Losing my mind - sleep issues

[Hope22]

My little monkey is driving me INSANE! He's been going to sleep around 8:30pm lately - he recently changed the time from 10:30pm, all on his own, and we were so happy! He'd nap well in the day, and then go down like a champ at night, and was nearly sleeping through (he usually wakes once for a quick BF around 4am). It was bliss, for about a week.

Yesterday he refused to nap - he'd fall asleep and then wake up a few minutes later; his teeth were bothering him a lot and he was obviously in pain. I gave him some Motrin and he fell asleep at 8:20 only to wake up again at 8:45 and flat out refuse to go back to sleep. I could see he was tired, but he didn't crash until after 11pm and even then he was restless all night.

This morning he decided to sleep in - no wonder, since he went to bed late and then tossed and turned all night. I woke him up at 9am (he usually gets up at 8:30), not wanting him to have another late night tonight.

Well, today he napped better than yesterday, but not much, and was in quite a bit of pain from his teeth. At 5pm I gave him Motrin, hoping it would help him to get to sleep and stay asleep. Ha! At 7:30 he fell asleep while nursing and nothing I could do would wake him. I thought maybe his two restless days were catching up with him, maybe he needed to go to bed early...

So I put him in bed at 8pm, after he'd slept on me for half an hour with no sign of waking. Wouldn't you know it, the second he was in the bed, he woke up. I got him back to sleep, but it was short lived. It's now 9:45 and I've been trying desperately since 8:00 to get him to sleep. He's blinking a lot, yawning, rubbing his face -- he's obviously exhausted -- but he WON'T SLEEP. I was lying with him but he kept kicking me, rolling over and pushing me with his feet, and got himself worked up into a frenzy so I left him alone on the bed to (hopefully) settle.

Now he's lying there chewing on his toes, then kicking his legs so fast he's out of breath, and he's showing NO sign of going to bed any time soon. I'm losing it - I got no sleep last night, I'm tired, but he's keeping me up! I know it's his teeth, I know he can't help it, but my patience is wearing thin.

I just wish you'd sleep, little man... PLEASE!!!

 

[KarenLV]

Hehehe! Wish I could say that it gets better but my little one is almost 15 months old and we also struggle to get him into bed early at night. I think some babies are just night owls and late morning sleepers. My son has the habit now of going to bed at 9:30pm and waking up at 8:30am.

 

[bibswy]

Its so frustrating... we have nights like this and it does get me down sometimes too. Teething has a lot to answer for!

 

[sublime_ivy]

Are you sure it isn't a growth spurt? Dex gets like this when he is having one. He is being a right mardy mare today.

 

[Hope22]

It could be a spurt, he IS getting taller and taller almost before our eyes - just this morning my hubby was saying it was time to raise his doorway bouncer AGAIN, and didn't we just do that a week ago...

I think it's mostly teething, poor little guy hurts so much he just can't stay asleep long. He just had a 20-minute nap which is better than yesterday's morning nap but nowhere near the 45-60 minutes he usually has. I'm going to try to get him playing REALLY hard today, see if I can make him super tired, and I'm going to give him Motrin earlier in the day to try and ease the hurting before it gets so bad that he can't rest.

Thanks for the replies, sometimes all I need to keep going is a bit of support (and to know we're not the only ones on earth going through this - that's what it feels like some days!)

 

[rach321]

Might be worth giving him a small dose of motrin during the day. I do a similar thing with calpol just giving him 2.5ml during the day and then topping it up about 4 hrs later then another dose before bedtime at night - to be honest I've never had to give him a full 5 ml dose in one go. It just takes the edge of the pain so he can settle himself to sleep.
Have you tried any of the teething powders? They work for some people. I've got one of those amber necklaces - I've tried everything else and its the only thing that really made a difference to us - got fed up of dosing him on drugs everyday. He very occaisionally gets some calpol now usually when they are cutting through the gums.
Poor little man is probably overtired now and doesn't quite know what to do with himself. Do you/have you ever swaddled him - might just help him to switch off for a little while and calm himself down. Teething is officially rubbish - my LO cut 3 at once last time and I never want to go through that again! Hope it gets better for you soon.

 

[kateqpr]

Sounds like he's over tired. Poppy gets like this, where she just won't allow herself to sleep, she cries while she's feeding, thrashes around, rubbing her eyes, kicking her legs against things, just because she can't unwind.

The only thing i've found has helped is bring her dinner and bed time way earlier. I used to try to give her last feed at 7, but she was already over tired by then! So now i start dinner at 5, then last feed at 6. She's normally fast asleep by 6.45pm, at least for a bit, then wakes up for a top up later in the evening. If i feed her much later she just misses the boat bed wise and is a nightmare to get to sleep.

 

[Hope22]

Hmm... this is SUCH a learning process. I agree that he's getting over tired, I'm just not sure how to best deal with it. Again last night he got tired around 8:30, and I tried my best to get him to sleep but I think I missed the window and he got a second wind. It took until 9:45 to get him to sleep - by that time I was exhausted, fed up, and (again) ready to lose it!

I have noticed that he's started to make a particular sound when he's tired, before he starts to rub his face and yawn. This morning I heard it, tried to catch the nap window and nearly missed it but I did get him down at 10:30 and he's napping really well now. I think what I have to do is REALLY tune in - the second he starts to whine, I've got to take him in and put him in bed, start softly talking to him, and get him to sleep.

We'll see how that goes for this afternoon's nap, and *fingers crossed* maybe it'll work tonight!

 

[Beltane]

Whew! I thought I was the only one with a baby around this age not sleeping! My LO is up at least 2 or 3 times a night. I am using the co-sleeper because getting up to go to his bedroom is just getting ridiculous. Hang in there!

 

[Hope22]

We're not alone, though I think people are reluctant to talk about having sleep issues with babies as old as ours - everyone hears about the babies who sleep through, but you never hear much about the ones that don't until you find another mom just like you... then the stories come out.

I just gave up trying to get him down for his usual afternoon nap (he usually goes around 10am, 1-1:30pm and then again between 3-5pm depending on how long the other two were). He fussed and I tried to catch it right away, but even after nursing him and rocking him, he just said 'forget it mom, no way' and got more and more active. Now he's rolling over and over around on the floor having a ball, so I guess he's not too upset. *Sigh* I admit it, I find keeping a routine tough, and I'm easily confused when it comes to babies' napping and sleeping schedules. I am a natural mom in some ways, and a total dunce when it comes to this stuff.

 

[Fern.x]

Iam having the same problem with liam just now but he is sleeping through the day much better after sticking him in his oram and pushing him about the house untill he falls over, i did something stupid though i let him fall asleep on me and since then he keeps waking in tne night maby a coincidence but this happened the last time and it was 2 months before i got him back to normal! Just dont give into him hun when that tooth is through you will have a happier baby! my LOs other tooth is through now and hes much happier just keep topping him up with the Motrin teething powders & gel and get him in a relaxed mood for nap times hopefully it will pass soon x

 

[Hope22]

Well ladies, something VERY interesting happened this evening. We took Darwin shopping this afternoon so he'd get some sleep (he usually naps when we take him out) and he napped from 3:30-4:30ish. Came home, played, and I gave him his bath just before 6pm - I wanted everything done so he could take the lead and go to bed whenever he felt comfortable.

6:00 rolled around and he started to get grouchy - truthfully it started in the bath at about 5:45, but at 6:00 he REALLY got whiny. He was hungry, so I decided just to BF him rather than try to get a meal ready, feed him and then have to clean him up. By 6:30 he was done nursing and was faaaaast asleep.

He usually wakes up about 45 minutes after he first falls asleep (no matter what time it is) to nurse a bit more, and he did this tonight, but with a little coaxing he fell right back asleep. Yes, he fell asleep nursing, and yes, he fell asleep with help, but hey - he picked a bedtime, and I managed to keep him asleep!

The funny thing is a while back he had a routine where he'd take two naps in the day and then fall asleep around 6:00-6:30. At first I thought he'd upped his bedtime, but then figured it couldnt' be that early. I decided it must be that he needed an after-supper nap and tried to adjust things so he was napping around 5pm each night and would be tired again around 8:30.

Could he be a 6:30 man? That seems awfully early, but if it works tonight I'm going to go with it. I'd MUCH rather see him in bed at 6:30 than get fussy and cranky and staying up until 10pm or later!

Wish me luck please, I think we might just have a winner!

 

[baby D]

luck luck luck hunny xx Amelia is the same - begins getting irritable about 5 - 5.30 and is a complete grouch bag by 6 - so bath time is around then. She was in bath at 6.15 last night, fed at 6.35 and was soundo by 6.45pm --- i was convinced shed's treat it as a nap and wake in an hour or so but no, she slept till just before 6am!!!! Real break through for us as she normally has me up every couple of hours ---- to add, she has followed this pattern 4 nights in a roow x

 

[Happy]

Phoebe is exactly the same, we call it her 5pm mood. She starts to get really grouchy and whiny around this time but we drag it out until 6pm when she has her bath and her bottle. She is usually fast asleep by 6.45pm and will wake again at 4am for a feed.

 

[Hope22]

Here's the morning report...
I think we have a winner! Long story but when he woke up to nurse at 2am daddy made a BIG mistake - he grinned, started talking to Darwin, got him WIDE awake, and then went back to sleep. I could have killed him. We were up until about 4am - Darwin kept yawning, but once again was seriously overtired and couldn't sleep. Other than the annoying episode in the middle of the night, he slept through until 6am when he had a little BF and went back to sleep until his usual 8:00 wake-up time.

We'll see if tonight goes the same way - I figure if we have a week of 6:30-7:00 bedtimes that will confirm that he's an early to bed kind of guy, and we'll keep it that way!

Thanks for all the support girls, it means a lot - this is TOUGH!

 

[XKatX]

Ooh, good luck hunni! That sounds promisisng. Olivers bed time is 6.30, but he seems to be getting earlier still at the moment! I too found it difficult to believe to start with, but if thats what they want to do, then so be it. More mummy and daddy time in the evenings!

Hope this is it for you - I'll be watching this space!

 

[Hope22]

We did it, we did it!! We were out shopping, and I made sure we were home by six so Darwin could be ready for bed on time. Six thirty came around and, sure enough, he got droopy-eyed and started whining a bit. BF him, sang him a song, and right around 7:00 he crashed - he's out like a light! From now on we'll aim for a 6:30-7:00 bedtime and hopefully we won't have a cranky, overtired little man any more!

Goodness I'm happy, this feels like such an achievement, I'm SO proud of us!