Author Topic: help - i'm so tired (and so is the rest of the family!)  (Read 1233 times)

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Offline BJ

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help - i'm so tired (and so is the rest of the family!)
« on: August 27, 2006, 23:59:28 pm »
i have a gorgeous 8 month old son who is a delight and a happy cheeky little man.  but i'm having trouble with his sleep and need some help desperately.  my husband and i differ on our methods so i feel like i have to do it all (as he prefers to control cry or cry it out).

here's out routine at the moment

7am bf
8am breakfast (weetbix with milk)
9am nap (fingers crossed for 1 1/2 hours)
11am bf
12 noon lunch (fruit or bread/cheese)
1pm nap (1 1/2 hours)
3pm bf
5pm dinner (meat & veg)
bath, play
7pm bf & sleep (often falls asleep feeding)

the probelm is that he then wakes up 3 (or more) times during the night.  usually around 10-11pm is the first waking, and then around mindnight & 2am.  then he sleeps until around 5am at the moment.

i have been feeding him at 2 of the wakings, but not at the 5am or then he is not hungry at 7am.  i want to stop feeding him at night but it has been the quickest way to get him back to sleep as i'm so tired.  he has never slept through, though he did used to sleep 6 hours when he was smaller.

if i don't feed him at night i find myself walking around the house with him, more to keep myself awake and not give in to feeding him so i can get back to bed.  i know this is just creating another problem.

for his day naps i p/u p/d but probably hold too long when i p/u.  he often cries when i go into his room!

i feel like there are so many problems i'm not sure which to start with.  do i deal with one at a time or is one affecting the other?

he is also teething and sick at the moment which is not helping either.

i also have a 3 yr old which i find it hard to spend an hour doing p/u p/d when she also needs my attention. 

where do i start?

thanks in advance for your ideas.

Belinda

Offline Lana

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Re: help - i'm so tired (and so is the rest of the family!)
« Reply #1 on: August 28, 2006, 00:09:24 am »
Totally cute kids you have there. 

My little one is just a bit older than yours.  It seems to me that he could be overtired.  That is a long time from the end of your nap to bedtime.  At 8 months our days looked like this:

7 Bottle
8 Solids
9:30 nap
11 bottle
12 solids
1:30 nap
3 bottle
5 solids
7:30 bottle and bed

Now we still have a pretty long stretch before bed but B tolerates it pretty well so I am comfortable with it.

I also have a 3.5 year old so I do know that it is hard. 

With the teething do you give him pain meds before bed?

Does he have anything going on developmentally?


Offline Katet

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Re: help - i'm so tired (and so is the rest of the family!)
« Reply #2 on: August 28, 2006, 00:18:30 am »
First thing I think you need to change is make sure he doesn't fall asleep feeding, I found that was the biggest factor in both my boys waking at night & needing a feed to go back off... once I sorted that out, I then never fed on the first waking & did what ever (lots of walking around the house actually) until he went to sleep & then the other night feeds just stopped once I sorted those 2 issues out.

I would take him off the breast as soon as he got drowsy & that was it for the feed & read a story & into bed & comfort him by patting to sleep if needed
dc1 July 03, dc2 May 05

Offline BJ

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Re: help - i'm so tired (and so is the rest of the family!)
« Reply #3 on: August 28, 2006, 00:24:59 am »
developmentally he's moving along... he's saying mum (or maybe it's mmm - but i like to think it's mum), and he's waving.  he's started pulling himself up and trying to cruise around.  he can also pull himself up in his cot now too (which is very cute when he's peeking over the side of it) but i'd rather just see him at 7am!

i tried him having a catnap around 5pm but then he wouldn't go back to sleep until 8pm or later so i cut that out.  i know he's tired around 5-6pm but with dinner, bath, bed etc. it keeps him going (though not always happily)




Offline Lana

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Re: help - i'm so tired (and so is the rest of the family!)
« Reply #4 on: August 28, 2006, 17:38:58 pm »
Developmental milestones can really disturb sleep.  We are right in the middle of some of our own here :P.

Really I think if you can iron out his naps it will help his overnight. 

Let us know if you need anything else ;D


Offline nicolanorway

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Re: help - i'm so tired (and so is the rest of the family!)
« Reply #5 on: September 10, 2006, 08:32:51 am »
belinda,
sound'as like you are going through the same as me, although i don't have another child to contend with!! i am also just so tired that i often just give him the breast to get him to sleep. when are we going to get some sleep, uh? :-X :-X
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