Climbing in the crib with baby...

[charbren]

Hi there,

I'm Charlene and I'm new here, but not new to Tracy's books.  Have read the first one (started about 5 months ago and am on EASY for the most part and daily loggings etc) and also read about half of her sleep interview between last night and today.

DH and I are now trying the pu/pd with a better view since reading the interview.  (I asked for her most recent book for Christmas).

We have a 7.5 month spirited son.

Tonight is the second night with pu/pd, and after 40 mins from 2am to about 2:40am, my neck and back just could not take any more, so it was either to give up or have DH take a shot (even though you're not supposed to switch it out, I figured it was the better option).

So he took a shot and no luck either, so I brought our DS for 20 mins in the dark den and we had some quiet time till he started fussing as if wanting to sleep, so I took him back in, swaddled him (we have been swaddling since birth and he now has both arms free) and laid him in bed. 

After another 20 mins of pu/pd, I again could not go on physically, so I remembered reading that Tracy would at times get into the crib with baby, so I did that and laid beside him.  He calmed down, and though he stood up a couple of times, I put him back down and he eventually fell asleep....I was not patting or anything, just laying beside him.

The problem is that I did not know when to get out of the crib.  I tried before he fell completely asleep, but he got agitated again, so I just laid back down till he fell asleep and then I climbed out.

So finally 1.75 hours later, he is back asleep.

Can anyone shed some light on this climbing in the crib?

Thanks in advance,
Charlene
PS DS Has been giving lots of trouble to fall asleep (mainly at night.  Nap times are much better and he takes a 1.5 hour nap and a 2-2.5 hour nap daily).  He would wake a few times in the first couple of hours at night, then again at 1-2am, and sometimes at 4-5am.  I had been feeding him his bottle to sleep and at night wakes (the one part of EASY that I was not doing, but his solids would be as he wakes as the E).  This is what I am trying to break.  I do use a pacifier and was going to take him off of it just when I read the SIDS latest research and have decided to keep the paci till he is one year old.

[Katet]

I can't offer any advice on climbing in the crib, but I think the waking problem has to do with his association with the bottle & going to sleep. When he goes through a light sleep phase in the night, he expects the same conditions as he went to sleep with ie a bottle of warm milk & a full tummy, so in order to get improved sleeping, you might need to follow the EAS routine & offer the milk at the wakeup time not just before sleep.
HTH

[charbren]

offer the milk at the wakeup time not just before sleep.
HTH

Thanks so much for your reply!

Started doing this last Tuesday night (along with a wind down time in his room), and he is falling asleep much better and in his crib, but is still waking around 2am.  I have reduced his 2am bottle to 1/3 strength, and soon to just water in order to phase it out (mainly for me to be SURE that it's not hunger), and he has been drinking very little of it, so I think it's working.

I haven't had to get in the crib with him much recently at all, but when I have used it, it worked SPLENDIDLY.  He really preferred me going to him than bringing him to me.

God Bless,
Charlene