The usual routine is Bath at 6 ish, then a feed for however long she wants, then put her down. Usually by the end of the feed she is looking like she is ready to sleep but as soon as you put her down her eyes are wide open.

Could try later on I suppose for now, But 9 is a bit late for when she gets a bit older. We tried 7 because we HOPED she would get into that pattern.

I think she is just so bloody nosey, she is scared she is going to miss something if she goes to sleep.

Well we started the routine at 9 in bed for 10 and then once Lewis was sleeping well we gradually moved it forward 1/2 hour and now he has his bath at 7 and bed at 8.

This was after trying at 7 and in bed for 8 at the start but then he woke at 1 and missed his 10 ish feed. After putting him bed at 10 he missed his 1 feed and woke at 5. The time he woke in the morning also got later as he got used to it too.

Think we will give that a try then. Just don't really know where to start, as today she has been asleep from 6am till about 20 mins ago :rolleyes:, Coz she was awake ALL night.

We tried to get her up 3 times and she was just falling back to sleep. :rant::rant:

It's a good job we bloody love em int it. :hihi::hihi:

She might just be nocturnal! :)

I'm knackered today as he has been up quite alot for the past few nights with his teeth. I am warning you, once you get used to the full nights' sleep then you are worse when you need to wake up for something else.

Got to add, Lewis was bottlefed so maybe that is why it has worked the way it has for me. He started sleeping from 7-1 and that is why we made the routine later - I preferred him staying up later then sleeping until 5.

Your daughter will have her own pattern soon. Just try the later thing. If you don't want to wait until 9 maybe try 8 instead but as soon as you notice a pattern go with it!

Ah well Millie is breastfed, but we have just found out she is alergic to cows milk. Even though she is breast fed she has been having blood in her poo, and the consultant says it's rare but is possible for babies to get cows milk protein in breast milk. So anyway, we have a prescription for special formula, so are going to start her on the bottle. Maybe it will be better then.

Thanks for the advice :-)

Sorry to hear about the breastfeeding thing and it hasn't worked out the way you wanted it to.

I am all for breastfeeding (its the natural thing to do) but I think bottlefeeding was the reason why we saw an immediate pattern and went with it (not that it makes any difference for the last week or so :()

Bottlefeeding may not make any difference and not all babies sleep through quickly - I got the sleeping easily at night but trouble getting him to sleep in the day even though it was obvious he needed a nap he would not go - therefore lots of crankiness.

The cold weather is in so it maybe the perfect time to try.....get a huge square blanket, fold it in half diagonally, put your little one with her head where the longest edge is and wrap her up. This used to work to get Lewis off to sleep in the day.

Sorry if none of these are working. I only have one baby myself and just offering suggestions that worked for us :)

my youngest boy seems to be like that too. he's awful through the day and sleeps all night. he feeds all day and food too he was born 07/07/08. hes had food since he was 8 weeks. maybe shes not filling. perservere with her through the day try her with a little bit of solids. you will find she will sleep if contented. a mother knows her baby if you feel she is hungry feed her. these health visitors are useless. most of em r text book queens hun. just if you are going to try puree food keep an eye on her bowel movements as she may get belly ache. hope this helps hun if you have any questions or need more advice contact me s.woman@hotmail.co.uk

Your partner will pass some cows milk protein through her breastmilk, so if she doesnt eat dairy the protein wont be there. If she wants to carry on breastfeeding she can and should be able to by eliminating dairy from her diet (make sure she replaces it with something else though, there are a lot of dairy free alternatives now). If she is still interested in breastfeeding it would be a good idea for her to phone one of the breastfeeding support lines for better advice - if you need a number PM me :)

Well the original plan was for her to cut out dairy, but now she has decided she wants to put her on the bottle. We have a script for Cow and Gate Pepti, and she is going to mix feed for a few weeks, then put her on bottle fully. I hope this will help to get some pattern.

In my experience, and that of my baby friends, young babies don't settle in for the night before around 10-11pm. There are of course exceptions to this rule, as with everything, but you may want to pay this in mind and take her to bed later on. I just followed my little one's lead, and gradually over time, the bedtimes became earlier and earlier. It has now settled at around 7.30 which it has been at for some time, but my little one is now 22 months old!

When we had late bedtimes we took advantage of it, and did things which we can't do now, like go out to friends houses in the evening with baby, who would generally feed and be very settled the whole time, but not sleep till we got home later. (this wasn't every night of course, but it was nice having that freedom, without enlisting the services of a babysitter!) :hihi:

My little girl is allergic to cows milk but she has a different formula called Neocate. It makes all the difference in the world when they change and feel better and are no longer in pain.

Just need to know,
Do I have to wean charlie on to cows milk Or just change straight over?

He's still not sleeping through the night, (2 bottles @ 8oz)
He's still having 2 sleeps every day (1.5hrs each time)
He still has about 4 or 5 8oz bottles a day in total

I've tried everything possible to get him to sleep through, cut his sleeps down in the day, cut down how many bottles he has, none of this seems to work, so anyone got any advice on getting him to sleep through? Even if it's down to the one bottle in the night, it'll be something!
He is in a routine, has been since he was like 2 months. Has a bath, ready for bed, bottle, and sleep.

Anyone got any suggestions?

(& Sorry I haven't been on in a while... Been so busy!)

Thanks Gina + Charlie

Hi Gina,

In regards to the change over, if you feel he's ready then it's gradual. Give him a drink of milk in his cup once a day for a few days then move it to a couple of times a day try mixing it with his formula i.e 6oz formula 2oz milk (always needs to be the blue full fat one) then increase the cows milk whilst decreasing the formula.

Likely to take a few weeks.

In regards to his not sleeping through, why don't you give him some of that thick sleep time milk at his last bottle then if you want to try controlled crying (see my link to this here (http://www.sheffieldforum.co.uk/showthread.php?t=417723)) Scarlett sleeps 7pm until 6:30-7am) everyday. She only has about 1-1.5 hours sleep in the day broken up into two naps.

Charlie used to be a great sleeper has something triggered the change?

Thanks for that Annie.

I've tried that cow and gate good night milk but it didn't make any difference.
Since we moved out, he's turned into a nightmare, we thought him crawling would make him more tired but it hasn't. It kind of doesn't help that people let him sleep for hours on end, when he stays out, without mentioning, MIL. I can't pinpoint what actually messed his sleeping pattern up.

He has a sleep about 12/1pm for around an hour, but his sleeping patterns aren't 'fixed'. I don't make him sleep when he doesn't want to, and I don't wake him when he falls asleep at a random time.

I've been told that he's prob not full enough, but he eats loads. Hes the only baby I know who has either boiled egg with one toast, or two toast or two weetabix! Just for breakfast.

From what I've seen of him he's a brilliant eater. It's maybe just a habit he's gotten into. Try to restrict his sleep so a max of 1-1.5 hours in total. You'll need to wake him and he's likely to be a grouch but it will make a difference.

Try the controlled crying, it only took us a few nights and now S is a brilliant sleeper. Can't believe I waited as long as I did. Especially as I used to whinge to you about how good a sleeper Charlie was and how bad a sleeper S was.

If the other nightime stuff isn't helping then don't waste your money on it. Just give him his bottle as usual and then only offer him water during the night. Seems cruel but he'll learn quickly that there is no point waking up. It's better for all of you to be having a full nights kip!

How's the new place coming on?

Could you try giving him water in the night incase he is thirsty rather than hungry? Some people I know started to leave a non spill beaker of water in the babies cot. I also know people who did the controlled crying and just stopped giving the milk in the night as after a while if he really is hungry he will start to eat more in the day to compensate for not getting the milk in the night. Good luck.

My lad was still waking in the night at roughly the same age. He would have a bottle and go back to sleep. We came to the conclusion that he had just got into the habit of waking at that time so decided not to give him a night feed. It took 3 nights of two hours crying bouts to break the habit, but it worked. He eats like a horse during the day now.

Seb doesn't sleep the night either, but we found giving juice at the 12am and 3am wakes tends to send him back off to sleep til between 5 and 5.30am

Hi all,
Thanks for your replys, been so busy with moving house etc!

Annie- I remember you moaning about S not sleeping :hihi: And the new house is GREAT! Went to view it last wednesday and I sign for the keys on Monday! Thanks for asking.

Since I started this thread, I (quickly) weaned Charlie onto cow's milk, I did 7oz formula 1oz milk. Then 6oz formula, 2 oz milk and so on, now he's having 8oz Cows milk, and i'm pleased to say, he's slept through, every night, apart from one when he was teething, which leads me on to say Charlie has his FIRST tooth!! Sprouted out last Sunday Night (The bad night) and Monday morning, he bit me, so I have a lovely mark on my cheek :D

And, when i've settled into my new home, i'll be returning to jellys!

Thank you to everyone with different ideas, I was going to wean him onto cows milk then start the CC but I didn't need to! WAHOO!

Lewis is 9 1/2 months old and for the past couple of weeks WILL NOT sleep in his cot. He will only sleep if he is in our bed. This has coincided with my return to work. I have tried the controlled crying method (although not sure if I am doing it entirely correct!) but the crying just seems to get more and more hysterical!

My neck kills with me forced to sleep in the same position all night and I don't think my husband is sleeping all that well either. It doesn't help that Lewis sleeps horizontally across the bed, arms spread out as far as they will stretch!

If anyone can give me any tips it would be much appreciated! He used to be such a good sleeper. Just to add that he isn't getting to sleep all that well either! :(

Have you tried leaving him in the cot and sitting in the room next to him till he falls asleep? We went through a phase where he would go down ok, then wake about midnight wanting to come into our bed. We cured it by refusing to bring him in, but I would sit by his cot so he could see me, calming him down and he would fall asleep. Sometime it could take 1.5 hours to do it, but i found a few mights of sacifice like that quickly worked, and he realised he wasn't coming in.

Have you tried leaving him in the cot and sitting in the room next to him till he falls asleep? We went through a phase where he would go down ok, then wake about midnight wanting to come into our bed. We cured it by refusing to bring him in, but I would sit by his cot so he could see me, calming him down and he would fall asleep. Sometime it could take 1.5 hours to do it, but i found a few mights of sacifice like that quickly worked, and he realised he wasn't coming in.

We have tried that but maybe only for 1 hour so maybe I should stick with it longer so he knows he wont get anywhere!

I am in great pain with my neck today! :rolleyes:

Try the pick up put down method seemed to work for me. Take a look at this link:

http://www.askamum.co.uk/Community/Forums/Forum-Categories/Topic/?&topic-id=96685

We have tried that but maybe only for 1 hour so maybe I should stick with it longer so he knows he wont get anywhere!

I am in great pain with my neck today! :rolleyes:

It's hard, especially in the early hours, but in my opinion Babycamrat had to learn that he wasn't going to get his own way. We did the same things as you and brought him in with us so we could get some sleep, but that reinforced the habit with him and made it harder to break, hence the 2 hours floor sitting.

The thing is they will fall asleep as long as you can manage to calm him down, it just will take a while.

I just wished that I had never put him in with us that first time! I think last Monday night he slept fantastically - again last Wednesday but since then nope!

I went to bed last night saying he is not coming in with us under any circumstances but where did he end up.......taking up my half of the bed whilst I was teetering over the edge! I do feel quite hopeless!

Playing devil's advocate here, have you considered adjusting to having him in with you for a while. Just a thought, but perhaps battling against it, when your little one is getting used to the difference with you going back to work, might be a long fought battle, and very stressful for you, at a time which is undoubtedly very stressful for you anyway!

If you let your little one in for a while - month or so, it could help him get through this time, and then try getting him back once he has got used to the other changes. :D

Feel free to ignore this suggestion, but thought I'd offer a different perspective.:)

I hope all goes well, and that you find the right thing for you both.

My DD became more clingy at bedtime around 9 months old. Before that I was able to put her down to sleep and she was fine, but then she changed and I couldn't leave the room. I believe it's because they are becoming more aware of things at this stage and they need the comfort from you as it's a big scary world.

I first started rocking her to sleep and then placing her in her bed and would do this every time she woke up. Then when I felt she was ready, I moved on to putting her in the bed and sitting at the side with my hand on her hand. Then I next moved on to just sitting by the bed, and then gradually retreating away from the bed, to outside the door and now I can just leave her in her room. Unfortunatly, it took till she was just over 2 to get to this stage, but I feel that they need the comfort from you and when they are ready, they will move on to the next stage.

My DD became more clingy at bedtime around 9 months old. Before that I was able to put her down to sleep and she was fine, but then she changed and I couldn't leave the room. I believe it's because they are becoming more aware of things at this stage and they need the comfort from you as it's a big scary world.

I first started rocking her to sleep and then placing her in her bed and would do this every time she woke up. Then when I felt she was ready, I moved on to putting her in the bed and sitting at the side with my hand on her hand. Then I next moved on to just sitting by the bed, and then gradually retreating away from the bed, to outside the door and now I can just leave her in her room. Unfortunatly, it took till she was just over 2 to get to this stage, but I feel that they need the comfort from you and when they are ready, they will move on to the next stage.

I was half expecting the 2 years stage from someone......maybe I subconciously knew...........

How are you going about controlled crying?

Anniec went through it successfully a few months back so you could search that.
Otherwise let us know how you do it and we might have tips.

It's not for everyone but it kept me sane :)

I just wished that I had never put him in with us that first time! I think last Monday night he slept fantastically - again last Wednesday but since then nope!

I went to bed last night saying he is not coming in with us under any circumstances but where did he end up.......taking up my half of the bed whilst I was teetering over the edge! I do feel quite hopeless!

You could try having her in bed with you till she falls asleep, then gently picking her up and transfering her back to her cot?

Can you believe it - the day I ask for advice the very same night he decides he would like to go to bed at 8pm and sleep right through until 6am! :hihi:

Not holding my breath for tonight though. I think I just got lucky last night. The only thing I did differently is to shut his curtains as well as the blind!

I have had a thought though - I havent worked since Friday so maybe he just gets used to me being at home again then I am back at work and the whole thing starts again.

Hi Honey,
I agree with TreadLightly on this one, and I would let Lewlew in with you for a while. He obviously needs some more security right now with the change in Mummy not being around so much.

I know that controlled crying is popular but its not the only way!

Whereas I can't help but think that starting them sleeping in your bed is a slippery slope to ending up with your kids in your bed pretty much permanently. Or a really nasty period of time when you have to make them stop when they've gotten really used to it. I always think that must be more of a wrench, surely.

I'm also not keen on letting them fall asleep in one place and then moving them elsewhere. When/if they wake up they are disoriented and more likely to cry, I always think.

My child would have loved to stay in our bed, like all kids, but I like my sleep far too much :P. I insisted he sleep in his own bed, and he has turned out a prefectly happy, well-adjusted child despite the fact that I work and he has to sleep on his own.

But as has been rightly said, different things work for different people. You have to think about what you want in the long term and work towards it. Good luck. Sleep traumas are the worst - its hard to be rational, unemotional and strong when all you want to do is zzzzzzz.....

We found controlled crying works well and when my lo has a phase of not wanting us to leave we revert back to it. We do comfort him and we try to reassure him but I've always been firm on the fact that he can't sleep with us. The only times he has slept in our bed are when he has been ill. This is mainly because I agree with cosywolf that it is very hard to then get them to go back to their own bed. I know someone who has only just mananged it and her child is 8.

I don't think this is a problem if you don't mind your child being in bed with you but for me and my husband, neither of us gets any sleep and it just doesn't work for us.

My DD has spent many nights in bed between me and hubby for various reasons. I find if I'm really struggling to get her back to sleep during a night (which are quite rare now) or she's ill then I will resort to it. We recently took off the baby gate on her bedroom door and I thought she would be crawling in to our bed everynight, but she doesn't (just the odd mornings when it's time to get up). So personally, I don't think it's a bad thing to let it happen, as I think it's just another stage/development issue that they grow out of when they are ready.

I think you just have to keep putting him back in his own bed. You're going back to work has caused him to go backwards a little and he's definitely feeling insecure. I had one of those lights that gradually dims. There are also teddy bears that tell stories,( a bit of distraction while you make your exit ) My son loved a teddy that snored and that would growl if he hit it in the tummy.

I wondered if anyone could offer any advice with our problem.

We have a 10 months old daughter who will not sleep through the night. We have a lovely routine in place which we stick to religiously and she goes to bed initially with no problems but you can guarentee that when she's been asleep between 30 mins to an hour she wakes up for the first of maybe 3 or 4 times throughout the night.
When she does wake, she doesn't want anything more than a cuddle and rocking back to sleep but this can take up to an hour.

The problem i've had is that i have up until recently been breast feeding her and she's always fallen asleep on the breast before being put into her cot so i don't think she knows how to get herself to sleep. I've tried giving her a drink and giving her food, neither of which she wants. And i've tried leaving her to cry which i hate doing and doesn't seem to work either she has massive will power and will just keep on going.

She doesn't nap after 4 in the afternoon, eats well throughout the day and i take her for a walk in the pram everyday (for the fresh air) with the hope that it will make her sleep at night, we've also put a night light in her room so if she does wake up she's not in complete darkness. But so far nothing seems to be working.

I know she's still only really young and she probably will grow out of it, but this thought doesn't help when i'm up again at 2am!

We really need help with this can anyone offer any suggestions??

Thanks

We are going through this as well and tried all sorts with the previous child, to no avail. There's no magic answer, just patience I'm afraid.

I know you don't want to hear it, but you know the bit about crying? :P

I have a friend who's going through the same thing at the mo. Her husband has to do the getting up because the little one sees mummy and thinks breast. It's somehow not as bad when the one settling you isn't wearing your favourite comfort items right there but won't hand them over :hihi:

How you deal with the crying is widely variable and totally up to you. My oldest would become even more hysterical if I or my partner entered the room at all. My youngest responds best to me popping up every two or three minutes, patting his belly until he is calm, then leaving again. Find out what's best for you.
But in the end, if you want them in their own bed, asleep, sleep training it is, and I don't know of any methods that really honestly don't involve some crying.
You do have to persevere. The first few nights are hell. It took 2 weeks before my oldest was able to settle himself, but it was all completely worth it.
I've started young with the little one - I was doing the two minute thing from 3 months, as I desperately needed the break. It's rather more gentle, and worked within a few days.

Good luck, it's hell, I know.

How long is she sleeping in the day? How many naps? What's your bedtime routine?

Adam is now 15 months old (EEKK!) and I'm just about to stop bf'ing. He has NEVER gone to sleep on the breast and settles really well. We started it young by feeding him and then singing a lullaby before he went back in the cot. It works really well - now as he approaches toddlerhood, he might be hyper before bed but the song and delicious cuddle soothes him well.

Waking 3/4 times a night sound like she's not self soothing back to sleep or is overtired. Does she wake before midnight? It's important to distinguish between the overtired baby that wakes often or one who just can't self-soothe. It might be a mixture of both and you might need to tweak the routine first and then focus on teaching her to send herself back to sleep.

I agree with Cosywolf: whatever you do for sleep training needs to be consistent, and needs to be done EVERY night for at least 3 days.

My little girl is 5wks old and we have a bedtime routine ISH!

She has her bath about 8pm and then we go up to bed between 8:30 and 8:45 (my OH works nights and this is when he leaves) We then sit and have a cuddle and a feed on my bed until she drops off (this can be anytime between 10 and 12). She then wakes between 2 and 3 times (depending when she's fallen to sleep) for a feed (i'm exclusively breastfeeding).

Between 6am and 7am she wakes again for a feed and will then nap on and off until lunchtime! Usually having a longer sleep between 9am and 11am (very roughly) these little naps are usually in my arms or on my chest, however if i've got something to do i will put her back in her moses. She then naps/sleeps whenever she wants during the day.

My questions are here:

1. Is she going to bed/sleep too late? I here of many people who's babies sleep at 7pm!?

2. Should I not let her nap on my chest/in my arms in a morning?

3. At 5weeks should I still be letting her sleep or nap as and when she wants or should I be trying to get her in some sort of nap routine or is it too early?

4. Any other comments people have will be welcomed. Basically i'm unsure if she should be in more of a routine at 5wks or not? I BF on demand and this is usually every 2hours unless she's having a long sleep during the day/night where it might be more like 3 to 3 1/2 hours.

Thanks in advance!

Hiya,

It sounds like you are doing really well so I wouldn't worry about anything. All babies are different.

1. I don't think she is going to bed too late. All babies are different but my lo was going to bed at between 10 and 11 at that age as he hadn't finished all his feeding until then. At 5 weeks he started sleeping until 5am and then at 8 weeks he started sleeping until 8am but he was still going to bed late. He used to feed more then every hour in the evening like he was stocking up for the night, so there was no point in me trying to get him to bed. I know people who had them in bed at 7 or 8pm but that was never going to happen for us and most of these people were bottle feeding. It wasn't until he was about 4-5 months that his bed times started to get gradually earlier and eventually made their way to 7pm.

2. If you don't mind her napping on you then it's not a problem. It's probably a good idea to let her nap in her moses too so that you don't have to have her on you if you need to do something. But I would make the most of the cuddly times :)

3. The routine thing is up to you but I just let my lo nap as and when he wanted as he fed a lot and as I fed on demand I couldn't really get into much of a routine. I found he got himself into a feeding and sleeping routine eventually and I just went with that.

4. I always found it easier to just go with my lo as I couldn't have got him into a routine even if I'd wanted to! He fed loads (I exclusively breasfed too). Many of my friends bottle fed and I think it's much easier to establish a routine that way, so try not to compare your baby with bottle fed ones.

Hopee that helps. It's obviously only my opinion. To me it sounds like you are doing fine.

Yesterday I was worrying about our bedtime routine and today I have another issue!

Last night my DD (5weeks) fell to sleep at 10:30pm and woke at 1am for a feed. She was then awake until 3:30am!!!! She was yawning her little head off but was wide awake! I tried everything, bouncing her, rocking her, swaying, nursing, cuddling and nothing worked! I did put her in her moses but she just cried. Eventually she fell to sleep and woke again at 6:30 for her feed, she was obviously shattered as she didn't wake again until 9:50 and she's usually wide awake after her early morning feed by 7:30ish.

Sometimes during the night she does take upto half an hour to fall to sleep after a feed, but usually this is easily helped along with a cuddle and a bounce. Last night I really was at my witts end! I was going to try the controlled crying thing, leaving her a minute before comforting her but I wasn't sure if she's too young so i didn't.

I'm hoping last night was a 1 off but incase it happens again does anyone have any tips, is she too young to do controlled crying in situations like this?

My OH works nights so i'm on my own at night and it makes me feel like i just can't cope alone when we have a niht like last night!

I think Wolfcub was a tiny bit older, when I started using a very gentle technique of leaving him for two minutes, then going in and putting a hand on his tummy until he was calm, then going away and giving it another two minutes - but never actually upping the time, because they are so very young.

Would you feel safe just popping her in bed with you so she can lie awake but hopefully quiet, and you can snooze? She's far too young to worry about bad habits, and frankly you're going to do it anyway sooner or later :P