Some Odd questions...

[bwsjohnson]

Hello, I have recently purchased Tracy's newest book, and have been impelementing the 3 hour EASY with  my 15 week old son, as he has been terribly sleep deprived and soooooooo cranky! Anyway, I digress...
I have a couple of questions regarding the short naps and night wakings, and they may seem silly, but I have come across these issues so far.

1. What happens when he scratches himself and hurts himself in the middle of the night ( but of course I don't know that this has happened, all I know is that he is crying badly....)?

2. What about when he has been put down and is almost asleep, OR wakes up after 45 minutes of napping, and POOPS? Do I pick him up and change him right away?

3. And what if he poops in the middle of a PU/PD??

4. Can I use a soother as part of PU/PD?

5. How do I know if he is pacifier dependent? Some times he can fall asleep with out it, but usually needs it, spits it out, then roots around for it, and sometimes he will get himself back to sleep without it, but other times he needs it?

Sorry for all the questions, I didn't know which topic to post them under, as they seem to cover all areas  :?

Thank you very much for any advice you may give, it is truly appreciated in this house of non-sleep  :roll: !
Heather

[estherofi20]

hi, ok mhhh... where to start... ok what i do to prevent DS from scratching and hurting himself during naps and nightime (because when he is awake i can't stop him from doing that :roll: ) is swaddle him tigthly and i also have a cushion with a 45° angle and two triangles that keep him in the same position so he doesn't get out of the swaddle (i bougth this at baby'r'us, if you don't find it just roll two towels and put them at the sides of your lo) so that keeps his hands down.
I guess that you should change him whenever he poops, because if you leave poop there he can get a rash and then it will be even worse problem from you, and we don't want to get there :shock: .
and regarding the pacifier...  :? i have the same issue with DS so i don't know what to tell you... :lol:

[Jaime]

1. What happens when he scratches himself and hurts himself in the middle of the night ( but of course I don't know that this has happened, all I know is that he is crying badly....)?

does he like to suck on his fingers?  have you tried the aussie swaddle?  there are instructions at the top of this forum, and there is a version where you can get their hands by their face.

if he's already given up swaddling, you can try covering his hands with mittens or socks - socks helped my ds a lot with the scratching.   :wink:

2. What about when he has been put down and is almost asleep, OR wakes up after 45 minutes of napping, and POOPS? Do I pick him up and change him right away?

3. And what if he poops in the middle of a PU/PD??

if it bugs him, go ahead & change him.  but try not to put too much light on (like maybe a nightlight), and don't talk to him like you usually would.  try & avoid eye contact if you can. 

4. Can I use a soother as part of PU/PD?

that's up to you.  if it helps, i'd say go for it.  just keep in mind that you will have to help him get rid of it eventually.

5. How do I know if he is pacifier dependent? Some times he can fall asleep with out it, but usually needs it, spits it out, then roots around for it, and sometimes he will get himself back to sleep without it, but other times he needs it?

sounds like he's not totally dependent yet.  if he asks for it, i'd give it to him. but again, it's your call.

good luck & HTH 

[bwsjohnson]

Thank you SO much for responding, I really appreciate it!
I have tried socks on his hands, but they get soaking wet as he loves to suck on his fingers. Do you think that putting the socks on will prevent him from sucking his hands, as I want him to be able to sooth himself without the eventual use of the pacifier.
I will continue to use the pacifier with the PU/PD until I think he should get rid of it, then would I just do PU/PD again without the pacifier to break that habit?
Thanks!

[Jaime]

socks never stopped luke!   :lol:  eventually he learned how to pull them off himself too.  i always thought it was pretty disgusting, but i made sure i only used new, clean socks on his hands.  eventually, he stopped flailing around so much & didn't scratch so much anymore.  you can also stay on top of clipping his nails too.

and yes.. when you are ready to give up the paci, you just do pu/pd without it anymore. 

[bwsjohnson]

Thanks again, both of you, for responding! I have tried swaddling him really tightly and putting his arms down between his body and his wedge, but it makes no difference at all - his arms are bent and his hands are at his mouth in record time! He's really strong!  When doing PU/PD how is it possible to keep him swaddled? Do I just abandon the swaddling at that point?
I will put socks on his hands again tonight, and will give him a big df and we will see what happens.  Although his daytime demeanor has greatly improved due to some better naps, his night times are still pretty awful, and I just wonder how long it may take to have them improve, as he seems a bit better during the day?  And is it okay if his naps vary from 30 mins to 1.5 hours through the day? He won't always let me convince him to go back to sleep..... :roll:  As long as I keep the feeds at the right time, is this okay?
Again, thanks!!!

[estherofi20]

i guess the really important thing is to keep the feeding times the same (if you can't convince the lo to sleep, you just sometimes CAN'T, i know what you mean).
And i think it's really good he's so strong (good for him... not so good for you :lol: , just kidding).