After letting Tabatha cry for over two and a half hours last night I bailed and picked her up and fed her. She went right back to sleep after that...maybe she is really just hungry? I don't know!
I think I am going to give the cry it out thing a rest for a little while so we can get a little more sleep. Feeding her twice in the night is much better than being up for three + hours while she cries.
I am not cut out for this!
I am open to ANY advice at this point....
9 comments:
I went through something similar with my youngest daughter. After ruling out any illness (ear infection, constipation) I tried to let her cry it out. That did not work. It turns out that she was indeed hungry. So I adjusted her bottle feedings and encouraged more baby food through out the day. After a few days she began to sleep like a champ. I think she must have been growing through a growth spurt at the time???
I agree that your own sleep is important. I'll be honest...I fed Megan during the night much longer (like almost to a year) than the others because it was easy and I needed to get back to sleep. She eventually grew out of it. :) It maybe isn't ideal, but survival is survival!
I feel like I read just about everything out there. After reading through "Healthy Sleep Habits, Healthy Child" I finally had the courage to try out a new plan. I never wanted to have Charlotte cry it out, but after a week of consistency, she began to sleep 12 hours. Of course she still wakes once in a while, but she can put herself back to sleep with no problem an without the help of me.
This website was quite helpful too! www.babysleepsite.com
My friends who read the same book all have excellent sleepers!
Have you considered a "co- sleeper " (attachment to your bed for baby to make nightime feeding/co-sleeping easier.)
I recommend any and all books and advice by William Sears, MD and his sons. Also La Leche League.
As a mom of now adult children, I breastfed well into their toddler years . I would not take anything for that closeness and they were so much healthier.
Babies cannot tell time . They just want to nurse when they are hungry or need comfort . Do what seems natural to you as the mom.
I'm all for sleep particularly if you have to get up and function at work the next day. Even though many people thought I was crazy, I fed Claire in the middle of the night until she was 10 months old. Then one day she decided she didn't need the nighttime feeding and has slept through 99% of the nights since.
Just go with your gut Kelli; all babies are different and some need to eat more than others. Ellie only drank 24oz during the day at that age in addition to eating a few solids and she slept through the night (I did let her CIO though; it took two weeks or thereabouts). Ezra was drinking 24 oz during the day but needed more during the night; he was not eating solids at all (actually he still isn't eating solids at 11mos old but that's another story). So I was getting up with him to feed him in the middle of the night (once a night) until he was able to consume 32 oz. of formula during the day. (5 bottles) That happened around 7 or 8 months I think. Now he consumes 35-38oz of formula during the day and does not eat during the night, at 11mos old. He is a light sleeper though and sometimes will still wake up for a quick snuggle. I let Ellie cry it out so much and even though I know she doesn't remember it, I regret it now. This too shall pass.
Thanks for the advice ladies! I fed her in the middle of the night last night and she only ate once and went right back to sleep. This felt sooo much better! I truly think that is what she needs right now. She doesn't drink as much during the day as she could so I think for a few more months she needs that extra milk. I am going to let her wake up and eat right now as long as I feel that is what she needs; I guess I just needed reassuring that it was okay to do that :)
I only have one child so I'm still very "new" at this. Isaiah was a good sleeper early on, but by 5-6 months, he was troublesome (to say the least). At that point, I tried the "cry it out" method, and it just didn't work. We put that off, and didn't try it again until about 9/10 months. At that point, it worked, and he's been sleeping great since. Maybe just put it off and wait it out... it will eventually "right" itself.
Let it be. I was a stress monkey about all things related to Mason's sleep and he settled out and sleeps great now without any work or having to let him cry it out. (We are discovering the same thing with eating potty training...).
I can't imagine how busy life is for you though. We are keeping your sanity in our prayers.
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