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OK, I’m stuck. Please help!

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Forum Name: First baby? Second or more?
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Topic: OK, I’m stuck. Please help!
Posted By: Hopes
Subject: OK, I’m stuck. Please help!
Date Posted: 10 November 2010 at 8:01pm
I just cannot settle the wee boy. He's going through a patch of not wanting to sleep - he has really short catnaps and despite being exausted, won't go to sleep. I started a thread on catnapping, but realised that what I'm really asking is more about settling a baby. I can't!

The only thing that works is picking him up and giving him a feed. He drinks for a while (very enthusiastically!) and then gets all drowsy. I then pop him back into bed with his eyes wide open, and he'll slowly close them and nod off. That's kind of what I imagined should happen when you settle him back down.

However, many sources say not to feed a baby to sleep. Is that doing that? You know, given he's not actually asleep per say when I put him down? I think the plunket nurse thinks it is, anyway she said I should try to settle him without a drink.

BUT... I can't. I asked her how you did that, she mumbled something vauge about giving him a cuddle or stroking his forehead while he's in the bassinet. I pick him up, I walk around, I rock him... the crying continues. I think I'm going deaf! Stroking his forehead is a joke. The best I can manage is to stop the screaming for a moment, but the boo-boo face is still going on in full force and he'll start screaming again after a brief interlude. I put a pic of the 'boo-boo face' below because it makes me laugh, poor little chap.

I imagine getting him up properly would stop the screaming for a while, but he'd be very grumpy, and anyway that would defeat the point of trying to get him to sleep! Is there some trick I'm missing?



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Replies:
Posted By: tiptoes
Date Posted: 10 November 2010 at 8:15pm
Do you mean at the beginning of a sleep or when he wakes after 45 mins?

I count what you're doing as putting him down drowsy.

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Posted By: Caro07
Date Posted: 10 November 2010 at 8:16pm
I think what you are doing is fine. The way I read it is that having the feed is helping him to calm down enough that he is then able to settle himself to sleep.

My understanding of feeding to sleep is that they are fast asleep when you put them back. I think at this stage you just need to do what works for you. If you are happy giving him a feed prior to a nap then go for it

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Caroline, SAHM to 2 boys, S (4 years old) and J (2 years old)


Posted By: NewPhoenix
Date Posted: 10 November 2010 at 8:19pm
.

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Posted By: LJsmum
Date Posted: 10 November 2010 at 8:21pm
It can be tricky to know what to do with all the conflicting advice that's given.
Do what feels right for you and him.
If feeding works do it.
Your actually not technically feeding him to sleep i.e he's not asleep on the boob or bottle.
BUT if he did fall asleep on the boob or bottle than it doesn't matter. If it works it works!
Do what ever works and forget the books and what plunket thinks!
plus he's still only a little baby, time to learn self settling later on.

Trust your gut, you know best.

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Posted By: HoneybunsMa
Date Posted: 10 November 2010 at 8:22pm
figure out what works for you and do it. I know they say that your not meant to feed to sleep but thats fine if it works for you. It wasn't for me so I didn't do it. I swaddled and cuddled and patted her bum and did all sorts of stuff to get her to sleep.

What plunket suggested to me is that you cover the bassinet/cot so they aren't stimulated with a blanket or something. I'm not explaining it very well I don't think.

GBH hun it gets easier... (dare I tell you it gets hard again sometimes but with different battles)

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Posted By: schnooks
Date Posted: 10 November 2010 at 8:24pm
I agree - if he's drowsy I say you are doing fine. At Jacobs age I think I was feeding my DD to sleep at night anyway, I was trying to try to stop feeding to sleep during the day though, but some days I just gave in and fed her to sleep for naps too, she just needed sleep.
She goes to sleep fine all by herself now - well with the help of her duckie blanket and teddy - so the feeding to sleep isn't something that she (or I for that matter) expected to last forever - no matter what Plunket tell you!

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Posted By: Hopes
Date Posted: 10 November 2010 at 8:24pm
Both really Chelle, but I've been having to do a lot more of it now he's started catnapping.

Thanks for your comments so far. They are very reassuring... it has been a real nightmare of a day because I've been trying to avoid the feed and basically, we've just had a lot of (very loud) screaming...

ETA that more people posted even as I was writing this response. Thanks so much... SO nice to be able to get a wee bit of reassurance and some hugs.

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Posted By: AandCsmum
Date Posted: 10 November 2010 at 8:30pm
Hugs hun!!

I think at this age I ended up putting Cooper in our rocker and rocked him constantly with my leg (while sitting on OB lol) this way I managed to get him to sleep & keep him asleep.

Can you let him have a sleep on you?? get some of that real tiredness out the way & start a fresh?

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Posted By: Kalimirella
Date Posted: 10 November 2010 at 8:30pm
I just did the feeding till drowsy too, from what I have read they only really start remembering sleep associations (ie feeding before sleep) at 3-4 mths. Prolly best to go with the flow as he is so young.

That is a really cute boohoo face

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Posted By: nicandtyler
Date Posted: 10 November 2010 at 8:34pm
I wouldnt worry about not feeding him to sleep if he needs milk to go to sleep then *personally* thats what I'd do. (I do that with Tyler now - always have done, it means no screaming for naps and bedtime, just has his milk and he's out like a light lol )

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April '11


Posted By: Nothing
Date Posted: 10 November 2010 at 8:52pm
I used to and still do feed DD when she wakes, and then she has a small 'top up' before bed. Dont worry about Plunket, just do what works for you. Something I read on her a while ago "if a baby is hungry..... FEED THEM" lol good luck

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Posted By: Flutterby
Date Posted: 10 November 2010 at 8:57pm
oh look at that little sad face...

I always had trouble with DS, he was a 45min sleeper and hardly ever went down quietly. I just fed him to sleep and left him in my arms for a few mins till he was in a deep sleep then put him in his cot. As the other ladies have said just do what works for you, don't worry about what people say you should do.
Also I often just fed him in bed and left him curled up next to me and had a nap myself and then if he woke I would just fed him back to sleep. Wasn't ideal but it worked. I am a light sleeper so didn't worry about rolling on him or whatever.

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Posted By: NZ-rules
Date Posted: 10 November 2010 at 8:59pm
No advice, but that face is just so precious!! What a gorgeous wee man!

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Posted By: Kimnthekids
Date Posted: 10 November 2010 at 9:39pm
My opinion is - you do whatever works for you and your family - and if its not a safety issue (which this isnt) then what does it matter to give you all peace and sleep.


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Posted By: UpsyDaisy
Date Posted: 10 November 2010 at 9:41pm

On a bad day I feed to sleep too - I figure whatever works!

I have nothing else to add but he is so cute and the wee tear aww



Posted By: luckystar
Date Posted: 10 November 2010 at 9:52pm
I ithink it sounds a bit like he may not be getting a full BF from you when he's first awake and being fed, given he's feeding so enthusiastically when put back on the boob. When DD was just comfort sucking she fed in a different way to when she was tired, and I took pity on her so offered a 'top-up' feed for comfort.

So anyway back to your Q sorry... maybe first try sticking to the 'wake-feed-play-sleep' cycle for a while.. making sure you always put him back to bed before he becomes overtired, which would definitely be causing problems/resistance to self settling. An overtired baby may appear to need constant feeding, when really, they're just so exhausted they don't know what else to do with themselves! My 14mthDD still struggles to nod off for her nap if I let her get overtired, and she's been self settling for 10mths!

So yep, really try to make sure he gets a full milk feed into him before finishing-up with the feeding part of your cycle - Never sticking to a set time frame per breast, as some older-school mums will tell you. Feed until your boob feels properly empty and doesn't let down any more, and then offer the second side for as long as he's interested, UP UNTIL bedtime only though. Also, he may not be taking a full feed if he's drinking too quickly and taking in a lot of wind as he goes - that wind can take up heaps of valuable tummy space! You could try burping him more often during feeding, even if he cries when you take him off the breast to burp, it will be freeing up the space for him to get really properly full of milk not air.

I reckon he's also just at the age where he's becoming acutely aware that you're his Mum, his shining star, and most beloved person in the world... which also means he'll want you to cuddle him whenever possible. So he may have just started to understand crying = you cuddling him or feeding him again. Little babies do get smart pretty quickly, so I'd say just have a think about what expectations you want him to have. Are you ok with cuddling or feeding him whenever he cries, or do you want him to learn that bed=sleep and that's that. So it comes back to whether or not you and your partner are willing to listen to some tears whilst DS tests the water etc. Dunno if you've thought about these different approaches just yet, but you can always google "attachment parenting" and then for comparison check out something more routine based like "save our sleep".

We have used the "Save Our Sleep" book with DD and had great success btw, but DH and I both agreed upfront that it was the right parenting style for us. It will not nessessarily sit right with everyone, but is an option to consider.

Good luck with the settling - assisted or not - hope your little man gets some zzzzz's!

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Posted By: Kellyfer
Date Posted: 10 November 2010 at 10:28pm
I would agree with luckystar... maybe he's not getting quite enough of the fatty milk to settle him the first time around and so he needs that little bit extra before he goes down to be properly settled. And at the end of the day, Plunket is just another opinion. If you're not doing anything unsafe, (as Kimnthekids said) then you have to do what works for you. If it's a choice between feeding to sleep and no sleep, I know what I'd pick!!! But I don't think that counts as feeding to sleep anyways.

I've found sleep props to be quite good. DS for eg likes a dummy (which I know isn't for everyone) and he has a musical glo worm thingee which I turn on when it's time for sleep. It plays one song, so maybe 30 seconds and he's (usually) out. That as well as a naptime routine (pull the curtains, and a quick cuddle and kiss).

That is such a cute sad face tho... doesn't that lip just break your heart and make you want to give lots of mummy cuddles?

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Posted By: WestiesGirl
Date Posted: 11 November 2010 at 12:12am
I know exactly what youre going through. Jackson was exactly the same from 9 weeks old till about 4 months old. He started cat napping and became very hard to settle. In the end it was my milk supply not being enough for him as he wasnt gaining any weight. So I agree with other comments about him perhaps not getting enough fatty milk from you.

Like you, I tried everything as well, rocking, patting, cuddling, wearing, sooshing etc. In the end I started feeding him to sleep, albeit, I was worried about starting a bad habbit but once we hit about 6 months I stopped it and he settled on his own again fine. I also agree about following feed play sleep. It can be a bit difficult with a cat napper but you just gotta be flexible and forget the clock.

Do what works for you and him. I hope he gets some sleep soon Your doing a great job

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And to complete our family, our princess has arrived


Posted By: Bizzy
Date Posted: 11 November 2010 at 8:17am
the person who mentioned being over tired might be onto something. i know i only had my babies up for about an hour at a time for a very long time... and it sounds like he is drowsy not asleep and thats a great time to put them to bed.

the other thing to think about is that sometimes when you are feeding them and they appear to go to sleep or get drowsy it doesnt necessarily mean they have finished feeding. A wee stroke of the cheek or chin or hand or foot to wake him up a bit more to finish drinking might help.

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Posted By: chocol8
Date Posted: 11 November 2010 at 11:03am
Are you trying to resettle after 45 min Hopes or is this before the first sleep (eg after being up an hour)?


Posted By: Hopes
Date Posted: 11 November 2010 at 12:04pm
Both, Rilla, although he's usually pretty good at going down for his first sleep. I've only really started having problems since he's started waking up after 45 mins.

Although today, things seem to have gone downhill to the point where getting him to sleep at all hasn't been happening! I've just got him down now, and have everything crossed that he manages a decent sleep, he's ridiculously tired.

I'm not sure about the feeding - I fill him up to the brim when he wakes up, and I'm pretty sure he's getting as much as he can fit. I don't seem to have any milk supply issues, I usually have plenty left after he's bloated. And he's putting on weight well. So all I could really do is feed less often, which puts me back in the same place 'how to get him to sleep'!

ETA that I really do see where you're coming from with that though, LuckyStar, and I think you're probably right that he's not drinking as much as he otherwise would because he's getting feeds inbetween. I'm just not sure how to stop that, given that I really want him to sleep, and don't seem to be able to manage it any other way.

I also thought I was pretty good on the tired signs thing - or at least, I can usually tell he's tired after about 50 mins, which is when I put him down. It works well in the mornings (bar today) when he's had the night to get some sleep, but as the day progresses and he gets more and more overtired from his short wee sleeps, he gets more and more grumpy to the point where you don't need much to tell he's tired as hell, but I struggle to get him to do anything about it!

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Posted By: Hopes
Date Posted: 11 November 2010 at 12:12pm
Originally posted by luckystar luckystar wrote:

So it comes back to whether or not you and your partner are willing to listen to some tears whilst DS tests the water etc.


I'm happy if it helps. Hearing the poor lad be miserable is no fun, but to be honest he's feeling pretty wretched through lack of sleep anyway...

However, I have tried leaving him to cry (that was the plunket nurses suggestion). He was still going at full bore after half an hour, and to be honest I didn't want to leave him longer because it was a hot day and he was literally dripping with sweat, I thought it couldn't be good for him.

The next time I tried letting him cry, and getting him up every five mins or so to cuddle/rock him and cool him off... that didn't work either, he just didn't stop crying, up OR down...

So as well as not enjoying letting him cry at all, I can't seem to make it work...

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Posted By: luckystar
Date Posted: 11 November 2010 at 1:02pm
Sorry have decided to remove this post, as am pretty uncomfortable with being judged next to orphanages below.

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Posted By: mothermercury
Date Posted: 11 November 2010 at 1:54pm
I can sympathise with you on sleeping issues! Poor little thing, it's horrible when they get so overtired.

Personally, I could NEVER leave Chloe to cry it out, not even in a controlled way as suggested by Plunket (their organisational idea about sleep is to put baby to bed awake). I had a Plunket nurse come around who tried to do the controlled crying with Chloe. Boy did she meet her match! Baby was not having a bar of it! I think it's cruel anyway, especially if they're getting worked up. They're so little still and don't understand what's going on.

I still feed or rock Chloe to sleep. It works best for us, and I don't know any adults who need to be rocked or fed to sleep, even though I'm sure lots of them did as babies! So I'm happy in the knowledge that I'm probably not going to damage her by doing this.

I say do whatever works! Never mind about Plunket, they sometimes have a bit of a one size fits all approach. I say do whatever it takes. Sleep is so difficult sometimes! Good luck!


Posted By: HippyMama
Date Posted: 11 November 2010 at 2:49pm
Might I suggest just as an FYI, some links to read about CC / CIO?

This one is a good start:

http://www.drmomma.org/2009/12/sleep-training-review-of-research.html - Sleep Training: A Review of Research

It is actually a very large compilation of many many well researched articles, books and other resources - a couple that I thought might be of particular interest:

http://www.drmomma.org/2009/12/should-baby-soothe-himself-to-sleep.html - Should baby soothe himself to sleep?

http://www.drmomma.org/2009/10/sleeping-with-baby-breastfeeding-night.html - Breastfeeding, Night waking & Protection from SIDS


And yes, I know some may consider the titles emotive (and the content) - but it is just a bit of reading and I am not trying to pass judgement on anyone in any way

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Remember, you are not managing an inconvenience; You are raising a human being. ~ Kittie Franz

Next Slingbabies! Meet - Friday 4th May !!


Posted By: nicandtyler
Date Posted: 11 November 2010 at 3:22pm
Originally posted by MissShell MissShell wrote:

I can sympathise with you on sleeping issues! Poor little thing, it's horrible when they get so overtired.

Personally, I could NEVER leave Chloe to cry it out, not even in a controlled way as suggested by Plunket (their organisational idea about sleep is to put baby to bed awake). I had a Plunket nurse come around who tried to do the controlled crying with Chloe. Boy did she meet her match! Baby was not having a bar of it! I think it's cruel anyway, especially if they're getting worked up. They're so little still and don't understand what's going on.

I still feed or rock Chloe to sleep. It works best for us, and I don't know any adults who need to be rocked or fed to sleep, even though I'm sure lots of them did as babies! So I'm happy in the knowledge that I'm probably not going to damage her by doing this.

I say do whatever works! Never mind about Plunket, they sometimes have a bit of a one size fits all approach. I say do whatever it takes. Sleep is so difficult sometimes! Good luck!


just have to agree with all this IMO i dont think theres anything wrong with feeding or rocking (or both lol) bubs to sleep, for peace of mind Tyler isnt the least bit clingy or ill-behaved as a result of being fed and cuddled to sleep for every nap and every sleep for his whole life, he's very happy and outgoing and independent so if you're worried that you're setting up bad habits by letting him fall asleep on you I wouldnt worry at all

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April '11


Posted By: fire_engine
Date Posted: 11 November 2010 at 3:30pm
Aw Hopes, I feel for you. We went through a similar phase with Dan at 10 weeks and it was soooo hard.

My advice, and feel free to ignore it ...
- don't worry about him forming "bad" sleep routines. Babies don't learn sleep habits till 4 months +
- when they're under 3 months, my rule is do what you have to do. They're still getting used to the world. Yep, they are gradually becoming more aware of everything and they want to spend time with you, but that's exactly what they need
- is he in a cot, bassinet, hammock etc ... Something that can be lightly rocked can be awesome for tiding them through that 45 minute wake up. We didn't have a hammock then but we used the buggy and rocked it.
- despite what I said above about doing what you need to do, I probably wouldn't feed at that 45 minute mark (although I did do a top up before DS went to sleep so I knew he was OK), but would do pretty much anything else
- I also found it was normal for at least one of his 3 sleeps to be 45 minutes and usually only one sleep was 2-3 hours
- I wouldn't do CIO or CC at that age, and the fact that he is getting so hot and sweaty and therefore NOT settling (and you're finding it hard) suggests to me that it's not the right thing at this time. I tried it for one day on MILs advice and then gave up and for a number of reasons, I'm so pleased I did.

My other advice - when he's down, sit down and put your feet up. Sod housework and try and ignore the net. Have a warm drink and rest. You need it.

My final advice - feel free to ignore any of this advice

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Mum to two wee boys


Posted By: Bizzy
Date Posted: 11 November 2010 at 3:37pm
well in my opinion what you are doing is fine... i would much rather put a child down drowsy after a feed and let them go to sleep than let them cry for 45 mins and not have anyone go near them... ( i think of those news stories of overseas orphanages of babies left in cots to cry with no one to hear or help them )

i know that the sleep store have lots of info and many people from here has said it helped them so maybe have a look on there.

me, i think i would be inclined to get him up if he wakes and is visibly upset - a cry out and a minute or twos grizzling is a bit different - and then i would just do what you normally do; change bum, have a play, bit of mat time, give him a feed then put him to bed .... eventually he will just start sleeping longer.

oh and i would make sure you arent going in too quickly - i know some babies wake, have a quick argh moment then go back to sleep...

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Posted By: Nutella
Date Posted: 11 November 2010 at 7:20pm
Awww, what a cute little dude.

I don't have much advice....DS was a terrible sleeper during the day but luckily wasn't a grumpy baby to go with it. I fed to sleep for ages but then changed to drowsy but to be honest I still feed him to sleep on bad days. But the feeding to sleep didn't affect him self settling now as during the day he self settles almost every time.

Drowsy is fine, he will learn over time how to properly get himself to sleep, he just needs a bit of help at the moment and the thing that works is booby!

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Oct 11


Posted By: HoneybunsMa
Date Posted: 11 November 2010 at 7:50pm
Aww Hopes I was so in your shoes awhile ago...

Do what you need to do to get him to catch up on good sleep. No point in trying things if he's overtired already.

DD was a catnapper as I said in my pp she only slept on me so I spent days not doing anything much to DP's annoyance

I used a dummy with her and found she slept really well on her tummy so we did day sleeps like that then did night sleeps like that when we got an angel care monitor.

I didn't do any sleep training with her until she was about 5-7mths old

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Posted By: Emmecat
Date Posted: 11 November 2010 at 7:52pm

OMG I fed to sleep to erm, um about now hehe  Seriously, we BF to sleep every night up till about a year then she wouldn't go to sleep that way so we changed what we did to patting and cuddling. Now we BF before sleep and Clodagh is old enough IMO to put down drowsy and she usually settles herself off to sleep happily. No way hose would she have done that at your sons age.  Anyway, you do what works for you at the time. Don't let people, incl Plunket tell you otherwise. They're not there, living what you're living.

You're doing a good job Mama!



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Posted By: Mum_mum
Date Posted: 12 November 2010 at 8:06am
Awwww what a cute little man, I love that scoopy lip!

We fed to sleep and I know the plunket nurses tell you not to and the books say NO but you know what, my little one settled with it, she went to sleep with no tears and no stress for mum. We still feed to sleep some nights and others i put her down drowsy and just stay in her room in sight till she falls asleep. I know what I do might be wrong in some peoples views but it works for us.

Have you got a front pack? what about wearing him during a day nap to get him to sleep and so you can get some stuff done?

I also found going and having a nap with DD made us both feel way better And she would often wake up after 45mins, see I was there and go back to sleep.

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Posted By: Rovic
Date Posted: 12 November 2010 at 9:25am

This is so hard and very frustrating. I used to get pretty stressed with DS's sleep. He used to get really grumpy with not sleeping well. Then all of a sudden, with me not doing anything different, he started self settleing and sleeping for 2 plus hrs at a time.  He has since broken again, so I am rocking to sleep or till he's drowsy (usually takes about 2-5 mins) for all his sleeps except his bedtime feed when he is usually so tired he falls asleep while feeding. Not the best, but works well for us. I have decided not to listen to anyone who tells me my supply isn't good enough and that what I am doing is wrong. This works for all of us and gives me a chance to have more cuddles . Will do something about it eventually, but at this stage am happy to do this.



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Posted By: Hopes
Date Posted: 12 November 2010 at 11:45am
Thanks so much It's crazy how much you appreciate peoples suggestions and commiserations when you're out of ideas!

Today's going better than yesterday - he had another short as nap this morning, but woke up happy, which was nice Then he went down and woke up after half an hour, but I gave him a quick feed and popped him back down and he went straight back to sleep, so hopefully he'll be well-rested when he gets up next. SO much better than yesterday so far..!

Funnily enough, for those who suggested it, he won't sleep on me - either in bed or in the frontpack / sling. He never has, I've never cuddled him to sleep, and only fed him actually to sleep (as in, his eyes were closed when I put him down) very occasionally. Funny little chap. It didn't bother me till he started having issues, but now I'd quite like it if he would!

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Posted By: JadeC
Date Posted: 12 November 2010 at 1:55pm
Aww, what a sad little face!!

Hang in there Hopes! It's so hard to balance the "not creating bad habits" and the "omg, he just needs to sleep!" ideas! I think at the moment I'm falling on the side that he *needs* sleep to grow and develop, and once he's older and in a better routine you can start to work on anything that is a problem.

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Posted By: crafty1
Date Posted: 12 November 2010 at 8:01pm
hugs hopes, that really sucks. I have a 45 minute napper here. It is definitely a bit of a phase that most babies go through and usually come out the other side.

I was always like you and worried about setting up bad habits so my strategy was to only try and resettle in cot maybe once a day (too tiring and the failure sucks!). Other times i'd just get him up and either asleep in sling or just start next cycle. The other thing i did was mix up the props i was using so, sometimes feed to sleep, sometimes rock, sometimes walk in pram, or on me in sling. Although some days none of that worked and as you say he doesn't really have any other way to settle.

I'm not for or against cio, i think it has a place but maybe he is a bit young for it for that length of time and as you say it wasn't really working. DS2 often had a little cry when i left at that age but usually if he was going to settle he would do it within a few minutes, otherwise would just go and go.

Do you have the Plunket Family Centres down in Waikato? They may be able to give you some tips.   Otherwise def do what you need to do, but keep trying, give a dummy a go and remember it is a phase and you can get through it. Bloody hard at times but you will get through it.

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Posted By: tiptoes
Date Posted: 12 November 2010 at 10:21pm
I tried loads of stuff for resettling after the one cycle and some things worked some days and then some others. I did lots of sling and sleeping on me naps, but that doesn't sound like it will work for you.   But I also found lots of walks in the stroller and the hammock really helped. Going back and rocking the stroller/bassinette/hammock before he woke. It seemed if he saw me he'd be more likely to wake though, so I had to be out of view which is why the hammock worked so well. I think I remember one of the girls from the November thread saying she'd lay down beside the bassinette to rock it or push up gently underneath to settle her baby.

Initially to get him to sleep when he was overtired, it was lots and lots of rocking, shushing, swaddling, white noise and a dark room. But it sucks when you spend an hour settling them for only a 20 minute nap.

But things definitely improve over time and I think the overtiredness part of it lessens as well.

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Posted By: flakesitchyfeet
Date Posted: 19 November 2010 at 7:05am
Hopes - sometimes it's best to just bugger plunket.
I'm probably behind the times here, I haven't been on the forums for ages, but anyways.

Number 1 point - totally 100% agree with flissty. When you do get him down, feet up and drink. It's exhausting work and you need to recharge.

Number 2/3 - If he's in the habit of a single sleep cycle nap, as soon as you hear him start to stir, jump in there, pop him on his tummy, pat his back and shhh him to sleep, before he's even really awake. We're doing this with DS at the moment. It doesn't work if he wakes up enough, but if I can catch him in time it generally means an extra hour or two asleep. Yes I know tummy sleeping isn't recommended and all that Jazz, go back in after 10mins or slow and roll him back to his back.


Good Luck hun!

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Posted By: SpecialK
Date Posted: 19 November 2010 at 1:26pm
What a gorgeous wee boy!

I don't have much more to offer except to say that do what works for you at the time. From about 4 to 8 months DS had all his sleeps in the buggy and had to be rocked to sleep. I was all cut up about it until I decided that at least he sleeps, who cares how and where! DD won't go to sleep without her dummy - I hate them, and I know you are not supposed to introduce them until a few weeks down the track. But again... it's working for us. As for CIO - I am not a fan, and although I've used it with my toddler, IMO at 3 months a baby isn't old enough to manipulate you and is just trying to communicate with you. That's just me though



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