Sleepless in Ft. Wayne

Hi B.!

I just wanted to let you know that I'm going through the exact same thing with my 15 month old son right now, so you're not alone. It's frustrating, because I can tell that he actually wants to go back to sleep, he's just having a hard time getting himself back to sleep. I bring him into the bed with me, but that doesn't always help, and it's far from being a desirable solution. I definitely don't want him getting in the habit of sleeping with me. I appreciate you asking the question, because I'm learning from the advice that you've gotten too.

Just wanted you to know that there is somebody out here who sympathizes with you! If you find a solution that works for you, please let me know!

Good Luck!
L.

My son is 17 months old and his schedule has changed but not like yours. It is hard to determine the best advice or help for you since we don't know her daytime schedule or nap schedule. This info. would help alot.

Do you still have her on two naps? Because if so, then it's time to cut back to one.

If she's on one nap, is it in the middle of the day? If so, how long is it? My child at that age slept from about 12:30 -2:30 or 3. I've always noticed that when my kids have had trouble or disruptions with their sleep, if I just change their nap schedule a bit the problem corrects itself.

Also, she may be getting those 2 year molars. Those suckers affect each kid differently. Try rubbing vanilla extract on her gums when she's having trouble sleeping. It will be soothing because it's a mother's touch, and it will also relieve any soreness and discomfort.

Dear Beth Anne.
Oh my gosh. I want to reach out and hug you because I was EXACTLY where you are RIGHT now a month and a half ago when my daughter was two weeks younger than your daughter is right now. (Sophie just turned 19 months...she went through this exact thing at 17 months and two weeks) I tried EVERYTHING...and the crying it out did not work either. She would get herself so upset, she would vomit. (then we had to change sheets, give bath, etc,,then she was REALLY up) I was thinking "what have i changed, what am i doing wrong" I was praying out loud at 3am "please god, help me...show me the way to get this baby to go back to sleep." What worked for me was consistancy...no talking, very little if any eye contact...NEVER picking her up out of crib..patting on back...singing a boring song like "abc's really soft and slow, and a nightlight. We had not previously had a nightlight in her room...but that did help. What I learned is that they go through phases...and its all we can do as Mommys to keep up. I don't know for sure if my consistancy paid off, or her phase just passed on its own...but after almost a month of that (on and off) she started sleeping again like an angel. OH..I almost forgot....teething. People tend to forget that they are still getting teeth at our babies age. Motrin saves. Tylenol never worked for Sophie. Also,,food was an issue...still is. Her favorite thing is the world is my homeade veggie soup...has beans, tomato, squash, zucchini, you name it, if its a veggie, its in there,,,but it gives her TERRIBLE gas when she tries to lay down at night.
Just know that I have been there,,,recently,,and you are not alone. I promise it will pass. Just do not accidently reward the behavior by picking her up out of her crib...I have learned that sort of thing is actually teaching them that if they cry hard enough, they get out of their crib. Sending you a big hug....how I feel for you...how I clearly know that feeling the next day of being useless kind of tired. Please email me for any reason...even just to talk about it....
Jenny in NC (and baby Sophie too :-)

This happened with our first daughter too. She was a little younger than yours at the time. I know how painful it is to listen to them cry. With ours it was just that she wanted to sleep with us. We just had to stick it out and make her understand to sleep in her own bed. Just let her know you love her and lay her back down, and leave her room. You may have to do this many times, but eventually she will give it up and go to sleep. good luck!

J.

Have you tried cutting down on her naps durning the day? If that doesn't work then maybe something else is going on with her that you might need to have your doctor help you with! She might also be at that stage where she is showing her independence, and wants to do what she wants, not what you want! If there isn't anything medically or physically wrong with her, then it is probably just a phase and should pass, but you need to stick to your end and keep putting back in her room and telling her it is bed time. Also if she is in a daycare you might want to check that out and see if something major has changed there, that might make her be uneasy. Good luck to you, and hopefully goodnights!
T.

I agree with determining if there has been any changes in her life recently (daycare, new schedule, new job, etc.) Also, is she teething by chance?? that could do it. if it is teething, I have alway found that Hylands teething tablets followed by a dose of infant motrin always takes care of the pain. I have heard that this is common at this age and will end shortly, but I know that doesn't make the sleepless nights any better. If you have ruled out all of the above, maybe you could make a little "nest" on the floor in your bedroom if you don't want her in your bed, where she could sleep so she can be near you and feel comforted, but both could get much needed sleep. Hope you get your much needed sleep soon!

A lot of toddlers have these phases they go through where they start doing something new at the same time every night, etc. I've been through it 4 times now. I cannot go without sleep when I have to get up for work. What I have usually done if I've tried everything else is give my child a little antihistamine before bedtime which will usually put her out like a light and keep her out. You must, of course, make sure she can take such medication, etc. Believe me, you will thank me. Let me know if you end up trying it and you get some relief.

Dear B.,

I would find out what she is doing all day. I'm wondering if she is sleeping during the day while you are trying to stay awake at work. If she is not sleeping during the day, I would find out what kind of exercise she is getting during the day.
If she truely has her nights and days mixed up the only way to fix it is to keep her up during the day...it will be ruthless for you, but it won't take long to fix it. Just some suggestions...I hope this helps!

Sincerely,
T.

My daughter went through something similar, and (oddly enough) I was just talking with a friend two days ago who mentioned her son did as well. In both cases, it seemed to start very suddenly. But in both our cases, the problem turned out to be that the kids were actually hungry. I would give my daughter about half a banana or a little yogurt or something light like that, and she would go right back to sleep. My friend said she would make sure her son ate just a little snack before going to bed at night, and it solved the problem. Hope this helps!

Hi B.-

This happened to us also. Our daughter is now 3 1/2 yrs and no problems excpet an occasional middle of the night potty break..BUT...

From the iime we brought her home from the hospital to about 9 months she slept fantastic. Then she starting waking up around 2 or 3am and crying until 5 or 6am! It was BRUTAL for me b/c I also worked.

We thought it was all kind of different things that could have affected her. From a trip out of town to an ear infection to a new room in daycare. I kept finding excuses. But it lasted for alsmost a year!!!! Unbelievable I know. I kept thinking each night would be the last.

I took her to the doctors multiple times and nothing was wrong. The doc's said she is fine, this happens, live with it or suggested maybe seeing a therapist. I was not up for that.

What we started doing was trying to "RE-SET" her sleep pattern. One suggestion from the doctor and another Mom whose child had night terrors. We would put her to bed and before we would go to bed 11-ish we would gently wake her enough that she would acknowledge us and then go back to sleep. This TOTALLY helped. If you try this method, be conssitent and do it for at least TWO weeks!

GOOD LUCK!
D.

You might want to talk with her daycare and see if she is taking naps and what times and how long. When my daughter was 18 months she only wanted one nap a day and needed only about 1 hour, well her daycare was allowing her to take a nap at 2pm, and letting her sleep for 2 hours, so when we would pick her up she was rarring to go and would not go to sleep. She would lay down and then be up and down throughout the night. Maybe this is what is causing the sleeplessness. Also you might want to check and make sure her room is dark enough for her to sleep. It may be that it is too bright, if you have outside lights, or even a night light, people sleep better in good darkness and she may not be able to sleep. I wish you luck.

Having a crying baby is really frustrating and my son was too. In my case I use babies magic tea to soothe my sleepless child (not now he is sleeping well through the night). You can also give it to your baby.