Sleep Sticky - Post here regarding Anything sleep related!!!

kimbo1216

Because we have a new sleep training post daily it seems, I thought I'd do my best to consolidate them here.  I've linked the ones I could find below.  Feel free to reply here with new questions or comments as well.  Hopefully, this will help lessen the amount of new post though.

And no.  Sleep training does not strictly refer to methods involving CIO.  You can ask about no cry solutions, the sleep lady shuffle, etc....basically anything you want regarding your LO's sleep.

SLEEP TRAINING GOALS

SLEEP BOOKS

CIO METHOD  <------------------- This one has my "stock sleep training answer" as the first reply.

SLEEP TRAINING STARTS TONIGHT

sleepy33

kimbo1216

rsigler said:

I have no input on sleep training, but can we please at least have 'training' spelled correctly in the title of this sticky? It's going to drive me bonkers to see that misspelled every single time I log on.

I fixed it. But FYI...you can hit dismiss on any sticky you no longer wish to see.

kimbo1216

Charlie1178 said:

Ok, so I plan on reading the no cry sleep solution and the Ferber book. Buuuut, we haven't moved LO to his crib yet, we've been cosleeping. I'm planning on moving him into his crib/sleep training at 6 months. Is it a bad idea to do both at the same times? He's waking up 4-6 times a night and eating 3 times a night still. He has a rough time napping on a flat surface, so I worry about a rough transition to the crib.

@Charlie1178‌ We moved DD1 into a crib a month before we sleep trained in hopes that it might help her sleep better since she was clearly no longer liking our room. It might have helped a tiny bit but not much.

We are doing in-room sleep training with DD2. We are in a different house from DD1. Now the girls' rooms are upstairs. So we aren't going to move DD2 until she's sleeping quite a while before waking to eat.

So my advice is do what works for you.

The NCSS will teach you a lot about baby's sleep patterns. But her method takes a lot of patience. If you have time and patience and are unsure about Ferber, I say start with her book and see how it goes. You can always try something different later.

crarnberg

What an awesome idea! Thanks Kimbo for putting this all in one. 

My sweet girl Everleigh slept through the night at 3 weeks. I thought that I was the luckiest mom alive - until we hit 4 months and we are now a little over 5 months. Everleigh goes to bed around 9:30 after oatmeal and a bath. It seems like most nights she wakes up around 3 for a bottle (give or take) then goes back down until 6. Then there are nights (like the past 3) where she wakes up around 2 wide awake. She won't go back to sleep until around 4:30. 

We are still cosleeping so I am thinking that it may be time to move to the crib. Any thoughts/suggestions?

kimbo1216

@crarnberg, try moving her to her crib.  If that helps, great.  If not, go through the linked posts at the top.  You might start with the book recs post and see which one you want to try.

huntjul

So, sleep training was going well, and now we have a bit of regression the last 2 nights.  How often does regression happen?  How long does it usually last?

sleepy33

crarnberg said:

What an awesome idea! Thanks Kimbo for putting this all in one. 

My sweet girl Everleigh slept through the night at 3 weeks. I thought that I was the luckiest mom alive - until we hit 4 months and we are now a little over 5 months. Everleigh goes to bed around 9:30 after oatmeal and a bath. It seems like most nights she wakes up around 3 for a bottle (give or take) then goes back down until 6. Then there are nights (like the past 3) where she wakes up around 2 wide awake. She won't go back to sleep until around 4:30. 

We are still cosleeping so I am thinking that it may be time to move to the crib. Any thoughts/suggestions?

Are you really considering sleep training for a kid who generally sleeps 5.5 hours and only wakes once for a bottle? Or are you strictly asking if it's time to move to the crib (which is not sleep training). I am confused.

NatesCupcake47

I've been feeling a lot of pressure from the internet/friends/family/our culture to sleep train with DD lately.  The few times we've tried, we haven't had good results.  She goes down for bed at 7:30 and gets up twice a night.  I've never had a problem with her getting up 2 times a night.  She nurses quickly and I'm back in bed in usually less than 20 minutes, if that.  However the pressure I've been feeling by the constant "is she sleeping through the night yet" questions made me feel like we should be trying to get her to go longer without getting up.  

After a night from hell last night (where we attempted to let her CIO a bit) I came across this article from kellymom today and I am so relieved to have a source confirming my instincts and that I'm not doing anything wrong by allowing my daughter to get up at night.  So I just wanted to share it here in case there are any other moms struggling with this...

https://kellymom.com/parenting/nighttime/sleep/

crarnberg

sleepy33 said:

Are you really considering sleep training for a kid who generally sleeps 5.5 hours and only wakes once for a bottle? Or are you strictly asking if it's time to move to the crib (which is not sleep training). I am confused.

A little bit of both. I am asking if it is time to move to the crib but also wondering about the waking at 2 in the morning and staying up for 2 hours wanting to play. When she wakes up she is not self soothing so I end up getting up for 2 hours with her. 

sleepy33

crarnberg said:

sleepy33 said:

Are you really considering sleep training for a kid who generally sleeps 5.5 hours and only wakes once for a bottle? Or are you strictly asking if it's time to move to the crib (which is not sleep training). I am confused.

A little bit of both. I am asking if it is time to move to the crib but also wondering about the waking at 2 in the morning and staying up for 2 hours wanting to play. When she wakes up she is not self soothing so I end up getting up for 2 hours with her. 

Ok, but you said that was the last 3 nights, so it's not the norm, right? I would just hesitate to think about sleep training based on 3 nights worth of anything. Apologies if I'm misinterpreting your post.

KimbosOverSupply

MangoMama82

huntjul said:

So, sleep training was going well, and now we have a bit of regression the last 2 nights.  How often does regression happen?  How long does it usually last?

@huntjul‌ This was mentioned in my book. It's fairly typical. They said the clinical term is "extinction burst". It should just be the 'curtain call' of her old sleeping behavior, and in a night or two she should be back to sleeping well and putting herself down

huntjul

ElleStaxx said:

So, sleep training was going well, and now we have a bit of regression the last 2 nights.  How often does regression happen?  How long does it usually last?

Any idea what could be causing the regression? Did LO seem 'off' that day? Teething? A cold? Nap too much during the day? I know we had a bad night in the middle a streak that was going really well, it was due to teething.

There didn't seem to be much going on except that those 2 nights followed a night where she stayed up later than usual and ended up falling asleep in her bouncer instead of her crib.  We were on the beach having a BBQ.

lorelaie10

ElleStaxx said:

I wish I could give you a suggestion but I know nothing about co-sleeping because I have never done it. I know Ferbers book has a lot of information about training and co sleeping. If Ferber is not for you, I am sure the other books address the issue as well!! Make sure you read up on whatever you decide to do! My DS was STTN from 3 weeks until around 3.5 months. Then BAM. He became defendant on a pacifier and by 4.5 months we were up 20-30 times a night replacing his pacifier or he would scream. So we did a modified version of Ferber and pulled the pacifier and we have had great results!! I wish you luck!!

Please to teach me your ways. LO was STTN since 6 weeks in the RNP. Just transitioned to the crib 6 days ago and he wakes up several times for his paci. I normally swaddle one arm out, but have started re-swaddling both arms so he can't pull the paci out. Did you just stop giving it to him and comforting him other ways? He goes to bed around 7:30 but is up every hour or so from 1:30am. I am considering reading the Ferber book, but what can I do TONIGHT?! Also, am I not giving this crib transition enough time to work itself out? I guess I should trust that he will adjust but it's hard to see clearly through this (new) sleep deprivation. Haaalp.

kimbo1216

@NatesCupcake47‌, if it's not a problem for you, then don't listen to what others thing should be happening.  It's none of their business.  Besides, if you're confident in your choices, you won't care what others think.

Also, most people here who have sleep trained, are thinking about sleep training, or planning to sleep train probably have babies that have far more issues than waking twice and going back to sleep soon.

AggieAsh23

Has anyone had success with nap training??? I've tried the NCSS suggestions after reading the book dedicated to naps and it doesn't work for our LO. I don't really like the idea of just sitting her in her crib and closing the door for an hour as suggested in HSHHC. Anybody have advice from personal experience? I'm willing to do th research first of course but would like to hear what others did before I buy yet another book. Night time is fine for us now.

kimbo1216

ElleStaxx said:

I have no input on sleep training, but can we please at least have 'training' spelled correctly in the title of this sticky? It's going to drive me bonkers to see that misspelled every single time I log on.

I fixed it. But FYI...you can hit dismiss on any sticky you no longer wish to see.

How do you do that? Can you do it mobile? Just on a sticky or any post?

there should be an option at the top right of a post.  you have to click on the little gear looking icon.

[Deleted User]

The user and all related content has been deleted.

Chrisanna0508

@AggieAsh23‌ I don't have tips on another thing, but I have been doing the leave him for an hour at naps. Ferber actually says to get then if they aren't asleep after 30 min, but many times DS will play in his crib for 45 min and then suddenly pass out. There have been one or two times that he has fussed for a while, but they figure it out. So just from my experience, the putting them down for an hour is not always bad.

AggieAsh23

Chrisanna0508 said:

@AggieAsh23‌ I don't have tips on another thing, but I have been doing the leave him for an hour at naps. Ferber actually says to get then if they aren't asleep after 30 min, but many times DS will play in his crib for 45 min and then suddenly pass out. There have been one or two times that he has fussed for a while, but they figure it out. So just from my experience, the putting them down for an hour is not always bad.

I would feel better about it if she played or even fussed, but she screams bloody murder!!! To the point that she gets choked up. She does it if we just leave her, if we pat her, sing, shush, you name it. Only way I can get her asleep is car, stroller, or holding her. And of course if I'm holding her I cannot put her down or she screams again. But at night she happily sleeps in her crib.

I don't mind holding her but I'm finding her naps are consolidating making them longer. As a result things that should get done while she naps have to be done while she's playing which means I don't get to play with her. Anybody else have a screamer?

AggieAsh23

crunchymama11 said:

AggieAsh23 said:

Chrisanna0508 said:

@AggieAsh23‌ I don't have tips on another thing, but I have been doing the leave him for an hour at naps. Ferber actually says to get then if they aren't asleep after 30 min, but many times DS will play in his crib for 45 min and then suddenly pass out. There have been one or two times that he has fussed for a while, but they figure it out. So just from my experience, the putting them down for an hour is not always bad.

I would feel better about it if she played or even fussed, but she screams bloody murder!!! To the point that she gets choked up. She does it if we just leave her, if we pat her, sing, shush, you name it. Only way I can get her asleep is car, stroller, or holding her. And of course if I'm holding her I cannot put her down or she screams again. But at night she happily sleeps in her crib.

I don't mind holding her but I'm finding her naps are consolidating making them longer. As a result things that should get done while she naps have to be done while she's playing which means I don't get to play with her. Anybody else have a screamer?

get a baby carrier and babywear for naps. she'll get there eventually. or will she nap in a swing?


Baby wearing is a great idea. I don't know why I haven't done this. I wear her out in public all the time but I guess we have just gotten into a nap rut at home and it slipped my mind to do it for naps. She will sometimes sleep in the swing but puts up a fight. I think for now we will baby wear until she's feeling less clingy. That way she doesn't spend her nap tine screaming, I can get stuff done, and I still get time to play with her when she's awake... win, win, win! Thank you @crunchymama11 .... You always have such helpful answers.

emmylou78

@azieber‌ I have an infantino that I use sometimes, in addition to my moby. My LO will fall asleep in it. It's usually after I walk around for a bit though, it's not like automatic or anything.

Mama2be12345

Great article @NatesCupcake47‌ I think as LO's get older those kind of reminders of what's "normal" get more and more important.

I definitely agree that baby wearing for naps is wonderful! LO loves being cuddled in in the ergo both when I'm going for long walks as well as when I'm getting things done around the house. She's still a little fussy in the evening and takes an evening nap usually from 5-6 and will only nap in the ergo. She's also great at nursing in the ergo so it's super convenient!

Mama2be12345

@AggieAsh23‌ and @azieber‌

To clarify on helping them nap in the pack or sling my LO used to refuse to nap in the ergo unless I kept her moving on a long walk. I eventually just put her in it each evening and if she cried a little I comforted her and calmed her down but didn't take her out. By the next few nights she was pretty used to it and now when she goes in sleepy and I move around a little (just tidying the house or doing dishes) and pull up the head cover to make it dark for her she falls right asleep. If she's alert she just hangs out and I talk to her until she shows signs of sleepiness.

Maybe try helping LO get used to the carrier? LO used to be very similar and want to only nap in my arms so I know how exhausting that can be! Hugs!

AggieAsh23

@Mama2be12345. You can nurse in the ergo?!?! Ok teach me your ways!

jennlin

I think I just want to throw it out there that sleep training isn't a "required" parenting task. I didn't do it with my daughter, and she doesn't sleep fantastically at night, but frankly, I don't care. She's getting plenty of sleep during the day, so she's not "deprived" of sleep. Nobody said that getting enough sleep means you must do it consecutively, and at night.

So, if you're reading these boards, and all these sleep training posts don't feel right to you, you're not doing it wrong, just doing it different, and that's okay-you are not breaking your baby. If there is no stress regarding sleeping at night, then do not stress about sleep training.

Jalee85

Emilyusc211 said:

Do any of these sleep training books have a chapter on weaning from a swaddle? I don't know where I stand on sleep training just yet, but the swaddle... good lord I need help. 

I weaned from the swaddle using the Merlin Magic Sleep Suit.

Jalee85

Emilyusc211 said:

Jalee85 said:

Emilyusc211 said:

Do any of these sleep training books have a chapter on weaning from a swaddle? I don't know where I stand on sleep training just yet, but the swaddle... good lord I need help. 

I weaned from the swaddle using the Merlin Magic Sleep Suit.

Can your lO's hands reach their mouth in this?

Yep, it just takes a little more effort. It basically cushions all of their movements so the startle reflex doesn't wake them up, but they can still move around.

scamberlous3000

Jalee85 said:

Emilyusc211 said:

Do any of these sleep training books have a chapter on weaning from a swaddle? I don't know where I stand on sleep training just yet, but the swaddle... good lord I need help. 

I weaned from the swaddle using the Merlin Magic Sleep Suit.

Yeeeeees!!!! The MMSS is a gift from the heavens!

Mama2be12345

@AggieAsh23‌ like @crunchymama11‌ said you loosen the arm straps a little to let her body drop back then you help LO latch. My LO is a tiny baby, so that helps too because she hasn't grown much past boob level. It is a god send though, went to book club last night at a busy restaurant LO wouldn't nap and was fussy but was perfectly happy sitting in the ergo sucking on a boob and no one could tell unless they really looked closely! It took LO a few tries to get very good at nursing in the ergo though so give it a few tries!

@Emilyusc211‌ we are still swaddling LO. She sleeps in the Merlin magic suit for morning naps but is too discoordinated by bedtime and still needs the comfort of the swaddle. Her pedi said it was fine and I'm over stressing about it. We will wean when it's time. We did get her a woombie because she was strong enough to break out of the traditional swaddles which was a huge pain!

Mama2be12345

@Emilyusc211‌ yeah I think it's not the "norm" but I feel like it's important to read your LO's signs and try to do what's best for them. If they are safe and thriving with the swaddle I don't think there needs to be a rush to quit using it. LO has been crazy swaddle dependent since birth, this is my first baby so when people talk about how their kids never needed to be swaddled it seriously blows my mind! Can't even picture it.

Mama2be12345

@wedding06‌ my LO is a tiny baby, just about 13 pounds now but she still fits in the newborn size. I think they have 3 different sizes though and go pretty big. We bought ours on amazon and the reviews regarding sizing were helpful. You could check it out. I really love the woombie, wish I'd bought it sooner!

Emilyraymond

Natalie2290 said:

I just wanted to share that our sleep training has been going great. DS went from waking 10X a night to about 4X a night. Now he is only waking up once! That one wake up is easy. Half a bottle, new dipper, and some snuggles. He's back out like a light and not waking back up till about 5am. We are all felling so much better.

What kind of sleep training did you do?

vargasgurl

I started sleep training my little one , she does cry , but only for 15 mins total and that includes my 2 (5min) check ups to soothe her. I don't care to wean her yet to STTN .. At some point I think I plan to cut back on the feedings because they last like 3mins ... I Plan to keep a dream feed in there. My problem isn't putting her to sleep .. She is learning to self soothe... It's weaning her from the 6-7x wake ups to comfort feed! It was awful at 3:30 am ... I'm bummed I'm so proud of her ... She is really doing well ... I h

psychdoc12

Sorry if this has been addressed before... 

I haven't started any sort of sleep training, just look at Ferber and other options. I had a question for everyone. I get the idea of graduated extinction. How do you determine whether LO "needs" a MOTN feeding or is just waking up and not falling back asleep due to inability to self-soothe? All my child's MOTN crying (primarily fussing and yelling out) sounds the same to me.

psychdoc12

Wow, I just decided to try putting her down in her crib awake for the first attempt at a nap there ever. She's always napped in the rock and play. She fussed for less than ten minutes, not even enough consecutive minutes so that I could check on her, and now she's asleep.

kimbo1216

psychdoc12 said:

Sorry if this has been addressed before... 

I haven't started any sort of sleep training, just look at Ferber and other options. I had a question for everyone. I get the idea of graduated extinction. How do you determine whether LO "needs" a MOTN feeding or is just waking up and not falling back asleep due to inability to self-soothe? All my child's MOTN crying (primarily fussing and yelling out) sounds the same to me.

@psychdoc12‌ for me it was obvious when LO would wake a sooth within ten minutes. I also had a "I will feed you time" and wouldn't feed before them. The time was determined by how long she had gone in the past (pre major regression). The three days of training we did, she only woke once before that time and self soothed quickly. Then she slept to well past that time. It was great. When she woke again, she would eat for a while.

I knew before we stated she wasn't waking out of hunger because she would snack and fall right back to sleep. She wasn't lasting in her bassinet more than 1-2 hours. So I'd hold her the majority of the night. She would sleep and eat at leisure. This was okay until she started getting really fussy in the motn and not going back to sleep even when bed sharing. It was hard because there was a good couple of hours each night she would just fuss and fuss. I truly believe it was because she was so tired but couldn't sleep. .

Well, the first three days went so great. Then she and I (and DD1) all got bad allergy attacks so she wasn't feeling well. Instead of continuing with the training, I went ahead and nursed her whenever she woke. However, even after only three days of ST, she was sleeping 3-4 hours in her bassinet before waking (yes we did in-room ST since I wasn't ready to night wean and didn't want to traipse up stairs to nurse). So she only woke twice each night the whole week with only one truly being motn as the first happened while I was still awake. Oh and she was still putting herself to sleep for her bed time and naps--usually in less than 2 min. .

Anyway, she's much better now but last mighty felt more like pre ST. So we will probably get stricter about it again. .

Sorry for the diatribe. I know I have more info than what was probably necessary. But I guess I was just trying to make the point to go with your gut. I knew LO wasn't waking out of hunger and was proved right when she went back to sleep so soon. .

If she hadn't self soothed quickly, I think I would have gotten her after thirty minutes. Nursed and out her back down. Which tbh, is against Ferber guidelines. If she were older, is be stricter. But right now we are just looking to improve and he'll her sleep more. We aren't necessarily looking for 10-12 hours of uninterrupted sleep. Hope that helps at least some. GL

psychdoc12

I gave it a shot. Lasted about two minutes of crying. Wow, not for me. At least not right now. I prefer the sleep deprivation at this point.

kimbo1216

psychdoc12 said:

I gave it a shot. Lasted about two minutes of crying. Wow, not for me. At least not right now. I prefer the sleep deprivation at this point.

This was me with DD1 from 10w to 6m which was when I finally reached my breaking point.

Good luck if or when you decide to so something.

You may try NO Cry sleep solution or Good Night Sleep Tight

psychdoc12

kimbo1216 said:

I gave it a shot. Lasted about two minutes of crying. Wow, not for me. At least not right now. I prefer the sleep deprivation at this point.

This was me with DD1 from 10w to 6m which was when I finally reached my breaking point. Good luck if or when you decide to so something. You may try NO Cry sleep solution or Good Night Sleep Tight

Yeah, I'll start researching some other options. I have my fingers crossed that she's in a six-month growth spurt and things will get a little better on their own.