doesn't like any kind of stimulation when trying to sleep and if he is struggling int he night we make it worse by going to him if there is nothing wrong.
I can't be much help except to say i'm there with you on some of those things you mention. He had his injections last friday and that has put him right out. he had had a fab week last week right up until that point and was in a routine, but after that he has been all over the place and particularly struggly. He won't feed properly at the mometn either, i don't know if you ahve that too. he keeps bobbing on and off the breast or bottle and fussing, struggling and crying. then is hungry again before his next feed woud normallly be due. Who knows withthese wee ones. I don't think he is ill though i think he just needs consistently to be reinforced with all the things we usually do and he will settle abck down again.