Wednesday, November 19, 2008
Question from Emily on Sleeping Through the NIght.....
My boy is 11 mo. old and still hasn't slept through the night. (honestly I think he has 3 times). I have tried feeding him rice, nursed, lots of formula. I feel like everything. The doc says he'll go on his own but I need sleep too. Any ideas on helping me and him to get a good night sleep?
Subscribe to:
Post Comments (Atom)
8 comments:
Have you tried letting him cry? My Dr. told me to let Kaylee cry for 15-30 minutes, then if she didn't go back to sleep on her own to go in and try to soothe her with her binky or a pat on the stomach. The first night I tried it, she fell asleep after only 15 min. of crying. She has pretty much slept through the night since.
I think letting him cry is the best at that age. I had troubles with my son too. It was so hard for me to let him cry, but when I finally did it it really paid off. It took several nights of it, but he did eventually give in and sleep. I have really learned, too, that routines are EXTREMELY useful - it doesn't matter what the routine, really, just that it's the same every night - Another place to go for great advice is www.parentcenter.com I love that site!
I know with my baby, having him on a routine helped me. He had been sleeping through the night since he was three months. I also would make sure not to cuddle him when it was close to bedtime so he wouldn't want to cuddle to sleep. I read in what to expect.. that the best thing to do when you want them to go to sleep or back to sleep is to make sure not to cuddle them or pick them up if you don't have to or they learn to cry for mommy. It sure worked for me!
I too say get a routine. Try to put him to bed at the same time everynight and they need to cry it out. It should not take over a week. They usually adjust to a routine with in 3-7 days. If they wake up in the night wait about 5 min and then go in and give the binki or just simply lay them back down and walk out. Do NOT talk to them, that will stimulate them and get them more alert and want out. I to ohave childrens music I play for them as they go to sleep then if they wake in the night I turn that back on. It works really well for all four of my kids. Good luck. let us know what works!
Have you tried different sleeping positions? I find my baby can put himself back to sleep on his tummy but not his back or side. Of course, yours is old enough to roll himself any which way he wants . . . I also strongly agree with the comment to not talk to, or pick up the baby. (if only I could get my husband to learn that!) Any hint that it's play time and there's not a chance he'll go back to sleep.
I tried letting my son cry and it really didn't work for us. What might work for one kid doesn’t work for another. I’m no expert but some kids like to cuddle when they sleep and some don’t. My older brother was not a good sleeper he like the close contact so he would sleep best with my parents. He still likes to cuddle close to people when he sleeps like his wife. I on the other hand can’t stand it and my mom told me I loved my crib and being by myself and slept through the night.I’m still like that now I hate to be touched when I am sleeping it drives me nuts. Then there are some kids like my husband was who just can’t sleep good not matter what. His mom told me if she had my husband first there wouldn’t have been more kids he was so bad at sleeping. Her first 2 kids she had no problem. And what is sad he still isn’t a good sleeper now that he is older. And i'm sure she tried all the tricks too. I found my son is one of those that like close contact ever since he was little. I had the doctor tell me just to let him cry and I tried it and well it didn’t work he would fall asleep for a little bit and wake back up screaming. People might think I’m a bad mom for letting him sleep with us. But you do what you have to do to get sleep. He still like close contact but he can sleep in his own bed now and through the night. I found out he didn’t like his crib at all. When we turned it into a toddler bed he loved it and started to sleep in his own bed. I don’t think he like feeling trapped. He was only a year old when we turned it into a toddler bed. Playing soft music is also very helpful. You kind to have to find out what works best for your child and only you know that. The truth is you can’t control this stuff no matter how much you try because each kid is not the same. I don’t think I turned my son into a close contact kid. He was in his crib when brought him home and I tried a bunch of things and then just resulted to doing what I felt my son needed instead of what everyone else said would be better to do. I might be completely wrong about all this and this might be the worse advice to you. I just have been there. I am one of those moms that had a kid that didn’t sleep through the night till he was a little over a year. But just look at it this way, He could just simply be one of those kids that has a little quirk like wanting close contact, or can’t sleep with any light in the room, or doesn’t like the crib. Just find what works best for him and you. This is a really long comment sorry.
I really appreciate that last comment by someone. The one about how each kid is different. Yes, I have let him cry. Up to an hour at least 10 times. You almost described my baby completely! Thank you for posting. I feel better about doing what I do at night. I have the same routine each night, have soft music, and then i snuggle him till he's asleep. I just have a hard time doing that at 3 in the morning. I understand now that that is what my baby needs-snuggles. Thank you so much for posting!
Like the one person said what works for one child might not work for another. The crying thing did not work for my oldest daughter. We tried the crying thing 2 nights in a row and I let her scream for 4hours both nights and it didn't stop. I just resorted to laying by her for 5 minutes each night until she fell asleep. But my son learned to sleep through the night by crying. He cried for 20 minutes the first night about 15 the second and 10 the next and then he never cried again after that. But it is also important to try and get them to go to sleep about the same time every night if you can. So you just have to try all the different way until you see what works best for you and I will let you know neither of my children sleep through the night until they were over a year old~yes I said it over a year old. The first year of my children's life is the hardest because we get no sleep!!
Post a Comment