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Babies: 9 - 12 Months
Sovello
member
Eleanor Gwendolyn
Baby waking up at night... and staying awake
Sovello
member
I know there are a bunch of "my baby wake up at night" posts out there but none of them address this situation. DD has never STTN. She's always woken up at least once, and now she's doing it more and more. She wakes up and goes back to sleep several times in the evening, but then somewhere between 11pm-2am she wakes up and THAT'S IT. She wants nothing to do with food or sleep, she just wants to be awake and play. This lasts typically 4-5 hours. We have tried everything... changing her, feeding her, dressing her up and down, checked her temperature, moved her between her crib and rock n play and back again, giving her baby tylonol in case it's her teeth, I've stopped using fabric conditioner, tried more naps, fewer naps... this has been going on months. All this time she doesn't cry or fuss, she seems perfectly happy, she just wants to be AWAKE and PLAY. Usually after about 4 or 5 hours she just can't stay awake anymore and crashes out.
I've asked the pediatrician about it but he had no suggestions. I wouldn't post this if I weren't desperate. I fear nights, we've been taking them in turn but DH leaves for work at 6am so he really can't do it. I'm more sleep deprived now then when she was a newborn with colic and all.
Does anyone have any input? Maybe if this happened to you? Anything that helped? Any books or tips or anything at all 
Eleanor Gwendolyn
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Re: Baby waking up at night... and staying awake
Hypothyroid/Fibroids/Stage 4 Endometriosis
10/2010 Open myomectomy to remove 3 fibroids largest @ 8 inches. Stage 4 endometriosis and inoperable/blocked left tube.
3/2011 Laporoscopy/Hysteroscopy. 3 endometrioma cysts, hydrosalpinx, left tube and half of the left ovary removed.
5/2011 IUI #1 medicated w/injections, 1 follie = BFP!
6/2011 Blighted Ovum/ D&C
9/2011 IUI #2 medicated w/injections, 2 follies = BFP!
Thanks for the input guys! I've tried to explain the thing about no lights/play to DH but he says she's just to cute at night (smiling and laughing, wanting to play.)
I tried CIO once a few months ago and felt like an absolute monster. She's always had severe acid reflux and is still on Prilosec for it. So when she cries a lot, it triggers it and she ends up coughing up acidy stuff, and then you can't calm her down at all because she's in pain. CIO is just not an option. I think I am going to take over nights completely for a while. I'm pretty sure DH is the one teaching her nights are fun, he even said "But I don't want to give up our nightly play sessions!" (jokingly of course) when I suggested it.
STILL being sleep deprived after 9 months just isn't fun
Previous poster mentioned sleep training, any book suggestions regarding that?
Eleanor Gwendolyn
What does your LO's nap schedule look like? The Ferber book has a lot of advice about nap and sleep habits and schedules and how to adjust them so that a baby has a better chance of sleeping through the night.
I agree with the PPs that said you might need to help LO recognize that it's night time by not interacting with your LO at night.
We've had pretty much every sleep issue under the sun, including this one. Here are some tips that might help:
-Keep it dark, super quiet, treat it like the middle of the night no matter what time she wakes between 7pm and 7am.
-Don't bother with changing her diaper unless she's pooped or soaking wet and you think it's bugging her.
-Don't talk to her unless it's softly and just to soothe her if she's upset ("ssshhhh, shhhhhh, it's night-night time" is all I ever say)
-Feed her if you think she's hungry but keep in her room and quiet.
-Make sure she's going to bed early enough (usually around 7pm at this age, potentially earlier if you have to get her up early in the morning) - overtired babies wake more.
-Make sure the room is dark enough - even some nightlights are too bright and can disrupt circadian rhythms. Make it so dark that you can barely see the hand in front of your face (even after your eyes have adjusted).
-Use a fan for white noise to allow her to transition between sleep cycles better and provide her with something to lull her to sleep when she wakes.
-Unless she's worked up, leave the room and attempt to sleep. I'm not an advocate of CIO so I always left the monitor on, and if she gets worked up, just go in and comfort as necessary, but try to keep her in the crib (unless you need to take her out to feed etc). Pat her back, hug her over he crib rails if she stands, whatever you need to do, just keep her in the crib and try to settle her. When she's settled, say goodnight and leave again.
Unless there's a physical problem, like teething or ear infections or something like that, she should grow out of this phase once she realizes that it's not playtime and there's no benefit to waking up in the middle of the night.
Good luck!!
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Just a thought: My LO recently went through this phase where she would wake up and want to play for 2-3 hours int he middle of the night. We kept her in her room in the dark fed her, rocked her and then lay her back in her crib and stood beside it and kept flipping her back onto her back when she tried to roll over. She eventually decided it was no fun and went to sleep.
I think part of our problem was I was getting so sleep deprived I started to drink more coffee later in the day and I think it must have been impacting her. I cut out my afternoon coffees and it seems to have helped. GL mama!
Guys!
Thankyou for your input, I just wanted to update! I am FINALLY HUMAN AGAIN. I literally had no idea how much this was all weighing on me, her sleep issues. Having to rock her to sleep for an hour for every nap and at bedtime then repeat the process all evening. I felt so hopeless and desperate and was certain nothing could ever work for her because she was just way too messed up and I had installed such terrible sleep habits.
On sunday night we began the SleepEasy Solution and it was horribly painful the first evening (in reality she cried for only 25 minutes but it felt longer) and then slept CONTINUOUSLY to 2am, had a snack then went to 6.30! That is INCREDIBLE for her! Night two was even better and it's just gotten better since! I now nurse and snuggle with her before each nap and sleep, and then put her in her crib. She whines when I leave but by the time I'm at the bottom of the stairs she has stopped. She just sits down, squirms into a sleep position and conks out! She slept in a Rock n Play since 3 months old, was the ONLY thing she would sleep in but now she is all sprawled out in her crib for two nice long naps and a good night's sleep every day- she's a different baby! So much more engaged. I believe her driving me to the edge was her way of telling me she was ready for the change
I just wanted to thank you all for your valuable input and share my story. I am a different person. DH even said to me last night "You're back! I've missed you!"
That book saved my life! Seriously! Probably not for everyone but it worked for us even though I didn't believe anything could. If anyone is in a situation like mine, where naps and bed are a battle and you fear their approach, I would heartily recommend it.
Eleanor Gwendolyn