Okay all you moms out there. I need your help!
Ethan has been pretty good at sleeping in the past. 7 hours in a row, not really any stirrings in between. But now, for the last month or so, he has had some trouble. He wakes up at least once, most of the time twice, and won't calm back down without nursing. In between his feedings, he starts to fuss and we have to run and put his pacifier back in his mouth so he'll go back to sleep.
Now, Ethan is a great eater during the day. He eats at least 35 oz, or 8 times a day. We are feeding him some rice cereal once or twice a day also. I don't think he needs to eat during the night. He's a solid little guy. I think it's just habit.
So we tried letting him cry a little bit last night. After putting his pacifier in, and patting him on the back and talking to him a little bit, I left the room. He got SO mad! I lasted 15 minutes (the longest 15 minutes of my life) of his crying and then I cracked. I caved. I fed him, held him, he was so upset I had to sing to him for a good 30 minutes.
The other thing is, he's really good at going to sleep by himself. I almost always put him in his crib for naps and/or bed when he's still pretty awake but calm, and he falls asleep on his own. So he knows how to fall asleep in his crib on his own.
So what do you guys do? Do you just steel yourself and let them cry it out? Do you go in and comfort every 15 minutes? And then what about the pacifier thing? We can't spend our nights running in there every hour to put his pacifier back in his mouth.
ARGH! Any suggestions, advice, experiences you might have would be most helpful. Thanks.
5 comments:
Well not that I have a ton of experience, but Gwen was really good at going to bed too, but we did take the binki route with her and I am trying to break that now.
Harrison just started doing the same thing, waking up in the middle of the night not wanting to go back to sleep without being rocked! But he is teething!! So I know what his problem is.
Ethan could be going through a growth spert, or teething. (ask your mom when you started teething)
You could try the letting him cry it out, the first night may be a serious drama, but it will get better after a couple of nights. It does more harm to the moms to hear the kids scream than it does to the kids crying. But I know your pain of having to wait out the seconds as they cry.
good luck, and hang in there.
I wish that I could be of more help to you.
I would have to guy that he is teething. Symptoms can start a month before anything accually shows up. It doesn't sound like gas, he wouldn't need to eat. Try feeding him his cereal in the evenings. Addison kind of did the same thing, but soon got over it. I hate just letting her cry, she isn't usually fussy so when she crys there is something wrong. I bet Ethan is close to the same.
I just let them cry it out. If he weighs more then 10 pounds they can make it through the night without feeding. Set the time for 15 and then go in a comfort them and start again. Don't go in right away on the first cry. Usually our going in is what wakes them up so much they can't get back to sleep. If he needs comfort send Dad. You are who he associates food with. So let Ross go in and do the calming and he won't think about being nursed. It is okay if you cry too. :-) Your second kid you won't care as much I promise. So when you hear the first cry, real cry not wimpering or fussing, that is when you start the timer. Then at 15 minutes go in, hug, one, maybe two songs, then say "It's night time, time to sleep." (3-5 minutes of comfort) Then go out and even if you have to repeat 40 times that night, the next night will be less and so forth. Hope that helps. Mostly we have to stick it out. It is your first act of being a "firm" mother.
I agree with Lonna and Tannie's advice. That is what I did. If he isn't sick train him to go back to sleep. He could be teething and may need some baby tylenol. I cried too when we were training them to sleep through the night. It could just be a bad habit he has gotten into.
Can't you just get a new one?
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