6 month old barely napping and waking alot at night. HELP.

Corisande - posted on 10/11/2010

I really feel for you!! It is common for babies to wake up during the night, several times a night even. And because you are all in the same room, she wakes you up and wearing you out. My childeren have never slept in our room for long. Unfortunately for them, my husband is the light sleeper (he had wake me up for me to go and breastfeed :$). Herewith some of the tips from the Dutch infant wellfare centre:
Comfort them, but be clear
From 9 months on your baby can start to feel a little bit alone in his room. Perhaps he will no longer go sleep as easily as he used to. He has to proces everything he has experienced during the day and he can dream about it too. This may cause him to wake up in a panic. What to do?

- Comfort your baby in his own room and in his own bed (we all know how tempting it is to take your baby in your arms!! But for his and your own sake... don't)
- Don't put to many lights on
- Stay with him till he has calmed down
- Be clear: every night he will sleep in his own bed (all the time)
This phase may take a while? Are you tired of it?? Try to let him sleep over at friends or family for a night :-).

Have a clear "go to bed" routine
Your baby needs to calm down before going to bed. You can help him do that by doing the same thing every night:
- an hour before bedtime: no more television or radio. No more exciting games and plays.
- take the time to undress, wash and putting on pyjama's (perhaps a short baby massage?)
- Walk passed a few regular items in his room and say good night to them (so they really know it is time to sleep)
- put your child in his bed, say a clear goodnight and leave. Don't stall the moment.
- it is perfectly ok for your child to cry a little bit (max 15 min)
- is he totally upset? Comfort him in his own bed and be clear when you leave again. Never take your child out of bed.

Some kids sleep less
Maybe your child doesn't need as much sleep. You can hear him sing or play in bed. That is ok. You cannot force them to sleep. (you can however make them stay in their bed)

My personal experience
With my first born we bought a monitor with lullabies that can be activated from the parent unit. We chose a specific lullaby and played it every night while leaving the room after our good nights. If she would cry a bit longer we would replay the same lullaby over again. And during nights that he was more restless (which babies tent to have once in a while) I would take the parent unit to bed and if my baby would cry during the night I would try to calm it with the lullaby first. Just to prefend to teach them "if I cry mummy comes to me" because all babies love to have mummy around. They don't realize yet that mummy is a lot more fun after a decent night of sleep. And it worked very well for us. Now with our second using it again, and it works like a charm again!!

So for your own sleep and sake, you could consider putting her in her own room. As said my daughter is breastfed as well but from 8 weeks on she has "slept" from 22 hours till 7 o'clock. And with 5 months she started to sleep from 7 till 7, so 12 hours. She now has a period where she is awake more often during the night, they tent to have these periods where they are more restless. This is normal, the brain is undergoing major changes and they might eat less as usual, sleep less and need more mummy during this periods. Usually a period is a few days and after that your baby will refind his happy self again.

Since she is a light sleeper, her own room might be of help to her as well. Just a she wakes you up, you might wake her up as well. I've noticed that my daughter sleeps longer and better when I put her to bed in her own room, than when she falls asleep in the living room with us in there as well. Both my children are very sensitive to sound and actions around them. The guardian sleeper might work for her as well, but it really depends on the cause. My daughter used to guardian sleeper at first, but later it seemed that she felt restricted by it and would sleep in it. So every child is different, follow your instinct when reading all of this. And in order to get some sleep yourself, consider a friend of relative you can ask to babysit (maybe even during the day, so you can catch up some sleep)
Good luck
(also see my community General information)

Kate - posted on 10/07/2010

i am going through the same thing. everything i try doesnt seem to help. he hasnt cut a tooth yet i dont know if this attributes to the lack of sleep, he is 8months old now.. and like you said the lack of sleep is killing me. i tried the version of the CIO method where you go in at 5 min then increase not saying a word, i just find his pacifier and give it to him

help

Nicola - posted on 09/21/2010

I used the Guardian Sleeper with my second child. What a difference it made! I put her in her crib and she felt like she was being held. She slept for longer periods of time. It is an amazing tool. Worth checking out. Guardiansleeper.com. It has lots of testimonials on the site, Both medical and Mom. Good luck.

Lisa - posted on 07/08/2010

I'd recommend talking to your pediatrician to make sure your child is growing properly and if so, just cut the night-time feedings. I wish I could tell you CIO is not the only method, but I have not read any books where there isn't some type of CIO. It's either some form of CIO for a few nights, or exhaustion for many years. It still makes me unhappy to hear my child cry to sleep, but it's better than it was and I'm not exhausted now. You can also try feeding your child a lot of solid food with protein in it at night - that seems to help my son.

Melissa - posted on 03/08/2010

hi my 7 month old is still waking ever 3 - 4 hours at night for feeds, im in the same boat and going crazy off of no sleep. i really need some advice, im breast feeding and i was told to give in more solids but that didnt work and to put him on formula and that didnt work so i dont know what to try next
Please help

Melanie - posted on 03/01/2010

I feel your pain my 5 1/2 month old does the same thing I have tried everything! Me and my husband somehow manage to drag ourselves to work everyday but its very exhausting. Ive been looking for some help before I loose my mind!

Michelle - posted on 02/25/2010

I'm having the exact same problem with my girl at 5 and a half months old. I thought by now that she'd only be waking up once a night, but it's sometimes up to 4 times a night! I'm breastfeeding still and assumed maybe she's not getting enough substance from my breast milk as she feeds every time she wakes up.

And like Christina says, the lack of sleep is sure starting to take it's toll. :(



Please help!