Why does my kid do this (sleep related)

[karinothing]

So, DS sleep has been kind of a mess lately. He is teething, plus learning to pull up, plus I think he caught DH's cold. All of this results in one tired mom.

So, he has started two new things (and I understand they can be related to one of the above issues as well).

1. He doesn't STTN which I am fine with because he was always super easy to get back down. However, all of the sudden he is just awake awake and refuses to go back down. He doesn't seem hungry. I try to get DH to go in (so he won't just want to nurse for funsies) but he just yells (he doesn't cry just babbles at the top of his lungs) at DH and refuses to call down. When I go in the room he starts laughing and tries as hard as he can to fly out of DH's arms into mine. While this is all adorable at like 2pm, not so much at 1am.

I know they are starting to develop object permanance around this age (he is 7.5 months). Is that what this is? Is he having some seperation anxiety issues? Is there a way to help this? I am kind of hesitant to do full on CIO (although for naps we let him cry for 3-5 minutes and he falls asleep). We haven't tried it at night, but I don't know if I have the energy or will to let him cry for longer than 5 minutes at night.

He will calm down if I bring him into bed with me and nurse him in a side lying position (he will fall asleep that way, but gets upset when I transfer him back to the crib). Right now the only thing that seems to work is to nurse him when he wakes up, put him down in the crib still awake let him cry for a bit, go get him nurse him again and then put him down (he usually goes to sleep this time). But this whole process takes far too long!

2. He knows how to fall asleep on his own, even if he is stubborn about it occasionally. However, he has started this new thing where when he wakes up at night or falls into a lighter sleep cycle he will lift his head and scream then place his head back down and pass out. I appreciate not having to comfort him BUT waking up every freaken 45 minutes to a baby scream is the suck. I assume I just have to wait this out?

[Deleted]

We've been through many similar cycles and DS is a pretty fantastic sleeper. It truly sucks sometimes :-( Hang in there, I hope this cycle ends soon!

Signed,
Someone who didn't get more than an hr of sleep last night.

[mrshandy]

1. That really sucks. Apart from CIO, you might try the No-Cry Sleep Solution. I used that first with DS before CIO and I'm happy we got it (even though we end up using Ferber). It did help and there are some great tips in there.

2. I'm guessing this will pass. I would just make sure you have the monitor on the lowest setting.

[Deleted]

Honestly, the only thing that worked for us was CIO. It broke my heart to do it, but now V sleeps through the night and it is heaven. She's happier during the day and so are we We started with just one awakening at a time (like CIO for her 11 PM wake up, but I would go get her for the 3 AM one) and it worked pretty well. Good luck! Sleep issues suck!

[greekypie]

Hmm, sounds like it could just be the teeth bothering him. Have you given him Motrin/Ibuprofen? Tylenol did jack $hit for my DS.

Also if you haven't yet, read Ferber's book .... he goes into detail about what sleep cycles are like at all the different developmental stages. It could just be he is going through a developmental leap. That mucks with their sleep quite a bit.

[karinothing]

Jun 12, 2012 7:58:04 GMT -5 greekypie said:

Hmm, sounds like it could just be the teeth bothering him. Have you given him Motrin/Ibuprofen? Tylenol did jack $hit for my DS.

Also if you haven't yet, read Ferber's book .... he goes into detail about what sleep cycles are like at all the different developmental stages. It could just be he is going through a developmental leap. That mucks with their sleep quite a bit.

We do give him motrin. I dont' think he is in pain because his pain screams are obvious (and he chews on his hands). But, I know they could still be bothering him even without a ton of pain.

I think a large part of it is now the developmental leap. I remember 3 weeks of utter hell before he learned to crawl. It just sucks a lot more now that I am back at work! ha ha.

Perhaps I will pick up Ferber. I do have the no cry sleep soltuion. I am really not sure full on CIO will ever be for us in part becuase I know he knows how to put himself to sleep so if he is upset I figure he needs somethign from me and also because we live in an apartment and I don't want my neighbors to hate me.

[hannamarin]

I agree that Ferber book is good. It talks about how if you fall asleep in the bed, nursing and then wake up in your crib alone, of course you cry. It is like you faling asleep in the bed with your pillow and waking up on the couch with no blankets.
I really agree with his theory that the baby needs the same routine at every sleep. I feel that Layla is happier in the day, sleeps better in the day and at night.
I know it is hard, but you might need to let him cry at night. I usually go in so she knows I am around and doesnt feel anxious that we are gone. But then I leave.

[hannamarin]

Oh yeah, I am a huge expert. Ha! My kid has no teeth so far, doesnt crawl or try to. So maybe I will be eating my words in a few weeks.

[karinothing]

Jun 12, 2012 8:19:37 GMT -5 @hannamarin said:

I agree that Ferber book is good. It talks about how if you fall asleep in the bed, nursing and then wake up in your crib alone, of course you cry. It is like you faling asleep in the bed with your pillow and waking up on the couch with no blankets.
I really agree with his theory that the baby needs the same routine at every sleep. I feel that Layla is happier in the day, sleeps better in the day and at night.
I know it is hard, but you might need to let him cry at night. I usually go in so she knows I am around and doesnt feel anxious that we are gone. But then I leave.

Yeah, i guess the thing is I don't nurse him to sleep on a regular basis. So at bedtime, I nurse till sleepy. I unlatch him and put him in the crib eyes awake. I say goodnight and leave. He rolls over and goes to sleep. In the middle of the night I used to do the same thing. Nursing him to full sleep in bed with me was a moment of desperation ha ha.

So, I guess what I am saying is that he falls asleep knowing I am not there...but maybe I am giving his baby brain too much credit. Maybe in his drowsy state he forgets? ha ha

[hannamarin]

Oh if you figure out the baby brain, you can write your own book!