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February 2011 Moms
JamieSF
member
I am this close to letting him scream to sleep alone
JamieSF
member
I am at the end of my rope. LO has been awake for large portions of the night for WEEKS and I am getting so angry / depressed / exhausted. He only slept for a total of 3 hours last night between 10pm and 6am and then was up for the day (he also slept from 7pm to 10pm). I went down for naps decently yesterday and I have tried to follow the max awake time guidelines since birth, but he just has a horrible time falling asleep and staying asleep. As long as he is held, he is generally calm, so I don't think he is in pain. I don't know what to do. I am considering letting him CIO, but last time I tried out if desperation he screamed for two hours with no signs of stopping ("checks" are not going to work with him because he totally wakes up more with any interaction). Ugh . 
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Re: I am this close to letting him scream to sleep alone
A couple of things that have helped us on these nights that might be worth a shot.
Sleeping in the swing - DD has reflux and has had a couple colds already. Sleeping inclined helps her to breathe when she's stuffy and helps with the reflux, too.
Swaddling - We've been trying to break the swaddle, but last night I just couldn't handle it any longer and I swaddled her with just one arm in. She fell asleep right away and slept for the rest of the night.
I hope you're able to find something that works so you both can get some rest.
Since it sounds like CIO isn't really an option since he stays awake anyhow, hopefully something else will work. For all of you. I know DD went through a multi-week growth spurt recently. She needed to eat constantly and was so alert that it was hard for her to sleep. I've found the best way to help her sleep is continued nursing. I side-lay in bed with her on her side nursing next to me. We both fall alseep doing this. If you have a DH, have him share some of the burden. When I get to the end of my rope and nursing no longer helps, I pass her off to him and I try to sleep for a while. I make him take her to the opposite end of the house and close the door.
Good luck!
I'm so sorry. Have you tried holding him til he falls asleep and then putting him down? If he wakes, try to shove the pacifier in his mouth and drum on his diaper bum. Do you have a crib soother? Can you vacuum in his room to get him to sleep? Put him in his car seat and stroller him around the house? (Used to have to do that with my son.) Pat his back til he sleeps? Or maybe you should just sleep in a recliner with him on you. Can you try putting him to sleep on his side or belly? Maybe he hates the swaddle because he wants to roll?
Just trying to think of anything that can help, I don't know what you've already tried or not so I'm just listing all I can think of.
The vacuum works for Hannah as does the dryer or running water. I am also trying to think of suggestions for you because when Hannah gets over tired, CIO would probably not work for her. I also lay side by side with her in the bed and she will sometimes fall asleep that way. Or if I lay in bed and read she will get bored and fall asleep.
Is he crying the whole time he's awake at night? Or just awake and happy? If he naps decently during the day, and then is wide awake at night, is it possible he's getting too much sleep during the day?
I think all that crap about watching awake times is a bunch of bull. At least, it didn't work for us, and just made me feel like a bad mom because A didn't want to nap nearly as much as Babywise says she should.
Or, can you play with his bedtime a little bit? Try putting him down a little later, and see if he sleeps longer. I'm sure you're already doing a bedtime routine, but if not, that could help.
Also, here's an interesting article about CIO and why it works for some babies but not others.
https://www.askmoxie.org/2006/06/babies_and_cio.html
Remember, this won't last forever! It sounds like you just need a few solid hours of sleep and then you'll be able to approach this with a fresh mind and more patience. Can you have a family member or friend come watch him for a few hours so you can get a nap? I came into work at noon today, Audrey went to DC at the regular time, and I got to sleep in. It was amazing, and totally worth the half day of vacation time I had to take.
How much is he eating? When Mj started to sleep less/wake up more I added an extra oz to his bottle. This seemed to help alot. He has 5 bottles a day at 7oz each every 3hrs. He is up from 6:30am- 8:00pm but takes a few short 20min-1hr naps through out the day. i do not monitor how much or how often. If he's tired he naps if he's not we sit on the floor to play, tummy time, exercauser, swing.
he also loves to watch me vaccuum. I videotapped him moving his head around watching me, it was hysterical. Also I noticed that MJ does not like it to be light in his room so we have some nice shades to help filter out some light. I also have an airpurifier which gives a soft sound in his room.
A Frog, A Monkey and a Ladybug
::huge hugs::
I'm just going to throw out suggestions. Take them or leave them- I hope you find something that works soon! There were things I never planned on doing, but in survival mode, I didn't care! These are things that either worked for us or suggestions I've heard before...
-co sleeping (in bed or in a recliner)
-fall asleep skin to skin (kangaroo care)
-change the room temp
-bath and baby massage at bedtime
-cluster feed before bed
-add rice cereal to the bottle at bedtime
-bouncy/vibrating chair
-sleep on belly
-music/white noise/fan
Is there anyone that would take him for several hours for you so that YOU can get some good solid sleep? One of the best nights of my life since she was born was when we were visiting my ILs and my MIL and SIL sent me to bed early and Lena slept in her PNP in my SIL's room and I got to sleep in.