Sleep Help
Brynn sleeps pretty well, it's just getting her to sleep that's the issue. We aim for a 6 PM bedtime since at that point she's just done with the day. We get changed into jammies, wash her face/hands and the she takes her last bottle for the night. She's usually falling asleep while finishing up the bottle but as soon as I put her down she wakes up.
She'll scream when I leave the room and if I come back in to put her paci back in her mouth, she just stops and smiles up at me. It's tearing my heart out. Last night we had 45 minutes of hysterical on and off crying. I haven't been getting her out of bed, but I'll let her cry for a little and then put her paci back in and leave. Rinse and repeat for 45 minutes.
What do I do? She can fall asleep without the paci so do I just let her cry it out without going in there? Is my going in there just prolonging her from falling asleep? I'm lost and frustrated.
Re: Sleep Help
We were doing something similar around this age. We would put Mr. O to bed and then do five minute "cycles." Let him fuss for five minutes, go in a comfort (without picking up) for five minutes, rinse and repeat. My DH finally noticed that if he didn't calm down immediately, then it would take an hour to get him to sleep. We decided to try progressive waiting, i.e. Ferber, and it worked almost immediately.
You may also want to take a look at her schedule. Six o'clock sounds like an early bedtime, but I know it varies by family. I mention it because this was also the age Mr. O started skipping his evening cat nap and going to bed at 7:30 p.m. instead of 8:30 or 9 p.m.
It is heartbreaking to hear them cry, so good luck!
Jennie
I loved this method, and it is the only one that works with DD. I like that you aren't leaving them alone (though they may still cry) but they still learn to self-soothe, and DD didn't get nearly as worked up as when we tried Ferber/CIO methods.