Hi guys
I'm new here and really hope someone can help! My ds is 8 months and hasn't slept through the night since October! We're at the end of our tether now and would really value some help. We know he's not hungry, as most times he'll go back to sleep without feeding. The problem is, that it can take anywhere between 5 minutes and an hour to settle him back. We don't go in straight away, in the hope he'll settle himself, but he'll stand up and cry until someone comes - he cant get back down by himself too well. he still has a dreamfeed at 11pm, which will continue until he sleeps through - we tried dropping it for a few nights but this resulted in him waking between 12-1am, and then he woke at 4am again anyway.
We're now putting him down for naps awake, then keeping a hand on him or 'laying on' him until he settles as he'll instantly cry when he goes in his cot and is tired. It's not a cot problem, as he's happy in there when he's awake or not tired.
Additionally, when he does wake up, he doesn't sing or play on his own - it's whining or murmuring, then crying until we go get him.
There's no real pattern to the waking, other than it's generally between 3-5am. If it's before 5 he'll usually then go to 7 or 7.30, which is fine, but after 5 he wants his breakfast milkfeed and then will sometimes go back to sleep. I'm not asking for much, we don't mind too much if he's unsettled during the evening, we'd just love him to sleep from midnight to 7 am - or 6.30 even! His routine is this
>7am milk feed
8am - cereal then fromage frais/fruit
9.30 - nap. This can be anytime from 9am if he's been up since before 7, but is rarely more than 30mins
10.30 - snack fruit or toast
12 - lunch. Carbs or veg & protein then creamed rice or fruit dessert
1pm - nap. he never goes beyond 2.30pm, and sometimes wakes after 45 mins but I can usually get him back to sleep. he used to sleep at 12.30 but now has lunch later so the nap has pushed back, but not the waking time. I can't get him back to sleep after 2.20pm
3pm - milk feed
3.30pm - snack toast or fruit
5.30pm - supper, carbs & protein then carby dessert
6.30pm - bath
6.50pm - milk feed
7pm - asleep
10.30/11pm - dreamfeed or sometimes he'll wake and feed
If he's slept badly at lunchtime then he may have a catnap of about 20mins bewteen 4.30-5.30.
He's such a lovely boy (part textbook, part spirited), smiley and happy during the day, what is going wrong at night?! I can't seem to get him to sleep more during the day, and he doesn't seem overtired in the evening, but could it be he doesn't have enough sleep during the day?
Hoping someone can help...
Elle
