Sleep training- night wake ups

[missVN]

I know this can be a controversial subject, I'm after advice from anyone who has done sleep training or been in a similar situation.

My little boy is 7.5 months old and since 12 weeks has been a terrible sleeper. On a good night he will wake 3-4 times, on a bad night it could be every 45-60 minutes. Last night was a bad night! Sometimes he will settle with his dummy and shushing/ patting, mostly we end up cuddling him back to sleep and then putting him back down in his cot.
He has had a bath/ bottle/ bed routine since around 8 weeks and going down to bed isn't a problem. He tends to start waking from 10pm when he goes to bed 6.45pm-7.15pm. He still has a bottle around 12am.
It's getting to the point now where the lack of sleep is really affecting us as family. I feel dreadful, the baby is grumpy and my 6 year old gets woken up. My husband works away during the week and the resentment that he gets to sleep is growing day by day! I'm back at work in 6 weeks and I just can't see how I'm going to manage.

Any suggestions?? I've been reading up on sleep training, mainly controlled crying or pick up/ put down but I'm still not sure it's going to work for us right now.

 

[Twag]

Sorry I have no advice as this is still what I am dealing with and my DD is 14 months old (and I have been back at work full time since she was 6 months) so I just want to offer hugs and say you kind of get used to the constant state of tiredness and coffee is your friend

Sleep training may work for you and I hope it does if that is what you decide is best for you and your family
Personally I just cannot do it and I know she will sleep better one day oh and DH wears ear plugs

 

[jessmke]

You have described my daughter to the T. We tried all sorts of gentle sleep training techniques and absolutely nothing worked, all that happened was we were all awake even longer in the night. Then suddenly two nights before she turned 1 she started sleeping through the night. Sorry I don't really have any advice except to say there's a chance the only thing that might work is time.

 

[jessiebella86]

My daughter is just the same. I have fed her and cuddled her to sleep for 7 months and now I'm paying the price as she doesn't know how to sleep without me. I will never regret all those wonderful snuggles but I feel now the sleeping arrangements (or lack of) are affecting the whole family.
I have a baby sleep expert coming to see us on the weekend and I'm fully expecting that I may have to do some gentle controlled crying. I can't bare the thought of it but she is so grisily during the day now because she struggles with falling to sleep that I think in the long run some gentle sleep training will be good for the whole family and hopefully make her happy and more rested. I am counting down the days until she visits to help us get a better nights sleep
Xx

 

[MindUtopia]

No advice on sleep training as we never did it and found sleep sorted itself out in time without us doing much, but if he is waking from 10pm but has a bottle at 12am, do you think things might be improved by feeding him right when he wakes up at 10pm or doing a dream feed? That age is a really tough one for sleep because of teething and separation anxiety, so I'm afraid there aren't often easy, quick solutions. But definitely at that age my daughter was having 2 feeds a night still. If he will take a bottle when he first wakes up, I would do that first before all the shushing and patting and trying to settle him as you might just be disrupting his sleep by not feeding enough during the night. If he's waking up hungry, he's going to keep waking up and that overall pattern of disrupted sleep might carry on past even when he's fed, but if you can get in there, feed him and get him back to sleep, you might see sleep overall improve in time. Just a thought. We carried on feeding on demand all night until the bottles dropped on their own (she wouldn't take them when offered) which happened without us doing anything at around 9 months.

 

[missVN]

Thank you for the replies. We had a slightly better night last night and things never seem quite so bad after even a little sleep!

MindUtopia- actually this is something I was thinking about yesteday after writing this and thinking things through. Will definately try giving more feeds, was reluctant to increase night feeds, almost feels like a step backwards but I agree he might need it at the moment.

jessiebella86- would you mind letting me know what the sleep expert says, will be interesting to hear the recommendations.

I think ultimately we will end up doing good some form of sleep training, last night was better but still 3 or 4 wake ups.

 

[wtbmummy]

I second the dream feed/when he first wakes. You may find he sleeps a bit better afterwards.
Ds is still a bad sleeper at 3 but that is due to night terrors unfortunatly.
But from about 6months i would give ds a bottle when i went to bed at around 10-10.30 (or he would wake at 11pm, 1am, 2am) but after doing the dream feed he would sleep until 2.30-3am have a bottle n sleep through till 6am.

Thats what worked with ds though and every baby is different. Unfortunatly there is no quick fix (she says with a 3yo still waking) but its about finding a method that can improve everyones sleep "somewhat"

Good luck. Let us know how you get on if you try either dream feeds or feeding soon as he wakes

 

[missVN]

So the sleep issue has had to take a back seat for the time being. I fell down some steps whilst carrying Nathan and he has a suspected hairline fracture of his left femur. He also has yet another horrid cough/ cold bug so we're back to waking every 2 hours and waking every time he's put back down in his cot.

 

[Itsychik]

I just posted something similar. I'm losing my mind here! DS sleeps in our room (for another 2 months at least until we have another bedroom!) and I'm afraid sleep training would be difficult for all of us (and wake up my other 2 kids) but the hourly wake ups are driving me batty!!

I just put him back in his crib. He nurses to sleep and then often wakes when I put him down, and he's screaming at the moment but il just SO SO SO sick of this pattern.

 

[noon_child]

So the sleep issue has had to take a back seat for the time being. I fell down some steps whilst carrying Nathan and he has a suspected hairline fracture of his left femur. He also has yet another horrid cough/ cold bug so we're back to waking every 2 hours and waking every time he's put back down in his cot.

Oh no sorry to hear that. Must have been scary for both of you. Yes I don't think there is any point trying to sort sleep when he's feeling vulnerable and sick at the same time!

 

[missVN]

I just posted something similar. I'm losing my mind here! DS sleeps in our room (for another 2 months at least until we have another bedroom!) and I'm afraid sleep training would be difficult for all of us (and wake up my other 2 kids) but the hourly wake ups are driving me batty!!

I just put him back in his crib. He nurses to sleep and then often wakes when I put him down, and he's screaming at the moment but il just SO SO SO sick of this pattern.

It's so hard isn't, I'm sorry you're going through it.
Our first was a great sleeper from 5 months so this has been a real shock.
We're making small changes at the minute. Added in a story after bottle to try and stop him falling asleep feeding and then putting him down awake but comforting him in the cot. Only 2 nights in though so hard to tell if it's made any difference yet. Still haven't ruled out sleep training but not willing to do it just yet.

 

[missVN]

Just thought I'd update for anyone interested or following.
As mentioned above we decided against any form of sleep training at the moment for various reasons. We decided to make some small changes to our bedtime routine to make things easier if/ when we did have to resort to training.
A week ago we started giving him his bottle and then a story with the lights on and then putting him down in his cot awake. We stopped picking him up if he woke but settled him in his cot. The first few nights he took a little while to settle but he's got better as the week has gone on. Tonight I was able to put him down awake in his cot and he settled himself to sleep with no crying for the first time. Last night he woke briefly once at 11.30pm, had a bottle at 1am and then didn't wake until 6am. The best he's ever done! Just hoping I haven't jinxed us now!

So we may not end up having to do any kind of sleep training in the end. There is light at the end of what feels like a very long tunnel.

 

[coolmommy]

I know this can be a controversial subject, I'm after advice from anyone who has done sleep training or been in a similar situation.

My little boy is 7.5 months old and since 12 weeks has been a terrible sleeper. On a good night he will wake 3-4 times, on a bad night it could be every 45-60 minutes. Last night was a bad night! Sometimes he will settle with his dummy and shushing/ patting, mostly we end up cuddling him back to sleep and then putting him back down in his cot.
He has had a bath/ bottle/ bed routine since around 8 weeks and going down to bed isn't a problem. He tends to start waking from 10pm when he goes to bed 6.45pm-7.15pm. He still has a bottle around 12am.
It's getting to the point now where the lack of sleep is really affecting us as family. I feel dreadful, the baby is grumpy and my 6 year old gets woken up. My husband works away during the week and the resentment that he gets to sleep is growing day by day! I'm back at work in 6 weeks and I just can't see how I'm going to manage.

Any suggestions?? I've been reading up on sleep training, mainly controlled crying or pick up/ put down but I'm still not sure it's going to work for us right now.

Sleep training may be really tough. You really have to make time for it. It needs a lot of patience too. They say, babies' sleeping patterns depend on the "habits" you use. Sometimes, when they get used to a routine, it may take time for them to adjust to a new one.