I don't do well without sleep so I'm glad she STTN early on but dang a smile here or there the first year would have been nice. Thankfully she smiles all the time at 5.
Happy baby. None of my kids were good sleepers. I'm pretty sure if I had more they would be crap sleepers too. May as well get a happy one out of the deal
Crabby but STTN. But only bc I had both with E and the not sleeping was harder on me. When she was crabby and catnapping I felt like at least I would get the night to reset.
But it was hard in that I couldn't complain about her not napping bc she was STTN ya know? I felt like bad night sleep was more acceptable to complain about.
J was the happiest baby, but up 3 or more times until he was 10 months. I tell MH all the time that the next one will probably be an asshole, but I hope it sleeps better. Though depending on how crabby, I think I would prefer happy with crappy sleep.
In my youth (lol) I totally did ok & would have preferred the happy crappy sleeper (DD1). I was in my 20s and a SAHM and was able to cope fine.
DD2 STTN at 10mo (early for us!) but was honestly a pretty unhappy/crabby child & toddler. Beyond colic, she was just somber a lot. I truly think it has effected her long term because I think all that time she was crabby because she didn't feel that well and it's shaped her personality.
DD3 was happy & STTN before a year. It was nice.
DD4 was a miserable baby, colicky AND a HORRIBLE sleeper and I was nearing 40yrs old. That SUCKED so much! She's almost 3 (& I am 40) and she still wakes up most nights though not every night & not multiple times. By the time she turned 2, I was really suffering with sleep deprivation. Luckily my DH has taken over night wake ups for the most part this last year.
In short...it depends for me on why/how crabby and also how old I am to be able to cope with less sleep.
Post by undecidedowl on Mar 13, 2016 11:21:45 GMT -5
I've had two happy crappy sleepers and we've done fine so I'd pick that. It's been over 4 years since I sttn regularly and DH and I have learned to adapt so we could koko vs getting used to a crabby baby.
Post by gibbinator on Mar 13, 2016 15:31:01 GMT -5
I would rather the crappy sleeper. I can handle sleep deprivation if my kid is happy. Although I find that crappy sleepers/nappers tend to be crabby when awake
If the wakeups only took 10-20 minutes each time, I'd choose happy baby. I can handle disruption to my sleep, as long as there are larger 2-3-4hr chunks.
A baby that is miserable all day would make me, well, miserable.
"Would you rather get punched in the face or kicked in the crotch?"
I think I pick STTN+crabby during the day. When V wasn't sleeping, I could barely function as an adult in any capacity. When he has had moody phases I get annoyed but I can at least go about my day. I think with enough practice, support, etc., I could deal with the crabbiness.