My second daughter is almost 3 months old. She seems desperate to sleep in the evenings, but seems to have such a hard time. Most nights she screams (that awful screechy cry) and flails about. Nursing/rocking/pacifier/music/silence will work for only moments.
I thought I had it figured out when I moved up her bedtime earlier to around 6pm - she seemed overtired - but this only resulted in her waking up an hour or so later to scream at me. If I do get her to sleep, she will wake up as soon as I lean into the crib. It usualy takes about 5-6 sessions before she goes in and actually stays quiet. I think this is the result of pure exhaustion.
Luckily, once she is down for the night, she will sleep 6+ hours. She goes into the crib beautifully after her middle of the night feeding and usually for her morning nap. The rest of the day she goes to sleep easily (75% of the time) in her bouncer, swing, or car seat.
Any ideas would help! I have thought about swaddling, but I worry a lot about having her blanketed in the crib all night. For naps, I wouldn't mind, but I am not really comfortable with it all night.
I know most babies have "witching hours" - but she is really comitted to this routine. How can I make nighttime easier on her? And how do I transition her to the crib without waking her up?
Thanks for the feedback. I don't think I have it figured out yet. Although a surprising thing has worked: I was just frustrated with her, so I put her in the crib wide awake and turned on her mobile. She quieted down and stared at me, like "Now what?" So, I sang her a song and kissed her, rubbed her tummy. And left. She fell asleep on her own two nights in a row. I can't believe it will continue. But I am speculating that me holding/rocking/nursing was just overstimulating. Maybe I need to find a way to make things simpler at bedtime for her. Thanks for your advice and please let me know if you have had similar successes or any other ideas!
Does your baby have alot of gas? My 6-week old does and used to have a similar routine as your baby, but once I started using Mylicon to break up the gas bubbles, the episodes of screaming are much less frequent and if they occur, much shorter. Hope this helps!
I made sure my babe had plenty of fresh air before going and definelty lots of one on one! My last is now 15 and we still enjoy our talk time at the age of 15!!!
Warm bath, and massage, read books, and if all else fails, turn on a large or semi-noisy fan, that wsa the one thing I've seen with others whose kids/babies that don't sleep too soundly.
PS. my kids were tummy sleepers. my newborns i'd warm the bed up then lay then down after removing the heating pad.
let her nusre good on one side first so she gets the heavier fatty milk, also!
God Bless
I second the Mylicon (or Little Tummies gas relief drops- cheaper than Mylicon). My son had terrible bouts of crying when he was very young. Once I discovered the gas relief drops it was an instant fix. I just felt bad that I hadn't realized the problem sooner. It is definitely worth a try.
Is she on a routine through the day? I saw a big difference in my twins after I put them on a routine. At 3 m. they got up at 6:00 am, eat breakfast/bottle, story time, to a walk,bottle if needed 9:00 1st nap, playtime, ate lunch/bottle, back to sleep at 12:00, up play time, more story time, music time, another nap at 4:00, play, dinner/bottle, play, bath time, story time, bed time 8:00. You can give bottle when they are hungry ofcourse, but that is usely every so many hours so it can be scheduled also.
Good Luck,
T.
the MOM Team, Helping Moms Stay Home
www.cheerforyourfuture.com
Hey S T,
Just wanted to let you know that I was having a similar issue with my little one at that age and my pediatrician reccommended let her fall asleep where she is comfortable and as long as it is safe let her sleep there all night. You said she sleeps well in her carseat? Let her sleep there and see if that works and gradually work her out of it! Just a suggestion! Good luck!!
I am wondering.....Is maybe what you are eating or drinking effecting her sleep at night. If she is nursing then whatever you are eating or drinking close to her last feeding might be effecting her. Maybe ther might be sugar/caffeine being passed through the breast milk or maybe something that you ate doesn't agree with her. I have had 4 babies so maybe if you switch to water and fresh fruits or vegetable before her last feeding before youput her down then maybe it might work. This is just my suggestion....good luck.
Annie R
I definitely understand your frustration! My daughter was very similiar to that, except she didn't really nap more than 30 min a day. My husband and I were pulling our hair out anytime it came to putting her to sleep. All I can suggest is maybe try to put something warm in the crib before you put her down so she doesn't realize the big temp change. Also I know you don't feel comfortable with swaddling and I don't know if she has strong enough head control to avoid getting tangled in the blanket but I think it works wonders especially for restless babies, she needs that security feeling she gets when she is in your arms. I tried swaddling with my baby and she didn't even like sleeping on her back so I would put her on her side, but she would always get out of the swaddle. I checked on her a few times a night, I still do.
Also if she is napping a good portion of the day she might be confused between night and day. Maybe try and cut back her sleep during the day, keep her stimulated so she doesn't sleep all day but takes a 3-4 naps for an hour or so.
I hope this helps! Above all else be patient. I hate when people would tell me that but its true. My daughter still fights sleep but she is slowly getting better about it. She is not much of a napper because she is a ball of energy but she puts herself to sleep for the most part now and sleeps from 8-7 ( sometimes 6) but its definitely gotten a lot better.
Good luck!
We actually put our daughters' car seats in their crib at night and let them sleep in them. The doctor told us that sometimes they need to be upright to sleep. Hope this helps.
I'll echo what other moms have said: Swaddle swaddle swaddle!!! don't worry about all night - she should be sleeping at that time, not working out (that's for daytime, right?), so she doesn't need to be moving her arms around. Swaddling is intensely comforting to freaking-out babies. I used a "miracle blanket" with my boy (now 5.5 months), and he didn't squirm out of it like he could with receiving blankets. Another nice thing about the miracle blankets is that they're jersey knit, so there's some stretch for wiggling around, but no loud velcro like on the "swaddle me" blankets. Once he got too tall for his miracle blanket (he's a very big baby), we left his feet out of it and just wrapped his arms. If it's too warm at night, you can swaddle the baby without jammies. We swaddled our son until his startle reflex went away, and now he's a champion sleeper, though he does prefer to sleep somewhat on his side (propped at an angle). Good luck, and keep giving that baby lots of good love! :)
my son was definitely a very unscheduled baby when it came to sleep. he definitely did not sleep 6 hours at night for a long time, he was a year before he slept through the night. we may have been partly to blame, he was our first child and we hated hearing him scream because that is what he did, he didn't cry, he screamed. we finally got it down but i hope with the next one we will get it down earlier. it is hard with babies because they come from being in the womb and not on our schedule to a world where they are expected to sleep through the night or go to bed at a certain time... every baby is different and it is hard for us to bend to their needs when we need sleep too and we know they would feel better if they got some as well. as for the transitioning, that can help. it took us a long time to realize we needed to put our son down while he was still awake at the same time every day/night and allow him to self soothe. he cried for a couple of nights and it was so hard but we would go in and quickly check on him and just make sure he wasn't in a leaking or poopy diaper, had no fever and pat him down, give him his passifier and tell him it was ok and to go to sleep. we could not pick him up though, we would just lay him down. he was a year old at this time. i didn't feel comfortable letting him cry it out at 3 months old but that is just me. he slept with us in the beginning and next time i will use a cosleeper for our sake and the baby's sake as well. just try to keep in mind, it will work out. my son is healthy and happy now and a good sleeper but it took us a long time to get there and he is very active so he gets all that energy out and is nice and tired when it's time for him to sleep!
I know it will be tough, but if you haven't already, you need to try to let her cry. My husband and I used to let our first child cry for up to 30 minutes. We would put him in his crib, close the door and walk away. It was the hardest thing we have ever done. He is 10 now. Have you ever seen the TV "Mad about you" They had an episode on about doing that. Putting the baby down and letting the baby cry. Its hard and plays on your heart strings, But it does work. Try it. You have to be tough. It is very hard. GOOD Luck.
Mother of 2.
Swaddle her. Some kids need that pressure to feel comfortable. Use a thin blanket and have her in just a onesie if you feel she'll be to hot. Does she have reflux? Some babies have very mild reflux that only really bothers them when they are laid flat. Try a baby wedge that goes under her sheets and elevates her a little. They have them at Target and Babies r us. Good luck.
Try swaddling. I finally figured this out on baby number 3 and it really truly worked. They want to be swaddled and if you do it right it shouldn't pose a hazzard to your baby at night. Get a blanket big enough so it will stay tucked. Then again she may just be fussy at that time at night regardless. I swaddled number three until she was 5 months old.
Hi S. T.,
Is your baby on cow's milk?
If she is, she may be showing signs of allergy.
Just want to know. D.
Trying keeping her awake during the hours she wants to sleep. She doesn't know her nights from her days yet. If that doesn't work. Try exercising her small limbs for about 30 minutes to an hour. Lifting her legs and arms to help tire her out. Also try rolling her from side to side.
My daughter was like that for awhile after her birth. My Mom gave me this advice and it worked. Especially the one about keeping her up when she wanted to sleep.
Swaddling worked best for me and I do agree with you about the blanket - that's why I use the Miracle Blanket - only Houdini and older children can get out of it! Give it a try - you can find on the Web. Good luck!
