How do you cope with sleep deprivation? Share tips?

[Green Lady]

What gets me through? I honestly have no idea! I BF so massive coffee consumption is out the window. I enjoy that hour or so between when LO goes to bed and I follow her; my little bit of me-time in the day.

 

[Lina]

You learn to function on less and less sleep each day. It's brutal at first but you will find after a few weeks of this that an hour uninterrupted is godsend. My OH takes him at least once a week for 24 hours and also a few hours before he goes to work.

 

[Feathers]

Getting out of the house helps along with cans of relentless and a few biscuits lol. So healthy! Plus I go to bed at 8pm when LO does to try and catch up on it. I just can't nap in the day however I try!

 

[HungryHippo]

Lots of coffee in the morning, a Coke at Noon, a B vitamin around 3ish and knowing that LO will go to bed by 7:30 so that I can fall into bed myself. Some days I just stare at the the clock and will 7:30pm to magically appear!

 

[poppy666]

There is just one advice honestly - you have to sleep when baby sleeps. I know it's not easy to get used to a messy house and unwashed dishes but believe me, that little nap or two will make a big difference to how you feeel. Try to involve your family members and even friends to do the chores.
Your baby needs a happy mummy!

Id love to be able too, but my 18mth old wont even have a nap most days and when he does Serenity is awake

 

[Snowball]

I have 4 children under six and my ex ran off so I'm on my own to cope day in day out. Sleep seems to be a thing of the past

Tbh, if I can catch 10 minutes whilst the older two are at school I do but my Louie and Ozzie seem to have a rota system where there's never a time when they're both napping.

So this week I've taken to getting Ozzie to bed by 6.30pm, getting Louie settled and getting 20 minutes on the sofa whilst my 4 and 5 year olds watch telly. Then I conserve enough energy to get the house done once they are in bed.

I feel bad because I need to spend more time with the older two but it's the best I can do right now. Just sleep when I can and when I can't just keep pressing on with the day.

 

[LittleBoo]

Coffee and cigarettes I can't sleep when baby sleeps as I've an almost 3 year old running me ragged too. 3 days after babe was born I was back to being Mum/maid/cook/cleaner. Even the bloody ironing. And the only reason it took 3 days was they only discharged me the third day so, I drink copious amounts of coffee and have several cigarettes for breakfast. Worked so far

 

[Kage76]

coffee by the truckload. and cool showers. In the early days i would go back to bed for LO's first sleep in the morning- and if i was exhausted i would sleep when she slept. If things were dire- i just made DH do a night regardless if he was working. He would also give me a hour or so break as soon as he got in, I would try to make dinner in the morning so all he had to do was heat it up or put it in the oven. I tried to get smarter about the cleaning- so that i was not stressing about it- making double quanties of food- showering when DH was home and cleaning the shower at the same time etc

In all honesty tho- i dont get much more sleep now than when she was a newborn- yet i feel good- im either used to it or deluded. She has over the last couple of weeks slept through from midnight to 6am and i feel like i have overslept and i feel worse than if i got my usual 4-5 hours

 

[SparkleBug]

This is all fabulous advice, i wont cut back to much on the coffee or i would veer off the motorway driving. Lol (kinda) x

 

[prettykitty]

Coffee coffee coffee.

And learn this phrase on the weekend:

"TAKE THIS KID. I AM GOING TO SLEEP FOR A FEW HOURS. PUT DOWN YOUR DAMN VIDEO GAME REMOTE AND DON'T ARGUE WITH ME."

liked this one.

I try and nap when I can, but Im fortunate In that LO is quite good - which is lucky as I cant have lots of caffine!!

x

 

[pandacub]

If i need to get anything done, it has to be in the morning cause thats when i have the most energy. I am shattered post lunch, so usually take him for a walk just to get some fresh air, which helps.
Never been a coffee drinker, i usually just listen to some energetic music, drink tea & eat chocolate!

 

[quirk]

I look at my situation from an outside point of view and realise that it is kind of funny and will be more so in the future when I look back at it, so I laugh. ...My OH says it's a sign of madness.

 

[sun]

I can't sleep when the baby sleeps because I have a toddler who does tons all day. Right now I am getting 45min-1h of broken sleep 2-3x/night. The baby is in a bit of a reverse schedule and BF constantly through the night so I'm dying lol! And my son's favourite game at the mo is chase me lol. So exhausted!

 

[StarBoHo]

Naps on a Saturday morning. Even if it's only for an extra 40 mins, it makes a difference. I also try and nap with LO at least once a week just to regain a couple of hours.

In the early days, it was ready brek mixed with nutella that got me through - I don't drink tea or coffee.

Mmm...nutella in ready brek? I love nutella and ready brek but never thought to mix them. Definitely going to try that!

 

[poppy666]

Naps on a Saturday morning. Even if it's only for an extra 40 mins, it makes a difference. I also try and nap with LO at least once a week just to regain a couple of hours.

In the early days, it was ready brek mixed with nutella that got me through - I don't drink tea or coffee.

Mmm...nutella in ready brek? I love nutella and ready brek but never thought to mix them. Definitely going to try that!

Me too sounds yummy always ate it out the jar when pregnant.

 

[lovelylaura]

Poppy use to always have a nap after she had been up an hour so most days I would bring her into my bed and play then when she went to sleep beside me I would either sleep aswell or just lay there and enjoy the rest.not sure wen your little one has naps but when they have there first one why not try that you don't have to stay on bed but even staying in your pjs helps to feel more comfy.but you do get use to it your body adapts xx

 

[sailorsgirl]

how do you cope if your are really tired but cant sleep, even if your baby is sleeping 7 hours like mine does?

 

[Natsku]

Are you suffering from post-natal imsomnia? It does suck but it passes.