Sleeping Troubles, Advice Please!

I highly recommend Elizabeth Pantley's "no cry sleep solution" books, mostly for the excellent discussions of the range of normal behavior in sleep.

Sorry, I have more questions for you instead of an answer... How much sleep is your baby getting in a 24 hr period? Did he nap before? Is he getting enough to eat? Are you maybe eating or drinking something that could be upsetting his little system (does he have any symptoms that would suggest he has an allergy or sensitivity to something? Does he have regular bowel movements, spit up a lot, etc...?)? Do you drink caffeinated beverages? Do you swaddle him (I know he's a little old for swaddling...)?

I have four little ones, and this just seems unusual- not so much the fussiness at night as much as it is the seemingly lack of sleep in general... He should be getting around 15-18 hrs of sleep each day...

My son also had problems when he first learned to roll over. Based on my experience you have two options:

1-Swaddle him so that he can't roll over (we had to use the double swaddle to accomplish this, because he could get out of a regular swaddle). Eventually he will be strong enough to roll over in the swaddle, but for us that didn't happen until after he was able to turn himself back over to his back.

2-Wait. It's just a phase and within a few weeks he will figure out how to roll back over or he'll loose interest in practicing his new skill in the middle of the night.

Good luck!

... Whenever a baby/child... hits growth-spurts AND hits milestones AND changes in motor-skills and cognition... it tweaks their sleep.

Once they start to get mobile/sit up/stand up/roll over... it WILL tweak their sleep. They are learning. They learn by doing said movements over and over and over again. That is how they practice. And yes, even in bed/sleep time. Because, babies do not, have at-will control over their impulses.

What your baby is doing, is normal.

It will pass.

Once a baby gets more control over their appendages... it will get better. They do not know how... to control their movements nor how to put their body right back into a comfy sleep position, at-will like an adult or older child.

They will do this, for awhile.
It is them changing, developmentally.
NORMAL.

You just have to ride it out.

And yes, 6 months is also a growth-spurt time and a baby gets hungrier and more often, and will need to nurse, more often.

They also at this age, may also start to teethe. This wakes them too.
Normal.

So MANY things going on at the Same time, for a baby. Not easy for them. It is growing-pains...physically and cognitively.
Normal.

Over-tired babies/kids... also sleep worse and wake more.
They also get 'separation-anxiety' from about this age.

Get the book "What To Expect The First Year" and "What To Expect The Toddler Years."

What you can do is, have a floor futon/mattress, and co-sleep with baby there. That is what I did. I never co-slept with my kids in the same bed as me/Hubby. We have a floor futon in our room. It worked for us.

Babies do not have their motor-skills or coordination, mastered yet. It takes time.

Oh no! You need sleep :)

My first thought was to suggest a wedge but he will eventually need to learn to roll back over/roll around, and the wedge won't help him do that (I used a wedge but never liked it). Does he seem like he is ready to sit up at all? Try one of those support seats, like the Bumbo, and see if he can strengthen his back muscles to roll around.

I suggest more active floor time for him. Put some toys out of his reach and get him moving around.

I hope you will find some much needed rest soon. Hang in there.

bed share/co-sleep... for both overnight and nap time.

Does your 2 year old nap? Could you put your 6 mo old in a pack n play next to your bed and try to nap while your two year old naps? Put some toys in the pack n play.

At six months and 20 pounds I would think he'd be able to go all night without a feeding. Have you tried that?

I hope you can get some much needed sleep soon. I know how terrible loss of sleep is!

We swaddled our daughter for a loong time and it really did help her sleep. I know you say he's big and it's difficult to carry him around, but have you tried a carrier? I loved my Moby Wrap for her and it's still pretty comfortable even as they get bigger. I'm sure this is a phase and that he'll start sleeping better again once his teeth come in. As far as YOU getting sleep, could you put the 2 year old in front of a movie for 1 hr a day to try to get a nap? I know most don't like to use the TV as a babysitter, but you need your sleep!! Also, if hubby doesn't get home until 3am, that probably means he doesn't go in until later in the day. Could he give you a break a day or two in the morning (meaning get up with the kids) so you could catch up on sleep? He'll be tired those days, but it'll be worth it if it improves how you feel.

One trick for laying him down once you have nursed him is to have a warm hot-water bottle in the crib. The coolness of the mattress is waking him up. Right before you lay him down, move it. You can even wedge it next to him a few minutes to trick him into thinking that you are laying next to him.

Not advocating one way or the other, but If you are going to let him cry it out, you have to let him cry. Once you give in, you have defeated the purpose. I tried it with my daughters and after two nights of crying, they slept all night. Since you aren't getting any sleep ayway, what's another two nights. If you are concerned about disturbing the rest of the family with the crying, you and the baby can go to a part of the house that is the farest away as you can get. Make sure all the doors to everyone's room is closed.

This too shall pass, and then it will be another challenge. LOL

My girl friends daughter did not nap at all ever, but she slept all night from almost day 1. I would prefer that over what my kids did: nurse every 2 hours all day and night until about 7 months when I let them cry it out (#1) and used the Ferber method (#2). I like Ferber's book: "how to solve your child's sleep problems". Our library had a copy. It covers a wide range of sleep issues (including sleep terrors and sleep walking as well as just normal nap issues) as well as practical advise "how to" solve it. I kept charts for a short while to get my girls off their every-2-hour-feeding schedule per his book, and I used his book again later to look up older kid sleeping issues. I think sleep deprivation is the very worst part about raising kids. I wish I could say it goes away after infancy, but it seems one or the other of my kids would still occasionally have a night mare or hear a noise or want an extra cuddle long after I thought they were sound asleep. They are now 14 and 11 and sleep well. Good luck and hopefully good night.