Sleep Sense Support Group!

[Poppy7]

Thank you to everyone for your continued support. Last night was still good. Bed at 7pm, woke at 10pm and fed. Went down again until 2am then fed, woke at 4am then fed. Woke at 6am chatting. Fell asleep again until 7.30am!!!

I know it may seem like I'm not letting him go long between feeds but now he's much better I'm going to try and make him go longer if it's been less than 4 hours since the previous waking.

To top it all off we had a lovely lesson at Water Babies today

TG....with regards to that woman....HOW RUDE!!! Elliott generally feeds for a maximum of 4-6 minutes per boob. He will then sometimes have a few minutes on the other side. He feeds on demand and sometimes when we're out he'll only feed for a few minutes before stopping because he's more interested in what's going on. They certainly can take a lot of milk in a short space of time....I've seen it come up in a few occasions!!

hugs to you honey and don't let them make you doubt yourself.xx

 

[Foogirl]

Ok so I know I can't complain as LO is doin well but his morning waking is gettin earlier each day from 7.20 then 7.10 and now 6.30 although I know he's still tired! Is it hunger? If so is it worth me feeding then putting him back down?
Thanks all x

First decide what time you want your day to start. If you're happy with a 6.30 start, get him up and feed him. If you want it later then treat it as a night waking and try to re-settle without feeding. If that isn't working, you could try getting him up, but only feeding him when you would want the day to start. So, if he wakes at 6.30, but you'd rather it started at 7, then get him up and change him, dress him, keep him occupied until 7, then feed him. That way, he will get used to the time he is getting fed - and may well go on to sleep until then. If he goes long stretches without a feed in the night, then waiting a bit for a feed shouldn't be too difficult for him.

DD eats books - that makes her very cultured, surely?!

What a biatch though. Glad you didn't let her see she'd got to you. Women like that deserve a slap. One of the reasons I don't "mix" much. I'd certainly not be able to be so reserved about it all

 

[cutie4evr01]

Hi girls - hope you are having a good day today! We had a decent night last night. It took her 20 minutes to settle for bed, but then she settled easily after her two night feeds (12 and 4). And for the first time, when she woke at 6:20, she didn't cry, just babbled to herself, so we left her and she went back to sleep by 6:30! Unfortunately it didn't last long and she was awake by 6:50 ready to start the day, but that's the first time I've been able to leave her in the morning and she'll get herself back to sleep. Once she gets the hang of that, we'll probably start seeing if she can drop a night feed. Anyway, we'll take it one step at a time, but seems like she's starting to get the hang of it. Naps still are harder than nighttime, but we've managed one so far that only took 15 minutes of fussing, then she slept for 45, so not as bad as some have been. Have a great weekend everyone!

 

[hivechild]

Lol, you want to try dealing with an eleven week difference!

I've thrown the calendar out the window and am just going with it. If she eats lots, gets bigger quicker and is generally whiny - it's a growth spurt!

It's bad enough with a 2 week difference! I can't blame you for throwing it out the window and just rolling with it. I think that might not be a bad way to go about things anyway.

BB, I second Foogirl's advice on the early wakings. If Ronan wakes before 7-7:30 and isn't crying I'll leave him to it. He usually wakes happy and chirpy and is content to babble to himself and keep himself entertained for a half hour or so before deciding it's time for me to come entertain and/or feed him.

Usually it's just the entertaining part though as he'll still be content to go another 20 mins or so after I've changed and dressed him and come downstairs before fussing for a feed.

Anyway, our last two nights have been not too bad. I was dreading the night before last but he woke just before 2, had a bit of a cry but by the time I went to the loo before going in to feed him, he'd fallen asleep again. Of course mummy's wide awake now and waiting for him to stir again which he finally does at 3:30! He then slept through until around 7 so not bad.

Yesterday he was Mr. Cranky Pants though all day and barely napped, regardless of where it was so he had a few short cat naps and that was it. He surprisingly went down for the night pretty well but woke up at 1:20, about 40 minutes after I'd finally managed to fall asleep (it seems my insomnia is kicking me in the ass the last few days).

I held off feeding him until 2 because he was just babbling at first and then got whingy but didn't really pick up from there. He had a good long feed though so I guess he was hungry by the time it came to it!

He went straight back to sleep around 2:40, while I went back to bed and stared at the ceiling and tossed and turned (my back is also giving me grief), until after 5am. Then one of our smoke alarms went off with the low battery warning just after 6am. Sometime between 2:40 and then, the monkey had woken for a short whinge but went back to sleep a few mins later. I drifted off to sleep sometime after 6:30 or so and slept until 7:55 when I woke up and wondered why the monkey was so quiet! He was just stirring himself and cooing away so I managed a much needed shower before we started our day!

So... not too bad I guess. I did notice though, and have noticed on other nights that when I turn on the bathroom or hall light so that it filters into the monkey's room, he either stops or scales down his crying or whinging so I'm not sure if he doesn't like it being completely dark when he wakes up or not. I don't think he's old enough to connect 'more light' = 'mummy's on her way' especially since of a morning he's generally chirpy waking up with a bit of light filtering through the blackout curtains and open doorway.

I may try having a dim night light in his room and see if it makes any difference or not. What do you ladies think?

 

[polo_princess]

everyone, sorry i havent been in a for a few days, had a hectic week

How is everyone? I hope LO's are all ok.

Brooke has managed to sleep right through 99% of the week, but she has now got a cough which is disturbing her, BUT when she wakes i can go in and resettle her within a few minutes. I think we are almost there now, just need to work on her settling herself during the night and i think we've cracked it

 

[history_girls]

Well ... last night was awful.

Slept 7 -10.30 (just when I was crawling into bed after working all evening for ofsted on mon) then she woke up screamed for 10 mins, then self settled with a bit of shushing. 10 mins later awake screaming. This process repeated itself for 5 hours!!!! It was awful! She would scream, we would clam her down, she would self settle to sleep then repeat! finally at 3.30 OH sat in the chair with her for an hour to get her into a deep sleep to put her down at about 4.30. Then she was up for the day at 5,30 am! We are all completely exhausted today - LO too.

I have no idea what it was. Teeth are pretty bad at the mo and CM has had two cases of hand foot and mouth but I can't see any ulcers! Hopefully it was a one off

To help with the 5am wakings we put up a black out blind behind her black out curtains to elminate the sun in the mornings - the sun rises up from the sea and straight into her window - will update tomorrow if successful!

Polo - glad you are having great nights!

Hive - I have a nightlight on the baby monitor which is just enough for me to creep in and not fall over everything but dim enough not to disturb her! I can also turn it on and off from the remote. might help!

 

[Poppy7]

Crikey HG, that sounds like a rough night I hope it was a one off for you.

Polo - AMAZING!! So pleased the programme is working so well for you

Last night wasn't too bad. Elliott was in bed at 7pm, he woke at 9ish crying. I thought "he can't be hungry yet" so held off feeding him. He wouldn't calm so I fed him and he fed ferociously! I think the 6 month growth spurt is upon us.... He then woke at 12am....fed again and then woke at 3am for a feed. He wanted to get up at 6am but self settled after some happy talking until 7.30am.

The dummy is a distant memory and day time naps are better for this reason

 

[hivechild]

PP, glad to hear things are still going well for you!

HG, I truly feel for you after a night like that. It's not too far in the past that I can't still remember how it feels. I really hoe tonight goes/went better than the last.

As for the night light, our monitor has one on it too but it's really quite dim and not sure how useful it would be for providing the monkey with a little light. Time to shop I think!

Poppy, it certainly seems like a growth spurt if he's so hungry! You must feel good though that at least you aren't dealing with lost dummy wakeups on top of it all!

I hope everyone else's nights and weekend are going well. Off to bed for me now.

 

[history_girls]

Well Well Well - the little minx slept beautifully from 7 until 3.30, then we had a few repeats of the night before and OH said he wasn't do that until 6am so popped oh him for 20 mins (to break the 10 minute sleep issue) then she went until 6am. So much better than night before.

Black out blind behind b;ack out curtain was a success. really still quite dark!

Hive - enjoy the shopping, i love buying baby bits no matter how mundane!

 

[Poppy7]

Last night was brilliant!!! Elliott was in bed by 7pm. He woke at 12ish and I fed him. He then slept until 5am when I fed him again and then went until 7.30am :yahoo:

HC...his feedings yesterday were longer than usual so I definitely think a growth spurt is upon us. The dummy is a distant memory which is such a relief.

HG...that's an improvement on the previous night. Hopefully tonight will be better again.x

 

[cutie4evr01]

Glad to hear of the much better nights last night! We too had a terrific night. We didn't manage a late afternoon nap since we were out and about, so we decided to put her to bed early. She was in the crib at 6, a little whining, and asleep by 6:10. Then she slept until 1:30 where she had a quick feed and right back to sleep on her own. I heard her wake and talk to herself at 4, but I knew she wouldn't need to eat then, so I left her to it and she went back to sleep. Again at 5:30 she stirred, talked, even a little whining, but never got upset, so I left her to it again and she went back to sleep until 6:20! This time she started fussing, so I fed her and we decided to see if she would sleep any longer, so I put her back down awake and she was quiet by 6:40. Now it's 7:30 and she's still sleeping!! This means she got over 12 hours of sleep last night, which is unheard of for her. I'm so proud of her for sleeping so well! I'd have to say, we are a week into the program, and overall it seems to be working for us. All 3 naps yesterday only took 10-20 minutes of whining/talking before she was asleep, nearly no crying, so I definitely think we're making progress.

HC, we do have two soft nightlights in C's room. We put them in so I could see to change her diaper in the middle of the night, but maybe they do make her feel good as it's not just pitch black in there. We use cheap blackout blinds also, so there's nearly no light from the outside filtering in.

 

[hivechild]

Well, the wee monkey is 13 weeks today and this was our night last night.

8pm - the wee monkey is in bed and off to sleep without a fuss.

10:30 - daddy and bailey (the dog) are off to sleep.

12:30 am - mummy is still awake and staring at the ceiling until falling asleep sometime between then and 1am.

1:50am - mummy wakes with a start as daddy starts snoring like a chainsaw!

2:30am - mummy manages to drift back off around then after realizing the monkey's not woken yet as he has the past week by now.

3:30am - mummy wakes with a start, wondering if the monkey has stirred. Nope...mummy keeps an ear out for monkey waking since it's about that time.

3:30-5am - mummy has no luck getting back to sleep as she waits for the monkey to wake up and along with daddy snoring like a chainsaw on and off.

5am - the monkey wakes after a record 9 hours sleep!

He then fed and went back to sleep until 8am! Mummy managed to fall asleep between 6:30 for another hour and a half's sleep so she's just a little bit wrecked instead of gibbering tired from lack of sleep.

 

[Cattia]

Wow, so much to catch up on! Hive - what a fantastic night! Typical that you were awake for half of it! I hope your back and insomnia get better soon. I sometimes have a hard time going back to sleep after night feeds and it feels as though the minute I drift back off I am up again

HG - sounds like you have had a rough time - but glad things are improving. I will be thinking of you tomorrow. Do you know how many times you can expect to be observed? Will they give you feedback? Good luck!

Poppy - good luck with the growth spurt, I hope it doesn't hit you too hard. They can be a nightmare can't they, but it must be a relief not to have the dumy to contend with as well.

Cutie - you're doing great after such a relatively short time. Go you!

Polo- after 16 months of broken sleep, you must feel like a new woman!

Well.... we have had two AWFUL nights
The night before last: Abigail woke at 11.50, left her fr 20 minutes and she was not settling so I fed her.
Woke again at 2am, was tired and feeling pathetic so fed her again.
3am - her alarm started beeping - DH heard it before I did and was up like a shot! It was the low battery beep, so he had to go outside to get fresh batteries (don't ask me why he keeps batteries in the garage) and we were both wide awake for ages.
5.40 -Abigail awake again, fed her again
6.15- she's awake for the day, so brought her into bed to play for an hour, then she went back down for a nap. DH feeling VERY guilty about complaining so bitterly in the night about the battery affair so took her downstairs and I had a lie in until almost 10am! Have not done that since before she was born so felt a heap better!

Last night:
we were atour friends' for dinner, Abigail went down no fuss in their travel cot. We transferred her into her pram, wheeled her home with her just stirring, then I fed her before putting her down in her own cot, about 11.30
2am - she's awake again, I fed her wondering if she might be hungry
4am - awake again, fed again in zombie like state
6am - awake again, and wants to play so I attach the new cot toy that I bought in desperation in town yesterday - only to realise it has a RATTLE in it - so Abigail spends the next hour batting the rattle, as I lie nailed to the bed with exhaustion. I then had a meltdown so DH took her downstairs again and I had another lie in

Sooooo- why is she waking up every 2 hours after her first waking? I just don't know which feeds not to give her so I am giving them all, it has to stop! Am thinking she needs to go into her own room, although I didn't want to mive her until 6 months. I think she is getting to the stage where when she wakes and sees us, she knows she can get our attention by making a noise, especially in the morning.She shouts until we look at her, then breaks out into a massive grin!

Have just started weaning her, gave her baby rice for the first time today. I know it is going to take quite some time for that to affect her sleeping, but I feel that once she is up to having three meals a day I will feel more confident leaving her at night knowing she is not hungry.I really hope tonight is better.

Hope you all have a good night X

 

[history_girls]

Well after a massive dinner at Nanny and Grandads (where she threw a blueberry at her great nan who was there too! oops) bed time was easy peasy as normal - lets hope that tonight is the same! Need my sleep for the inspection!

Cattia - Out of the ten teaching hours I have in the next two days I should expect one 20 minute slot. If below 30 mins no feedback. They sometimes do re observe! I should be fine, my lessons are all good. Just hope the kids don't play up.

On the food and sleep front - Phoebe went through some disturb nights when we introduced food for the first time. It threw her poos! so she was pooing in the night too.

Hope it gets better!

 

[Cattia]

HG - most times I think the kids actually back you up for inspectors (shame they don't the rest of the time). I always have found they have some strange sense of loyalty that shows itself at inspection time or when someone else criticises their school! I am sure you'll do great but it certainly is a stress you don't need.

 

[hivechild]

Well I hope everyone had a good night last night.

Cattia, did Abigail do better than the night before? It's hard sometimes to know when they're really hungry and when they just want the comfort sometimes. I really hope that she settles for you soon!

HG, a little late but here's hoping the inspection went fantastically and that Phoebe was a good girl and let her mama get a good night's sleep.

We had another great night here. The monkey went down at 7:30 and I was in bed and asleep by 11 (I'm enjoying having my evenings back too much right now to go to bed earlier). The good news is that I didn't wake at all until the monkey got me up at 5:20 letting me know in no uncertain terms that it was feeding time at the zoo!

He went straight back after feeding though and was asleep by 6 until around 7:20. I think he only woke then because his reflux got the better of him and he sicked up. Other than that...

We took Bailey to the park this morning for almost 2 hours as the weather here today is just amazing. He took 2 naps in the pram totalling about an hour but otherwise was enjoying the scenery as we walked, and now he's back to sleep again (on my shoulder )!

 

[jacs]

Hi folks

Been away to Glasgow to see Flight of the Conchords - at one point I actually wanted them to stop because I really thought I might be sick I was laughing so much! Evan stayed with my mum and dad, and I'm told he was a little sweety pie, and didn't wake until 4am, which is good for being in a strange bed/room.

Well, we're nearly on to tooth number two, at this rate he'll have a full set by 9 months! Not sure if it's affecting his sleep, or if we've let him get into a habit of waking, but he hasn't slept through for quite a few days now.
Cattia, we are just like you, not knowing whether to feed or not, it's such a tough call in the middle of the night. We also found that Evan started to become more sensitive to us being there, and knew it was time to move him!

HG - how was your day? My school's been on Ofsted 'alert' all year - hoping it's all over before I go back!

HC - what a great little sleeper you've got there! We've had a lovely, sunny day too, so went for a nice long walk (stopping several times to touch trees and the like!).

 

[history_girls]

My goodness - you couldn't believe that 5 inspectors could send fully grown adults into melt down!

Day one of OFSTED done - got observed for 30 mins and it was fine. In the words of Tia in year 8 'We done alright miss' as the inspector left! So can't be bad then!

Bless LO she slept right through last night until 5.50 so I had a really good nights sleep. But she is all snotty again (consequence of going to a CM I think) so very grumpy tonight - went to bed at 6.30!

Jacs - so jealouse of the teeth - he sounds a right champion for sleeping in a strange place! We were only last inspected 2 and half years ago so we got another one early!

Hive - thanks for the thoughts - one more day of inspection tomorrow. Sounds like you had a lovely day! very jealous.

The black out blind / curtain duo is working well and I think is keeping her asleep longer in the morning. Will update tomorrow after an early night - she might be up at 4!!

 

[Cattia]

yay, well done HG! I love how the kids always feel as though they are being insepcted too! I wonder how it feels to be an OFSTED inspector? Do you think they are all on some kind of power trip? Good luck if you get seen again tomorrow. Well done Phoebe on such a great night!

Our night last night was mixed. She woke at 11.30, and I thought she CAN'T need feeding, so we decided to try some serious settling. We gave it 20 minutes of just going in and out and reasurring her, but it didn't work. She got more and more worked up until she was hysterical so in the end I cavedin and fed her. I feel realy bad as it was then as though she did all that screaming for nothing and I could have just fed her straight away. I can cope with leaving her when she is just whining but it is soooo hard when she is hysterical. What do other people do in this situation? After that she woke at 3.30 then slept until 7.15 so not too bad!

 

[hivechild]

Jacs - that's great that he did so well with the grandfolks and in a strange bed! As far as his teeth go, at least the quicker they come in the less upsets there will be in the long run!

HG - I'm glad day one went well and hopefully day 2 goes just as smoothly for you.

As for the weather being so fantastic, perhaps you can take some consolation in knowing that we're due rain for the next 2 days!

Cattia - I often try to settle the monkey if I think it's too soon since he last fed and he doesn't give off clear hunger signs. Sometimes it works and other times he makes it obvious he's hungry and obviously he gets fed. I try not to stress over it if I have inadvertently made him have to wait a little because it's not an every time or even day occurance.

Sometimes he's not even hungry but he is wailing and obviously upset and needing comfort and I still put him on the boob. Some people might tell you that you shouldn't but I don't mind it and being that close to me is as comforting as it gets and soothes him faster and more thoroughly than anything else. I tried a pacifier earlier on and it was so hit or miss that I rarely bother and I'm glad in hindsight that he never really took to it.

I know that there are 'rules' to Sleep Sense but sometimes they need to be bent or broken when they go against what we feel is right or that our LO's need.