Is CIO the only way? Alternatives?

Rainne38 · January 2011

DD has not been a great sleeper since day one. She was great in the RNP and semi-decent in crib. Sickness threw it all off. She wakes up many times during the night. I am seriously not tough enough for CIO. Are there any other alternatives? TIA

Starfish113 · January 2011

i haven't read it... but many people swear by the "no cry sleep solution"

Brougham7-15-06 · January 2011

I am right there with you...DD has been a terrible napper/sleeper since the beginning, and I just don't have the patience for CIO...I just can't do it.

wifeyvana · January 2011

Check out The No Cry Sleep Solution - it hasn't worked for us (LO is a really horrible sleeper and always has been) but has worked for many. You can also check out The Sleep Lady book (I forget the official title but you can google it) - it is a gentler version of the CIO method, this is what we will be starting soon.

doremi29 · January 2011

Starfish113:
i haven't read it... but many people swear by the "no cry sleep solution"

We used it to get DS from 5+ wakings down to 2 and then when he was about 6 months we did CIO to get him down to 1 waking for a bottle. We really liked the book- it has great suggestions and you can take what you want from it- it's very relaxed.

teamsweet · January 2011

I read the NCSS too and would recommend it. I think you'll find good ideas to help your LO sleep better. But you have to be consistent and willing to put in the time. Also, I've read that you should never do cio when baby is sick or going through separation anxiety or any other issue since the sleep issue is due to that and not a soothing issue.

tyke29 · January 2011

No pressure. But have you tried CIO. I thought it would be horrible because my LO is very hard headed (like his daddy - lol). But it only took once for him to understand the idea. Now - he only cries (not hard at all) for maybe 2-3 mins and then he plays with his bear blanket for a few mins and then sleep time - if at all. Most of the time at night he is tired and falls asleep during his last feeding and only opens his eyes for a a min before going back to sleep when placed in his crib.

Rainne38 · January 2011

Thanks for all the suggestions. I have tried CIO. Actually, I tried it with naps and she never actually cried, just kind of whined and fell alseep within 20 mins. Then she got sick and I never tried it because she was having a tough enough time. Now, post sickness, she always cries when I try it. Today I swore I would be vigilant and I thought she was going to hypervenalate she was crying so hard (although of course, I know i'm geing hyper-sensitive). Thanks again to all!

TiaTia · January 2011

I don't believe in CIO cold turkey. I'm also very sensitive to when DD was old enough to handle crying a bit to help her fall asleep. On top of that I BF, so I was worried that I might misread her cues for feeding VS waking up.

That being said....

DD wakes 5-7 times per night.every.night. She *sounds* hungry for about 3 of those wakings, but will only really eat at maybe 2 of them, and then when she is up for the day, she's not particularly hungry in the morning.

I've decided to wait until this Wednesday to officially start the Ferber method (haven't yet decided if I'll do the same for naps).

I recommend reading his book...he does not encourage CIO at all, but he does recommend waiting until LO is 5 or 6 months old....and now I can see he's right. I think DD is old enough to do it, and I now know her well enough to know that we'll all be happier with more sleep, and that she'll be ok with this type of sleep training.

FWIW, I've read the NCSS and tried some of the suggestions, but I just don;'t have the patience (or I'm not awake enough) to carry through the methods at 3:30 am when I never get more than 2 hours of sleep in a row.ever.

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Is CIO the only way? Alternatives?

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