XP: Finally, a plan?

jeannkerricotober09 · November 2012

N has some pretty hard core sleep issues. He gets up frequently, a minimum of 4 wakes but it more like 6 and can hit upwards of 10 in a night, but we've discovered it is probably my milk that wakes him up and have kind of come up with a solution. The bigger problem is that it takes minimum of 6 hours a day/night to get him to sleep, but usually it is closer to 8. It's a full time job, just to get him to sleep and I'm not talking from bath to sleep. If you took bath,books, etc into account we'd be another 30-90 min per sleep. A normal night or nap goes something like this:

nurse
bounce
rock
hand to K (at night, for naps, it's all me obviously)
bounce
rock
bounce
back to me
nurse
bounce
(2+ hours later)
asleep
2 hours later awake
if I don't nurse him immediately
rock
cry
bounce
repeat for 2 hours
asleep

If it's a nap than he's usually sleeps only 45 min, occasionally 90. It typically takes over 2 times the length of his nap to get him to sleep.

He's been like this since birth. He's never fallen asleep in his swing or playing on his playmat or stuffed to the brim in his high chair or drifted off in my arms while I watch tv or sit in a chair. Every nap and sleep for the last 14 months has required hours of physical labor.

We've tried *everything* no cry, CIO, cosleeping, Montessori floor bed, PU/PD, nursing, bottles of BM, bottles of formula, changing/dropping sleep associations, moving his bed time back or ahead, sleep machines, blankies/lovies, black out curtains, pacifiers, you name it. Nothing works.

An hour ago we were referred to Boston Children's Hospital Sleep Center. I am scared and nervous and hopeful and a small piece of me feels like a failure.

Has anyone been to a sleep center?

jeannkerricotober09 · November 2012

Thanks. It's not getting some sleep, that's the issue, it's cutting back the 10+ hours a day it takes (from bath to sleep) to get N to sleep. We're sleeping, just not doing anything else! Almost every hour of the day is dedicated to getting N to sleep or him sleeping.

seattlekari · November 2012

OMG Jean what a horrid schedule. I thought E was hard to get to sleep from 0-1.5 but man, we have nothing on you.

I used to do clinical trials for sleep study patients (adults) so I am familiar with the process. If they decide that N needs a sleep study, they will use some sticky stuff to put some electrodes on his skin. It will look scary with lots of cables but it is completely harmless to him. They have to do this in order to pick up what's going on in his body while he's sleeping. Sleep centers also use night vision cameras so they can watch what's going on with body movement, etc. I'm not sure exactly how they will handle when they want you in the room vs. not since they will want to try to capture him actually sleeping. I'm sure they will have this down pat since you are going to the children's hospital. Good luck and hang in there mama. I hope you get some answers.

hlke · November 2012

I responded on the other board, but I also wanted to add that I'm a patient at a sleep clinic. I'm not sure what they do for kids, and I'm sure it's different, but I can say that everyone I've worked with has been wonderful.

A lot of the initial interventions are behavioral, and sometimes they might feel counterintuitive. For adults for example, they suggest limiting time in bed to only time you are sleeping. It certainly felt counterintuitive to only be in bed for 4-5 hours a night when my main complaint was I was tired all the time! I'm sure the interventions will be different for a kiddo, but I just want to recommend trusting them and determining with them how long you will try any given intervention. Sometimes with sleep stuff, the whole "worse before it gets better" thing applies.

I'm sorry you're having such a rough time, and I hope the sleep clinic helps.

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