Need Sleep advice...PLEASE!!

My advise is a bit simpler than everyone else's but, have you tried putting her in a swing or bouncy seat? On the ocasion that I needed sleep and my daughter was wide awake, I put the bouncy seat next to my bed so I could fall asleep and she usually did to.

Try this...change her diaper first, then feed her. She may fuss because you're not feeding her first. Then, she will likely fall asleep while eating. Burp her well (hopefully she'll stay asleep during this part) and then put her down gently. It is ok to put her down asleep. She will start to "self soothe" back to sleep when she's more mature. Right now, it's just important for you both to get quality rest.

When all else fails, bring her to bed with you. You won't be starting a bad habit, because you're not doing it every night. Soon enough she'll be out of this phase.

Oh, I have a clock radio that projects the time on the ceiling (which is just enough light to see, but not enough to wake up the baby)...it has many sound effects which we keep on all the time in his room. I got it at Walgreens. I also have a wipe warmer with a night light, so there is minimal light when I change his diaper. I don't talk to him either...maybe whisper or shush him when he's really crying, but that's it.

You're doing just fine. I had the same problem with my baby, and now that I change him first, it's not a problem.
BTW, I was born on 8/7, too! Lucky little Leo. Good luck! ;o)

Hello B.!
Everything you are going through is what happened w/ our first, she is now 6. I was going crazy! Our pedi told us that it was not colic, and she was overstimulated (sp?). Start a night time routine w/ her, give her a bath read a book, what ever. See if that works. How is she eatting? Is she on formula? It may be to strong for her. I don't think CIO is going to harm her in anyway. I mean if is longer that 10 minutes, go check. Does she have a mobile or the aquarium in her crib? Those are wonderful! With my last one, that is now 16 months, still goes to sleep w/ her aquarium and we have used it since she came home from the hospital. Also a lot of it is new mommy jitters, that little one can sense if you are tired, upset or whatever and reacts to it. Make sure you are sleeping when you can. I know it is hard w/ a new little one, the world goes on if the laundry isn't done, and frozen pizza is dinner for the whole week! Big hugs to you and your new little life! All my luck, let me know if I can do anytning! M.

I know this sounds a little extreme, but if this continues then you need to go see her doctor. My son did this for quite awhile & when I finally took him to the doctor he had an ear infection. With a ear infection they don't always have to have a temperature, but they always cry after they lay down for a few minutes & only sleep good when they are in an upright position. Hope this helps....

This is just what worked for me, but it was successful and I now have 4 kids who sleep through the night and my hubby and I get sleep and alone time too...makes for a happy home and calm kids.

So, I used the book "On Becoming Babywise" by Gary Ezzo. Again, some people as you said have a problem with crying it out, but I can't tell you how it helped me.

Babies need their sleep and sometimes they get into a pattern where they are stuck in waking at certain times each night/early AM and this method helps to kind of break that cycle so everyone gets sleep.

You work towards the schedule and don't beat yourself up if you go off of it, but it's been a miracle for my entire family and even when I've had friends disagree with letting the baby cry, they really only cry for about 5 min. and then they learn to "put themselves to bed" instead of being rocked, nursed, etc...to sleep...if you start those habits now, you have to break them later, so it's just a decision to make now so you get off to the right start and know what you are getting into. My friends try and do this method after they are tired of whatever they were doing and it's much harder to get the baby sleeping on a schedule as they get older.

It's really whatever works for your family, my hubby and I decided before we had kids (based on seeing what our friends had done) that we didn't want our babies to sleep with us. We're very close and we adore and love our children, but we need our space and no one really gets "real" sleep if you are sleeping together...anyways, off on a tangent, but you get the idea...it's an easy read, worth trying if you don't mind them crying a bit before they fall asleep.

I've coached other mommies through this method, so feel free to email me if you have any questions or concerns..I love helping with this stuff.

C.
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I'm a little bit more like you...I never had a problem letting my little one fuss a little bit before he got himself back to sleep. I didn't let him CIO necessarily, but sometimes babies need to fuss just a little before they go to sleep. As long as he wasn't getting really worked up or screaming, I let him cry. I know there are people who will disagree with me but now my child is a happy 5 month old who sleeps really well and is a very content baby. Some things you might try are keeping the lights off so she doesn't (hopefully) wake totally up. Try not to talk to her if you don't have to or speak in a really hushed tones. I tried to make as little eye contact as possible so that he didn't think it was time to get up and play. Another thing that I completely swear by is a white noise machine. We got ours at Bed Bath and Beyond...it's not specifically for babies, but it has a white noise setting and it works wonders. I think it helps them know that it's sleep time when that is on, plus it keeps that comforting shushing noise going so they can go to sleep. Keep at it, you're doing a great job I'm sure. It doesn't always get worse...my son is a great sleeper! Sometimes it gets better!! =)

From all of the books that I have read regarding sleep training, 4 months old is usually the age when you start. It is when their sleep habits become more adult like and the naptimes start to form during the day. If she is crying she probably needs you at one month old. She is new to this world and everything is scary or entertaining... The first 3 months are very hard regarding Mommy's getting any sleep...I wish you luck.

The book Healthy Sleep Habits, Happy Child is what I used for my daughter -it worked wonders. The first chapters are on how important sleep is and also talks about the early months sleep patterns..you may find some valuable information in the book to help you understand what is going on.

Gotta agree with the other mom. During the first few months, babies cry because they have a need. Even comfort and closeness is a real need for a newborn. My daughter is almost 8 months old and still wakes a couple of times. We've tried different things, but nothing really works. So, she sleeps next to me in a cosleeper and I pull her out when she wakes and put her right back. Sometimes creating a night time routine can help but, again, at 1 months, just be prepared for constant changes. But you do get used to it, and as your baby gets older, it gets easier, more second nature. the first couple months are tough, I know its easier said that done, but try to sleep during the day when she naps, or at least lay down and rest your body. It helps.

Are you sure she's crying because she wants to be entertained? My baby has acid reflux and we have to have her sleeping elevated or else she'd cry laying flat down. My pedi told me at one month that I should go in every 5 min. to comfort her by talking to her and/or making contact with her, but not necessarily picking her up to make her learn to soothe herself to sleep. I never had the heart to do it after I tried once and it was an hour later when I just picked her up and she stopped. Everyone I asked advice on here back then said not to let them CIO until 6 months (or 3 at least). I know what you mean about the sleeping thing. Maybe she's just uncomfortable and if you get a wedge for her to sleep on (or even propped up in her carrier or swing or something??). Good luck and hope you get sleep soon.

It sounds like what I've been going through with my daughter. She was born on 8/4, so about the same age. I don't know if I have any advice, but just to let you know your not alone...We have our good and bad nights, but it seems like when she's overtired she cries more at night and doesn't want to sleep. I've been trying to make sure she gets enough sleep during the day, so that she sleeps more at night. Good luck to you. I'm sure whatever it is, it will pass. :)

Sorry to hear about your little one. When my littlest one (now 13 weeks) was about 1 month, he started to get both silent reflux and gas that woke him in the night. He would root around like crazy acting as if he wanted a feed, and would be fine while he ate, but as soon as we put him back down, he would cry from the heartburn. Burping him over the shoulder made it worse. Have you ruled out that it could be either of the above? Sometimes as soon as my son passed gas he would settle right back down and go to sleep - but he needed some help to do it.

I'm all for CIO, but NOT for a newborn. Newborns cry when there is something they need. They have no other way to communicate. Colic and reflux start to show up around 3-4 weeks of age and produce symptoms you are describing. Absolutely the worst thing you can do is to try to entertain her to put her back to sleep. All that does is overstimulate a baby who needs to sleep and exhausts you as well. I made the same mistake with my son, who is now 3 and still wakes up at night sometimes. My daughter, was exactly like what you are describing, and is now 1 1/2, and I had already learned from the mistakes I made with my son. When she was that age she developed colic and reflux. I spoke to our pedi and he agreed she needed to be put on Zantac. It helped immediately with the reflux and other than that, the only thing that kept her happy was to be held, even at night. I was breastfeeding and decided that getting up to go to her every time she woke up was going to drive me crazy, so I brought her to bed with us. From the very first time I did that, she slept 6 hours straight and only woke to nurse, barely cried (I was there with her and new she was awake so she did not even need to cry). When she was about 7 months old, the reflux had subsided, as is typical, and after she was off of the Zantac totally, I put her into her own bed. ONLY then was it ok for me to use the CIO method. I would nurse her, burp her, rock her for a few minutes and when she started to show sleepiness, I would put her in bed still awake. For about 3 nights, she cried only about 5-10 minutes and went to sleep for as long as 10 hours at a time after that. She now puts herself to sleep and sleeps all night. I am expecting again, and with this baby, I will do everything the same as we did with her, because it all worked so well. One last thing, if you keep changing her diaper every time you feed her at night, or everytime she wakes up, you are going get her used to that to the point that she will not go back to sleep without it. You should really only change a baby that has pooped at night. If she's just wet, don't bother. Just be sure to put ointment on her bottom before bedtime.

It seems like, just when you have a schedule worked out, they change it up on you. Unfortunitely, my advice to you is to brace yourself, it gets even harder... She may be going through a growth spirt and needs more to drink and/or she may not be tired yet. Their internal clock doesn't work itself out for about 3 months so they have their days and nights mixed up. I do not believe in letting a new baby cry it out until they are able to become aware of life outside the body. They rely on you to make them comfortable, happy and loved, no matter what time of day:)

She could just be hungry, have you tried any rice in her night time cereal bottle? I know how your feeling and I truly hope things get better, If you need help with the cereal e-mail me and I can help ya!!

I know the books say not to - but we ended up bringing our daughter to bed with us. I would lay on my side and she would lay on hers facing me with the pacifier in the middle. I kept the pacifier in and though I slept only lightly for fear of moving and hurting her - at least I slept. I had been so exhusted that I would just cry or snap at my husband. It made a huge difference for us. Then by 2 1/2 months she went back to her bed and sleeps through the night ever since.