Hello all! I'm seeking any advice that you may have to cure my sleep troubles. My daughter is 3 months old and sleeps wonderfully through the night. She is perfectly healthy with the exception of some baby reflux. She has a very mild case thank goodness and we have a rolled up towel under the mattress of her crib which is located in our room - I have not gotten up the nerve to move her to her own room yet. So even though she is in our room, sleeps through the night and I have a video monitor I still cannot sleep! I have tried having a glass of wine before bed, making sure the house is picked up and the chores for the day are completed, making a list of what to do the next day so it's not running through my head, and taking a walk or a bath before bed. I even tried some sleeping pills but I fight through the drowsiness. I guess I am paranoid that something will happen in the middle of the night and I will sleep through it (though I have always woken up in the past). During the day I end up so exhausted that my husband or mother will take the baby so I can sleep and still knowing that she is safe with people I trust I cannot sleep. I have gone up to almost 60 hours before crashing on the couch - and that's what happens. I get so tired I will just crash and fall asleep because I can't be awake any longer. This is neither safe nor healthy so I'm looking for advice from anyone who may know what could be going on or who have experienced this before. Thank you all!
Thank you all for your wonderful advice and suggestions! They are all very helpfull! The baby's crib is in our room near the bed but not very close, and we usually always go to sleep with the t.v on (usually F-R-I-E-N-D-S dvd's I love that show). I have tried sleeping pills both OTC and prescriptions (I have them for migraines) but I seem to fight the drowsiness. I did speak to my OB/GYN who told me he couldn't help me and to see my GP which I will be doing very soon. Sleeping has been getting much easier which is nice and I have been able to nap a bit during the day while the baby naps. Thank you all again for your wonderful help, and I will keep you posted! If anyone else has suggestions all are welcome anything could be helpful, thanx so much again!
Hi E.,
A great solution is having a special tea made with camomille, lemon grass and pepermint. You can buy those at the supermarket. Usually I make 1/2 mug before I take a shower, so the water from the tea gets more concentrated while I relax in the shower, then I fill it up the mug and take it in the bed while I read or watch tv. It works so well! It's worth to try!
Good luck,
P.
I had a similar problem and took benedryl or tylenol pm to help me fall asleep. You can pull the baby's crib next to your bed so you can see her if that helps. If you are just really paranoid about her and can't get past it, there are monitors you can buy that will set off an alarm if the baby doesn't move/breath. It does get easier as the baby gets older.
You're not alone in the not being able to sleep department... I too have the most difficult time falling asleep.... partly because my schedule is so up in the air, and mainly because i can't seem to turn my brain off at night when my 4 month old daughter FNALLY does get to sleep. We also have a problem with reflux, and just recently she had gotton RSV bronchialitis.. though it was a pretty mild case due to the fact that i caught it quick, it still scared me how her breathing sounded for a while(almost 2whole weeks) While she was sick she slept in our room, and off and on she now sleep in her crib on a speicial elevated pillow that's firm. I wish i had some solid advice about what helps me get to sleep but to tell you the truth i haven't found anything that really works for me to get to sleep. A hot relaxing bath with soft music and good smelling candles and bath salts if your husband is home at night(my husband leaves at 2pm and doesn't get hoem until 4am so this makes it a bit difficult for me. He gets one day off a week, tuesday. I hope you find something that works
-N.
hi, im going to butt in only for the safety of the baby... i think all of the ideas are certainly worth trying, i have no magic about sleeping, i cant turn my brain off at night either. i just wanted to say that while a cosleeper is wonderful,, we used it for my daughter, it is truly a Godsend, especially if you are nursing, i want to let you know that at 3 months she may be pulling herself up soon, and then the cosleeper is no longer safe. you may have another month or so before she pulls herself up, but you may not, and as i learned quickly with my first baby, you dont know what they are ready to do until they just do it, surprise! no advance warning or anything. thats how my daughter came out of the cosleeper, she was about 4 months old, i LOVED that thing, and one day i opened my eyes and there she was peering over the side, i almost had a heart attack, closed it up that day. i will use it again, i love it, but i will probably stop around 3 months. dragging the crib next to your bed would be safer at this point if you think it would really help, that monitor that you put under her might do the same thing. a video monitor might help too if you dont already have one. when my kids were in the crib (a rare event, we co-slept in bed a lot too, still do with my son, he is almost 4, goes to sleep in his bed but comes in ours almost every night during the night), i would use the video monitor and fall asleep watching them sleep. do you watch tv in bed? some of those national geographic shows are great to go to sleep to, the blue planet ones, they are so beautiful and so relaxing and they have that narrator with that voice that just puts me out. good luck, D.
hello sleepless mommy-
if you do not already have a tv in your bedroom, get one. i know a lot of people are against this, but this is a total cure-all for me. i watch something light and funny, that i enjoy, (sex and the city) and then after that, during my favorite show, friends, i fall asleep every single time. i am relaxed and enjoying the show and not thinking about anything else. if you are tired, your body will pick up on that genuine relaxation and you will konk right out.
also, try NOT opening your eyes, for any reason. this works too. just lay there with your eyes closed, and say to your self that you will not open them until you fall asleep. sounds ridiculous, but it does work. good luck!
I have had sleeping trouble in the past & the only thing that works for me is reading for about a half hour - hour before bed. It makes me really drowsy & easier to fall asleep.
Also sleeping pills or tylenol pm never worked for me either, but Benadril always seems to make me tired when I take it.
Good Luck!
Sounds as if you have tried everything! Sometimes sleeplessness postpartum can be related to post partum depression or anxiety disorders. Have you spoken to your OB about your symptoms? Definitely let your medical professionals and/or therapist, clergy know how you are feeling. Mamas need SLEEP! You may just have a hormonal/chemical imbalance that is keeping you up! Are you falling asleep behind the wheel?
Hello. I understand how you feel. I would definetly talk to your OB/GYn doctor and make sure its not a hormonal issues. If they are not then you can try an over the counter medicine for your sleeplessness. Melatonin is a pill you can take that is very helpful, and I myself have had to use it when I go days without sleep. I don't wake up groggy at all. Plus you need to rest so you can be completely alert and your reflexes and all can work while youre with your baby. Eventually your body will automatically make you sleep b/c of sleep depervation, but I would definetly try to avoid that to keep it from possibly happening while you are driving, etc. I hope the OTC will work for you and you can get your much needed sleep.
E.,
Your first step really ought to be to talk to your doctor. It sounds like anxiety is what is keeping you awake. A doctor can help you with that, but you have to reach out and let them know what's going on.
If I'm wrong, since I'm a SAHM and a former investment banker, not a doctor, I'll suggest co-sleeping. I know this is not necessarily a popular choice, and people will tell you you'll roll over on the baby (you won't, but don't go to bed drunk), or you'll never get the baby out of your bed (you will, no one goes from Mommy and Daddy's bed to High School graduation), or some such, it may be that having your little one right in your arms may help you sleep relaxes that she's okay. They make co-sleepers that attach to the side of your bed, so you can have her right with you, but not actually on your mattress if that is something that works for you.
I know this solution isn't always popular, but everyone's got to sleep. If the only way for you to be healthy, alert and refreshed is to sleep with the baby, then give it a shot. She needs her Mommy, and you can't be at your best if you're going days without sleeping.
Jess
The best advice I can give yu is that if you have the money.. A monitor called angelcare bebe monitor. This monitors more movement as well as sound. I have a 4month old premmie that had a lot of problems in the begining and this is what got me through the night. my girlfriend lost a daughter while I was pregnant and this made me even more pariniod about it. With this monitor it has an alarm system in it. If no movemnt is detected( breathing) and alarm goes off. This monitor is so good for every age that my I just bought my mother one for her house on ebay for around $60. I have nieces that are 2 and under and still sleep in the playpen when they are at her house. When it comes to a good night sleep this means just that for you and your baby. If a little reasurrance is what it is going to take then why not. Video monitors are great but not as great as this. I was looking at video monitors before I found this but then I quickly changed my mind... A friend of mine has one and she uses it for her toddler so when he gets out of bed in the am she knows right away and he cant get his curious fingers into trouble. Hope I have helped. I'm sure your daughter is just fine and its more mommy nerves than anything else but this is a good thing to try to calm them.. Good luck let me know if you would like to chat further.
T.
Try maybe some yoga, a warm bath with lavander oil and some candles, deep breathing, reading a book, chamamille(sp?) tea, or a combination between those. I don't know if you are religious but maybe pray for your baby before you go to sleep, so you can feel like someone is watching over your little one. I don't know how you feel about co-sleeping but you could put her in bed with you, or buy a co-sleeper that hooks to your bed so she's closer. If it will make you feel any better, my daughter refused to breastfeed in the hospital so we gave her a little formula (stupid decision on my part to begin with but the stupid nurse was being so pushy) she ended up choking on it (I was taking a shower and she was sleeping so her daddy put her in her crib) turned purple and everything. The night we came home I was so scared to sleep, stayed up the whole night watching over her, didn't even go to the bathroom. She hasn't choked since and on the few occasions that she has spit up when she was laying down she has turned her head. You could put her on her side and roll up blankets or get a positioner so she doesnt roll. She'll be ok, just relax and get some rest.
Hi E.!
When my daughter was born (shes almost 4 now) she was a great sleeper from the begining. We too had her crib in our room. I too, could not sleep. I finally came to realized that it was my nerves keeping me awake. I would hear her breath or roll and I was awake. I would actually get out of bed and check on her. Most of the time, i would end up waking her my accident. It continued til she was about 6 months old and we decided to give her her own room. That completely did the trick. I found that I wasnt hearing every litte sweet sound she made and I was waking up less.
This may not help you but I want you to know that you are not alone...sweet dreams!
I have used guided meditations with good success. Try counting backwards from 100 while viualizing the most lovely peaceful place on earth. In your mind take a walk on the beach or down a dirt road with flowers on each side. See the flowers and smell them. watch yourself lay a blanket down and snuggle with your baby. Just an example. You can purchase guided meditations.
