22 month sleep/nap problems-someone please respond

[ryansmomma]

Hi everyone!  I am new here and would like to see if you have any suggestions for me.  My son is just short of 22 months.  He has severe allergies, milk being one of them, so he has been breastfed and still does in the morning (after cereal and fruit and daddy leaves for the day) and for nap---his choice not mine.  That's the first issue:  I would like to stop, as we are expecting a new baby late Aug.  I cannot supplement with formula, as he is allergic.  He will eat cereal with Rice Milk only (also Soy allergy) but will not drink a glass of it.  I have tried to pump, and at this point he is stronger than the pump and gets more from me.  When I tell him "No more of mommy's milk", he screams.  It is just so sad and I feel like I am depriving him of perhaps something he may still need from my breastmilk because of his allergies.  Same thing if I put him down for a nap without breastfeeding.  Occasionally, if he is dog-tired, I can put him right in his crib and he will stay down but only for 45 min to an hour. 

That brings me to issue #2:  Any suggestions for nap time?  I give him a stuffed dog of his choice and a cup of water...mind you, he asks for these same items at night and says, "Bed?"  Meaning he wants to go to bed...which is generally around 7:30.

Yet another issue:  He wakes every morning since an infant between 5-6 am.  The past 2 weeks has been 5!!  I have tried a humidifier to diffuse any possible noise, it is just as dark in the room at 5 am as it is when I put him to bed at 7:30 at night.  I have tried the earlier bedtime, later, toys etc.  I have tried to let him cry and to go in and tell him it is still night night time and rub his back...all to no avail.  He is ready to wake up. 

Finally, when he wakes from nap or in the morning from bed time sleep he most always cries and I don't know why?

Any suggestions would be greatly appreciated.  Thanks everyone in advance!

Ryan's Momma

[~Angie~]

I don't know if I can be of any help, but I'll try to offer a little advice until someone else can. Have you tried nursing him less and less before bed and nap? For example, just lessen the time until you have stopped completely.

My son went through a phase of waking up early and eventually just stopped. I think some kids just wake early. How long is his nap? Are they always 45 minutes? If not, have you tried shortening that a little?

My son is up so I need to go. Hopefully someone else will respond soon with more advice.

Hang in there. 

[ryansmomma]

Thank you for the advise.  Yes, he nurses infrequently (unless he is sick, then he wants to nurse all day!)  He does not nurse at all for night time bed, he actually asks to go to bed.  It is just the daytime that I have a problem with.  Sometimes he will sleep for 25 minutes and sometimes and hour.  Every once in a while, very rare, I can get an hour and a halk out of him.  Regardless of the nap, he still wakes up between 5-5:30 daily and wakes up crying---today from nap....SCREAMING!  That's what makes me think this is not enough sleep time for him.

Anyway, thank you...Also can anyone tell what E.A.S.Y is?

[~Angie~]

Sorry I couldn't be of more help.  Have you tried posting on the breastfeeding board? They might have some suggestions for you there. EASY is short for Eat, Activity, Sleep, You. It is a routine that you do with babies. They eat when first waking up, then have activity time, and then sleep time. While they sleep you have the you time. This is to help teach them to go to sleep on their own, so they are not nursing to sleep. There is also a board called EASY where you can post questions about your routine.

[imsmum]

I posted before but I don't know where it went.

i would try reducing the bf'ing in the am before reducing before the nap since the bf'ing then is lkely part of the winddown/comfort before the nap.  I would check the bf'ing board on the best way to go about it.

with my older dd I also bf before her nap (until she was abut 24 months) then when I decided we should stop I replaced it with a book and cuddle before nap and it was no problem but she was a real angel baby.

As far as the early waking what is his schedule like?

[sacmommy]

Here are my thoughts:

Last one first, I'm sure he's waking up crying because he's tired. He's getting up very early in the morning so clearly not getting enough sleep. In addition to the Baby Whisperer books, I would recommend you read Healthy Sleep Habits, Happy Child by Marc Weissbluth. He's a great resource on sleep habits and he addresses this a good bit in his book.

To stop nursing, I agree with the diminished time on the breast to phase it out. That helped me a lot with my dd to get her to sleep through the night without breastfeedgin (although she was much younger than your ds). You mentioned he won't take rice milk in a cup. Have you tried a sippy cup? My dd never took a bottle, refuses milk in a cup (she can only have soy and rice), and she downs her sippy cup of milk right before nap and bedtime. Worth a try.

On nap ~ it sounds like you might be bf'ing him to sleep. Since he has a prop to go to sleep this is probably hindering his ability to fall back asleep when he wakes slightly. I would try to alter the routine. Ours is sippy cup of milk in the dark in rocker in her room, hold her for a few minutes, then put her in her crib. The room is very dark, we run a Hepa filter and music.

[ryansmomma]

Thank you for the advice and sorry for the delay...went on a long weekend vacation : )

We are trying really hard to stop the morning/nap bf's...it is brief, but screams when I won't allow it and he will follow me around like a puppy if I try to busy myself to avoid it.  As I said, nighttime is not an issue...right to bed and to sleep...just wakes early.  Naptime is HORRIBLE!!!!!

I will check the bf board to see if any more suggestions.

Thanks again