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Question:

I didn’t catch the first post, but you does she ahve a night light? My daughter had been sleeping through the night, then, when winter hit, she stopped.  She’d wake up in the middle of the night screaming.  we finally figured that it was because we close the blinds in her room and no light is getting in.  A *very* dim night light has helped. — Paige GO LEAFS!!! proud to be Outlandish (to e-mail double the p and take out the "reston") – Hide quoted text — Show quoted text – > Okay, I know I have posted on this before, but I tried the things > suggested and nothing seemed to really work. The problem has actually > gotten worse. > My now almost 1 yr old still does not sleep through the night. We are > lucky if we get a 5 hour stretch. She is also a _very_ light sleeper. (I > have tried white noise and even that seems to bother her) At nap times > she will wake up after 20 minutes unless we are in the car or I am > holding her. > She is an out going, healthy, well adjusted, breast feed baby with only > two problems 1) the sleep thing discribed above and 2) she screams > whenever I am out of sight, unless she knows I am not in the house. If > she knows I am gone she is fine. > My question is: How do I get her to sleep through the night and not wake > at every slight noise? > Thanks for any and all suggestions. > Liz

Response:

I’m at a loss.  The only thing I can suggest is before you put her into her crib pick up her arm and see if it "flops" back down.  That way you will know that she is in a deep sleep.  Then when you put her into her crib, be sure that the sheet isn’t cold.  That can be part of what wakes her up.  Maybe you could put a heating pad in it to make it toasty warm and then when you put her in bed (after she is in a deep sleep) she will stay asleep. – Hide quoted text — Show quoted text -> I tried letting her cry it out, going in first at five minutes, laying > her back down, then leaving for 10 minutes and repeating it until we > worked up to 45 minutes. At that point I felt letting her cry it out was > 1) not working at all and 2) boardering on abusive at that point. We > also tried my MIL’s advise (I was nuts doing this, but I was also > desperate!) I put her in bed with her faverate blanket & toy, limp in my > arms, but bounced up wide awake the minute she hit the matteress, I > walked out anyway and let her cry for 45 minutes, never going back in. > Like I said, I was crazy to even try this and it didn’t work. > I’ve tried getting her to fall asleep in my bed and then moving her to > her bed (instantly awake.) I have tried letting her sleep with me (and > dh on the days he is at home, he works graveyard) she is such a restless > sleeper, she is the only one who is getting any sleep! > We keep a routine (as much as she will let us) and I am ashamed to admit > it but my one yr old is in total controll of everyones sleep in the > household. > Chamomille tea really helped with colic and gas when she was really > young, but now she won’t touch it.  The thought of six more months of > this or more is enough to cause me to run screaming on to the freeway! > <frustrated smile> > Don’t get me wrong, I love my daughters and I nap with them when I can, > but it isn’t often. Most days they do not nap at the same time, if my 3 > yr old naps at all. I just really really need a good nights sleep. > Liz

Response:

> > My now almost 1 yr old still does not sleep through the night. We are > lucky if we get a 5 hour stretch. She is also a _very_ light sleeper. (I …. > She is an out going, healthy, well adjusted, breast feed baby with only > two problems 1) the sleep thing discribed above and 2) she screams > whenever I am out of sight, unless she knows I am not in the house. If > she knows I am gone she is fine.

I found a mention, I think on the LLL webpage, that cow’s milk may have a negative effect with sleeping.  I was amazed at having read that because my son also woke up very often while I was bf him, and I was a very heavy cow’s milk drinker.  The few times I gave him a formula bottle (when he was closer to a year) at bedtime, he slept much better, and once I’d weaned him off of night nursing, he slept better!  Something about the big cow proteins getting into the bm.  Anyway, do you drink alot of cow’s milk?  I found the reference after I’d weaned, so I never did get a chance to test that. Just for reassurance, we (proudly!) held out, too-no Ferber here-, and my son is a great sleeper now.  In fact, things noticeably improved upon weaning, as I mentioned above.  I didn’t even have problems when I moved him to his own bed from ours with him waking up and coming into our room in the middle of the night! (Though he still likes one of us to be with him when he falls asleep, but that’s okay Good luck.

Response:

I tried letting her cry it out, going in first at five minutes, laying her back down, then leaving for 10 minutes and repeating it until we worked up to 45 minutes. At that point I felt letting her cry it out was 1) not working at all and 2) boardering on abusive at that point. We also tried my MIL’s advise (I was nuts doing this, but I was also desperate!) I put her in bed with her faverate blanket & toy, limp in my arms, but bounced up wide awake the minute she hit the matteress, I walked out anyway and let her cry for 45 minutes, never going back in. Like I said, I was crazy to even try this and it didn’t work. I’ve tried getting her to fall asleep in my bed and then moving her to her bed (instantly awake.) I have tried letting her sleep with me (and dh on the days he is at home, he works graveyard) she is such a restless sleeper, she is the only one who is getting any sleep! We keep a routine (as much as she will let us) and I am ashamed to admit it but my one yr old is in total controll of everyones sleep in the household. Chamomille tea really helped with colic and gas when she was really young, but now she won’t touch it.  The thought of six more months of this or more is enough to cause me to run screaming on to the freeway! <frustrated smile> Don’t get me wrong, I love my daughters and I nap with them when I can, but it isn’t often. Most days they do not nap at the same time, if my 3 yr old naps at all. I just really really need a good nights sleep. Liz

Response:

I tried letting her cry it out, (snipped some here) This may be the cause of the extra clinginess that you are seeing. I have seen this with other kids who were upset by the being left to cry it out experiment – they don’t want their parents to leave the room at all. You may just have to be patient until she gets over this. I’ve tried getting her to fall asleep in my bed and then moving her to her bed (instantly awake.) I have tried letting her sleep with me (and dh on the days he is at home, he works graveyard) she is such a restless sleeper, she is the only one who is getting any sleep! How about lying with her in her bed (I’d suggest a mattress on the floor) until she goes to sleep, then you can slip away to your own bed? You could put the mattress on the floor of your room, lie down with her there, then move into your big bed once she’s sleeping – and you could quickly get back down if she woke again in the night. Or you could try putting the mattress in another room, but that will mean more effort if she wakes up. Or  you could push another bed up against your bed, or use one of those "sidecar" beds with railings that attach to your bed. When you mention that she is also a very restless sleeper – I would consider possible allergies. I had one son who was very restless and uncomfortable at night until we discovered he was allergic to citrus fruits – once they were out of his diet he slept so much better. The citrus had actually been making his skin itchy and that’s why he seemed so restless. (We didn’t find out until he was three.) When you are really exhausted, it is worth hiring a sitter so you can catch up on your sleep. See if you can get someone to take the 3-year-old for an outing while you nap with the baby. Teresa We keep a routine (as much as she will let us) and I am ashamed to admit it but my one yr old is in total controll of everyones sleep in the household. Chamomille tea really helped with colic and gas when she was really young, but now she won’t touch it.  The thought of six more months of this or more is enough to cause me to run screaming on to the freeway! <frustrated smile> Don’t get me wrong, I love my daughters and I nap with them when I can, but it isn’t often. Most days they do not nap at the same time, if my 3 yr old naps at all. I just really really need a good nights sleep. Liz

Response:

Hi Liz You aren’t the only one out there!!  Plus refusing to being a Ferber worshipper too. Don’t know if I can be of any help, but I’ll tell you what has been working for us  (somewhat). Having a bedtime routine, that changes little including telling our son we are going to bed in few mine etc helps. (clean up, teeth, goodnight animals, kiss Papa, goodnight special toys…) Homeopathy has helped a great deal (not all the time, no mattter what, but big improvement).  Natural and 100% safe– we’re "into" that stuff! pillow or in vaporiser or bath.  Cammomile tea w/bit of honey is soothing.  Let me know if you want more particulars.  I imagine there is a homeopath located somewhat near you.  Also, the alt. health or nat.health ngs have been very helpful to us. This site is very supportive to us: http://www.nurturing.ca/ Shalom, Daleen – Hide quoted text — Show quoted text – > Okay, I know I have posted on this before, but I tried the things > suggested and nothing seemed to really work. The problem has actually > gotten worse. > My now almost 1 yr old still does not sleep through the night. We are > lucky if we get a 5 hour stretch. She is also a _very_ light sleeper. (I > have tried white noise and even that seems to bother her) At nap times > she will wake up after 20 minutes unless we are in the car or I am > holding her. > She is an out going, healthy, well adjusted, breast feed baby with only > two problems 1) the sleep thing discribed above and 2) she screams > whenever I am out of sight, unless she knows I am not in the house. If > she knows I am gone she is fine. > My question is: How do I get her to sleep through the night and not wake > at every slight noise? > Thanks for any and all suggestions. > Liz

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