Is This Normal? - Newport News, VA

Could she have an ear infection? My son had the same sleep problems whenever he had an ear infection.

Just a thought. Is there any chance she has an ear infection? We had a similar situation recently and looking back after we found out she had an ear infection that was happening.
ReneeA

My Baby is almost 7 months old and we are going through something similar. I think he is very close to crawling. I started swaddling him again and we already do all the things you already do (regular sleep routine, etc) and that has helped a lot!!! Good luck!

She's probably teething... Try giving her Tylenol or Motrin before bedtime and it will likely help. This happened to us on a fairly consistent basis with our son until all his first teeth were in.

She could be teething. Our son was a great sleeper, and then started waking in the middle of the night around 7 months. we didn't know what was going on. then a couple weeks later we saw the bottom front teeth cutting. after they came through a bit, he was back to normal. the same thing happened again when the upper front two came in. then slept well again. he's now 12 months and more teeth are coming and it's back to sleepless nights. i'm going to try the teething tablets now. but, usually we'll give him infant tylenol or motrin and he'll go back to sleep in about an hour. some doctors say teething doesn't affect sleep, but i don't find that to be the case for us. good luck!

Those 2 books are night and day from each other! That's ok...I read both and probably 4 others. :)

I don't think it's normal either. Three hours of sleep a day split into 2 or 3 naps wouldn't be bad if she were sleeping soundly for 10-12 hours a night.

How soon after she awakens do you go in to her? If she has slept more than 30 minutes, I would wait at least 15 minutes before going in. If it's been less than 30 minutes, I wouldn't go in at all. This is all for naps, not overnight. See if she'll go back to sleep on her own.

Keep putting her down when she's rubbing her eyes and starts to lose coordination-that's a big indication of sleepiness.

Make sure her bedtime isn't too late. I would say no later than 8pm, get her up by 7am. Other than that, leave her be overnight until she's been really crying hard for an hour. I know that sounds harsh, but the more you go in to her, the more she'll know that you'll do it. At this point, she shouldn't need your intervention to fall back to sleep.

Feel free to email me if you like. :)

A.

welcome to motherhood ( smile )
First Sit back an analize yourself. When you were pregnant
what were your sleeping habits. You habits while carrying your baby also sometime will become the baby as well. important
Second your child might be hungry. Give her some baby cereal in her milk before bed.
Third give you baby a nice warm bath once you have put on her night clothes take a warm cloth and wash her face three times while reading or singing to her rub her forehead and the top of her head, soon she will be fast asleep.
I know your doctor probaly suggest not introducing your baby to cereal right now but you should your chil is hungry. The product is in the store for a reason.
Please give your daughter plenty of water. Everything thing that lives and breathe needs water.
I hope this will help you

Two questions: First is she on any medications that may be interfering with sleep. Second, does she use a pacifier. I had issues with my second son and a pacifier. Because I went back to work when he was 4 months old and had a 3 year old, I needed sleep. I tended to give him a pacifier if he woke during the night. While this helped, it set a horrible pattern of him not sleeping without it in his mouth. Two years of interrupted sleep. I finally had to take it from him and break the habit, which took another two weeks of minimal sleep.

You may want to check in with the doctor. I thought the separation anxiety started at about 1 to 1 1/2 years of age.

Good luck and stay patient. These little people are so worth it!!!

M. M.

I don't know you complete situation since i don't know how your getting her to sleep but i do believe your prob. rocking her to holding her or feeding her to sleep with a bottle or something. What is going on is she's using that system as a crutch. Everyone wakes up from time to time when they are sleeping and babies do the same thing. What i believe is happening is when you put her to sleep (I'll say you holding her) You go away and she wakes up in 1hr she doesn't think she can go back to sleep without your help. what you need to do is take yourself out of actually going to sleep. You need to let her put herself to sleep. If you want to give her a bottle or to sing to her or rock her or whatever before bed do but make sure she's awake when she's put in the bed. That way she's putting herself to sleep not you. That way over time she will be able to put herself BACK to sleep when she wakes up. Everyone wakes up in the middle of the night or while sleeping. She just hasn't learned how to put herself BACK to sleep. Good luck

Dear R.,

My daughter (also named R.) has the same problem with her 13-month old Charlotte. It has been an on-going problem, and R. has also read some books by the "authorities" to try to find an answer. Charlotte will go to sleep by herself around 8-8:30 at night, but wake up repeatedly and sleep restlessly all night long.
I told R. to make sure she lays down and rests whenever the baby naps during the day, but the long-term sleep-deprivation is taking a toll on the family.
Any help with a solution to this problem would be greatly appreciated. Let me know what you find out!
Love, A. M.

Hi. I had the same difficulty with my daughter. It was a combination of things with her. I tried everything. A) Take her to the doctor to rule out ear infections or anything else. It turned out that my daughter had an ear infection with no symptoms. She also had a urine infection. B) Teething is also going on. I too, like walmart teething tablets--they are natural. Teething is extremely uncomfortable. Also, leave a pacifier in the crib. C) Get into a bedtime routine. Give your baby a bath, then feed your baby. Taking a warm bath is comforting and setting a routine will let your baby know it is time to settle down. I also work full-time and I'm tired when I get home. I often take a bath with my baby--we both get the calming effects--I put calming baby wash-with lavender. It relaxes me to and I don't feel as guilty. Were bonding at the same time and spending time. We even sing in bath, I light candles, and I put the cassette tape on. Bath time is so much fun now. Only problem is now that she doesn't want to take a bath by herself! Both of you need routine and structure and a baby really needs it. My daughter is now 11 months. She still doesn't get the required suggested amount of sleep but she is sleeping at night now. She only sleeps 2 hours during the day sometimes 3 at most but she goes to bed around 8:30 and is out for the rest of the night. When she had infections she woke up constantly. Let us know what happens. Good luck.

Have you tried swaddling her again? I just stopped swaddling my 7 month old and she is doing ok, but still wakes up periodically. We swaddled her for so long because she is REALLY active while she sleeps. Arms and Legs flail all night and wake her up. The swaddle helped that. If she is too big for a blanket swaddle, check out Kiddapotomus. They make swaddles that will hold her. They sell them at Babies R Us.

Good Luck!

Sounds like she is over tired. When they rub their eyes they are past the tired stage. And if they are over tired it is more difficult for them to stay asleep. I would move her bed time up. At that age, for my son, he would go down for his first nap 1 1/2 hours after he got up. then he would get another nap around 1. He also went to bed around 615. If he started acting tired before his nap, he would just go down earlier. We learned the hard way after my daughter. Happy sleep to you!

Hi R.! It sounds like she's getting ready to achieve a milestone. We were a bit confused by similar sleep disruptions with our first, and then it turned out that it was happening just before lots of her big achievements, like crawling, pulling-up, etc. If she's not already doing either of those things, it might be time. The other thing to consider is teething. Our daughter did not get her first teeth until 8 months, so she was cranky and unrestful leading up to that too! Good luck and just be patient. I'm sure it will pass :)

unfortunately your mother in law is probably right. I had the opposite problem because my son was a horrible sleeper but have had several friends that that happened too. It could be anything from teething, growth spurt, you name it. Hope you find something that works.

I would strongly suggest keeping to the "bedtime routine". I did this with my son but I remember it taking longer than a week. And I have to agree with you....I don't think that is normal for a baby so young. At 7 months they should be getting around 14 hours (according to babycentre.com) or more, total (night time and naps) Sometimes they don't sleep well when they are overly tired. If you stick to the sleeping routines (even with the naps, if you can) it helps set their internal clocks and you will see a difference. I know a week seems like a long time when you're not sleeping yourself, but just hang in there it will be worth it in the end.

We went through the exact same thing with our son, only he was 8 months old. He had been sleeping through the night for about a month and then started waking several times during the night! It was painful! The first night my husband and I took turns going into his room and soothing him. The next night I tried some Super Nanny advice and would not say anything but just lay him back down and walk out of the room and of course he'd scream and we would wait 3 minutes and increase it each time another minute. A las after 30 minutes he was asleep. Just to be on the safe side we took him to the pediatrician to make sure he didn't have an ear infection or other ailments and he assured us he was ok but it is normal for babies to do this. He said we needed to initiate sleep boot camp...meaning let him cry it out (or he said we'd regret it). He said it was a make or break time for sleeping through the night and whatever we did DO NOT feed him or rock him (or other soothing methods) to sleep. So we took his advice and it was hard but after a couple of nights he was sawing logs again. To this day he is an AWESOME sleeper, other than when he is teething or an off night every few months. So to make a long story short that's my advice!

dear R., i have two daughters of my own. both of them when they were the age of your daughter now started a new sleep pattern of their own at night. I don't recall it being like your daughter's but one of my children would and will still now wake up at least once every night and on a bad night 3 times. she was not hungry or anything wrong then or now but just wakes up and goes back to sleep after she comes and wakes me up. I would give your new sleep schedule a couple more weeks and maybe just ask or talk to your child's doc or pediatrician. good luck A.!

Hi R.
Is it possible that your daughter might be ready for a little cereal(very thin) mixed in her bedtime bottle? I used to do this to make them more content. Try not to let her have the bottle in the crib with her all night. I must tell you I did this with both our children and all 4 of our grandchildren.
good luck
J.

Yes, I would say she is right! Fear not, they go through growth spurts and she could be starting to teeth. She will probably change againafter this! Give her a bath, and nice massage with lotion or oil, and be at peace yourself! Make sure she is't too hot or cold. You could try running a fan in her room and see if she responds to the constant noise.
All is well, it's just hard on you not her!
God Bless!

Truthfully, it depends on who you ask. I had this trouble with my son and realized it was something as simple as teething? Could your child be trying to cut several teeth at once or any at all? When it happened again, I realized it was an ear infection that had been missed by doctors b/c he had so much wax in his ears. It lead to tubes. But he would wake up b/c the pressure in his ear would build when he lied down.

hello, R.. i believe this is soooo normal. i use to think that everytime my kids did that, there must be something wrong so i would go to them and see if everything was okay. my husband insisted on me ignoring them (which took me awhile to agree with, until i noticed nothing was wrong except it started becomeing a pattern) i had to cringe and let them cry for a half hour, everytime they woke up in the night, but in my experience after maybe a couple of nights, it actually worked. they stopped all together. it just took alot of patience from my part. so if you are finding that you are going to your child to find that nothing is wrong ( they might be doing it because they know you will come and give them the attention.)

the doctors told me if they still cry after half an hour to an hour, go check on them and dont look at them in the eye and lay them back down without saying a word or giving them a hug or kiss. (super nanny said it also.)

it will be hard, but it worked for me..... i am not claiming to be an expert, but as long as you are finding nothing wrong, they are just crying for your attention. good luck, O. Cool

Hi R.,

I do not think that your daughter's sleep patterns are normal. I think you should take her to see her pediatrician. She may have sleep apnea or some other condition that is causing her to wake up so frequently. Abuela

Here's something kooky but if it works...... Does she sleep better with music? I run a childcare and one of my boys will not take a nap at all unless I put on some soothing music. We use a Baby Einstein CD. I put the CD on repeat and he will take a 1 - 2 hour nap with music and no nap without. You could try it and see if it works. I know it's not something you want to do forever and you may be opening another kind of can of worms but if it gets you both sleep then I'd do it. Also I just thought of this - have her ears checked for ear infection. One of my other little guy's had an ear infection which made lying down uncomfortable. My oldest child would get infections and show no signs until they were really bad - Good luck!

i had to laugh. you moms must have had super babies :); mine did not sleep through the night for the longest time. and also i specifically remember the 7th month because that is when the whole tooth craze began and everything we had accomplished regarding their bed routine flew out of the window for next 6 months :).
i would most definitely bring it up with the doctor, or to make you feel better make an appt specifically for this but i just wanted to tell you my kids did not sleep, but woke up 5-6 times a night for at least a year.
also, we dropped the second nap at 8 months because it was just not working. they were taking two cat naps a day for maybe 20-30 minutes and then up for at least half the night. that helped a bit. so maybe try make sure she is awake at least from 4 pm until her bedtime, 3 pm even better. see that for a few days and see if it makes a difference.
i have no answer obviously but i just wanted to tell you i went through that. i never thought i was going to sleep again.
now i am :)
good luck

Maybe it's the way she's falling asleep. Make sure she is still awake when you put her down so that she is actually falling asleep without you. That seemed to do the trick with my son. Now, when he wakes up in the middle of the night he puts himself back to sleep. Before that, he was up every 30-90 minutes and I would have to get up and walk him back to sleep. It was awful! Other than that, I would check her out with your pediatrician and make sure there is no lingering ear infection or acid reflux that is bothering her. Lastly, maybe she's getting a tooth? I hope that helps!

Waking up every two hours brings to mind an eating schedule, not a sleeping schedule. "What are you feeding her?" is the question. It sounds like she could use something to carry her through, like she is maybe having a growth spurt.

Try giving her some cream of wheat just before bedtime. You can mix it with hot water or hot milk I suppose, use whatever she eats the best. I'll bet if you can get that into her she will sleep longer. If she wakes later, give her some more. The instant regular flavor is very easy and very nice on the stomach.

Let me know if any of this helps.
Good luck.

she could be teething. my daughter started about 7 months. check her gums. wal-mart sells teething tablets which worked wonders for us and then baby ora-gel nighttime relief.
my duaghter's teething is ALWAYS BAD AT NIGHT!!!!

Hi R.,

How much exercise is the baby getting during the day?

How much nap time during the day are you saying she gets?

What kind of professional help are you getting?

D.

Hi R.! I know this is a "gross" possibility (although unlikely) but have you checked her for pinworms? From what I understand, they are most active at nighttime and can cause a child to constantly wake up for no other apparent "reason" other than they are uncomfortable and itchy. I read that the best way to check with either (1) go into her room at night with a flashlight and check her anal area and/or (2) you can use a piece of transparent tape and gently apply that to her anal area and, of course, very gently remove it and see if any worms are attached. Ended up, my son did not have pinworms but it is a small possibility. I felt much better after my "secret agent mission"!! Hope this isn't the cause of your baby waking up but at least you would know. If you notice anything unusual, trust your instinct and contact your pediatrician. Good luck!!

I really really have to disagree with those advice givers telling you to let your baby cry it out. An hour is an extremely long time and in my opinion a very cruel way to try to get a baby to sleep. You cannot spoil babies-- they can only commnicate with you in certain ways. I love the Dr. Sears books and website. He says all of this better than me and I would check it out. My 5 month old still wakes up, and I think all kids do naturally for a long time. Better to fulfill their needs now so they don't haev issues later... Just my opinion, but I felt compelled... I am really against the cry it out method...

That doesn't sound normal to me, either. A growth spurt or teething pain might be making her wake up more frequently, but waking up every 30 to 90 minutes? for a month?
Give the doctor a call to see if they have any suggestions, and I would have them check her out for sleep apnea - that results in the kind of waking you are describing, and is often not diagnosed until people are adults - my good friend finally got diagnosed at the age of 33 and the doctor said from his description that he probably has had it since he was a kid. WebMD can give you the definition and more information (I would read up on the basics before you talk to the doctor.) The baby might be too young for it, but better to check and be sure. That's the only thing I can think of that might explain the situation you have described.

Good luck!

Hi R.,

There could be several reasons.
Is she on a regular nap time/bedtime routine....this is a must. Do the same thing everytime.
Second, sometimes when children are developing and learning new skills, such as crawling, pulling to stand, they will do it even during the night. After mastering the skill she will stop doing it during the night.
Third, seperation anxiety.
Is she using a pacifier? Children who are attached to a pacifier and use it at night, if they lose it at night they will cry/wake to get it back...
Also, if she is waking during the night and your spending a lot of time with her to get her back to sleep she will think that it is playtime and not sleep time. When she wakes and is happy leave her be, if she is crying make sure everything is OK, if all is well lay her back down, say goodnight and leave-cry it out method---it is hard but works.
If her sleep problems continue I would speek to your pediatrician.
E. H.

Every baby is different. This sounds completely within the realm of normal to me. At her age she could be teething and that could be what is waking her. As for napping during the day a lot of older babies get very interested in their world and don't want to sleep. I would relax and not worry.

Hmm. There could be several reasons.
Is her bedtime routine different from her nap routine?
Does she sleep during noise but not quiet?
Does she have a bottle right before bed? Maybe she's hungry
When she wakes up is her diaper wet? It may hurt to pee, or its just uncomfortable. that would explain the varying sleep times.
When she wakes up is her diaper just a bit wet? My daughter wakes up like this. She won't go back to sleep for anything until I change her diaper. Even if is just a drop wet and I don't think she needs changing.
Does she sleep in a room with a nightlight? Maybe she doesn't like the dark.
What does she wear to bed? Maybe she gets too cold/hot.
Is it only when she lays a certain way? Maybe she has an earache or is just gassy.

It may be normal or it could be something undlying like an ear infection or a sore throat. My friend's son was doing this and finally took him to the doctor and found he had sinus infection. Just check it out to be on the safe side. Hope that helps! L.

I'll be curious to see what others have to say.

My oldest started sleeping through the night quite early, but stopped at 9 months. Seems she was getting to be aware enough that when she woke up she realized that she was alone. After several tries at letting her "cry it out" and such, I finally just decided to bring her into our bed. She and my four later children all slept with us after that. The main difference being that I didn't even bother to put the next four into a crib at all.

They are all grown now- my oldest is 30 years old and married, my youngest is a 17 year old high school junior. They are all very confident, secure and independent people. And non of them has slept with me for a LONG time!

Hi R., My Kyle did the same thing at about 5 months. He was sleeping through the night and then WAM! 5 or 6 times a night he would get up. I've come to understand he had developed a sleep association to me. Once I read (I believe it was chapter 4) in Dr. Ferber's book "Solving Your Child's Sleep Problems" We taught Kyle to self sooth and with very little crying within 3 days he was sleeping all night again. Good luck, let me know if there's anything I can do for you!!
Christy

---- You know.... one other thing... when I don't have Kyle bundled enough for the cold (he likes the house at 73 degrees) he wakes up a bunch. Try a warmer sleeper???

If you are nursing, make sure you aren't eating or drinking anything with caffeine that maybe she is getting too. Maybe she needs less of a nap. I can tell you my son has never been a big sleeper and NEVER took 3 hour naps, yet my girlfriends daughter would easily sleep 3 to 4 hours for naps and then 12 - 14 at night. I was never so lucky.

Hi R.,

If this has been going on for a week, and is out of the norm, it could possibly be teeth coming in or an ear infection. Consider taking her to the doctor to rule out any sickness and go from there.

Almost all kids are teething at this point, so make sure it isn't that or something like reflux/a cold. Try giving ibuprofen before bed and see if it makes a difference. If it doesn't then consider taking her to the doctor. Something is wrong. That is not normal for a 7 month old. So, consider the teeth first, then have her evaluated to make sure she is ok. Your mother-in-law means well, but consider how long it has been since she raised her children? Don't argue with her about it, it will only hurt her feelings and your husband's. Just try to not bring up the issue.

Sometimes the teeth can get the whole mess started, then they are frustrated b/c they are overtired. You are already farther ahead than 90% of parents about sleep, because you have read the Healthy Sleep Habits, Healthy Child. There really is something to what he is saying.

Just try to do a little problem solving before you try to sleep train again. It may be an issue too where your child may just need to blow off some steam.