Hi Traci,
I know what you mean about the teething. I go back and forth between believing the problem is poor sleep habits and/or overtiredness and thinking it is teething. The overtiredness issue is also a tough one. Aiden just tends to be more happy and excitable when he is overtired - unless of course he is frustrated.
We did gradual withdrawal all the way. After a number of failed attempts it has finally worked to get him falling asleep more independently - at least at night. He still doesn't want to be alone at nap time. I can't tolerate the very hard crying that goes with some of the other approaches - not that we didn't have hard crying but at least with gw you feel you can offer some comfort or take a small step backwards when things are going rough. WE had to wean the hand as well but it wasn't bad. In fact when we transitioned from him falling asleep breastfeeding to him doing it in his crib, most often with daddy, we started with a musical toy, hand on his side and patting on his bum. We later added singing as we pulled away some of the other stuff. WE also try to reassure him verbally as well when he is upset. The nice thig about gw is that you can make the steps as small as you want. ie. you could put your hand on his back or rub hiis back gently and then keep taking it off very slowly every now and then so that he gets used to the feeling. Over time he will mind it less and less.
Anyway, we are still dealing with 2-3 wake-ups at night and often short naps (yesterday was barely over an hour). At least he seems to be sleeping a little later in the morning and he is able to stay alone in his crib longer. Small steps eh?
