Baby won't sleep!!!! Help.

mirwillbeback

Hi,

Our youngest is one in June, and it really wearing us out! He sleeps twice during the day for about 40mins - 1 hour. We put him down about 8pm cos he seems tired, but its a battle to get him asleep - he'll toss and turn and tries to sit up when he feels himself dropping off. He wakes EVERY night about 4am. We had been giving him a bottle of milk at that time, but this week have changed it to water which he doesnt like. However, he does go back to sleep for a bit, ( maybe 5 ) at which time we have to give him a bottle of milk or he'll stay awake. After the bottle he doesnt really settle, and most mornings hes awake by 6. We are absolutely shattered, taking turns in the back room for a good night's sleep, but can do that forever . Has anyone any suggestions.
Thanks in advance.

ROCKMAN

It will be hard at first, but i would try to keep him awake for that second 1 hour nap during the day he will be like a demon at first but hopefully after a few days he may settle into new route and sleep longer at night

Raytown Rocks

Would it be any good to bath him prior to bed time
It may relax him a bit/tire him out.

Nevyn

How old is your litle one ?

Stimpyone

Yep, try cutting him back to one nap during the day and make sure the little bugger has a full belly going to bed. He might be waking up because he's hungry.

Ambrosia rice worked a treat for us. She goes down for a full 12 hours now....

shrapnel222

i don't think stopping the afternoon nap is going to solve your problem- On the contrary it might make things even worse. If he's tired when you put him to bed, and he's fighting it, it's just that he doesn't want to leave you. i personnally would let him cry for 10 minutes, then give him a cuddle without leaving his room then back in bed, then let him cry for longer etc...(this is down to personal choices as everyone will have strong opinions on letting babies cry or not). As for the 4 o'clock wake, we had the same problem, we tried the water trick but it didn't work for us, so we would give a bottle and then he would sleep till 630 and that was it. All i can say is he grew out of it, and now sleeps soundly till at least 7 or 8am.

m_stan

Also stick with the water at night for a while and then take it away completely. He wont be happy but will eventually realise there is no point waking up for a drink of milk if he aint going to get it !

When going to sleep routine is the key. Get a routine around the time and way you put him down. In our case we do a little round of 'goodnights' with our daughter (18 months) - saying goodnight to different toys and pictures in her room, culminating in her turning the light off and lying down in bed. Always done in the same order. She knows the routine by heart now and finds it settling and helps her accept that its bedtime.

It will get easier as he gets older. We also have a nealry 4 year old and he was a nightmare at this age but is now very very settled, putting himself asleep every night. So get a routine, and be patient. It may not feel like it now but it gets better !

Oryx

Whatever method or routine gets him to sleep at 8pm will also be the routine he will want at 4am. So if you are chatting to him and staying with him as he nods of when he goes to bed, thats what he will need to get back to sleep in the middle of the night.

So working on his going to bed routine will definitely help you in the middle of the night. Its a slow process, but try and get him used to being in bed without you there as he goes to sleep. I did this with my daughter when she went thru a bad patch. First at night I sat with her, then sat by the door, then outside the door but she could hear me, and finally I could go and have a cup of tea.:) It took a few weeks, but it meant when she woke at night she was used to me settling her and then leaving. She still has bad nights but it is better.

And put darker blinds on his windows, these bright mornings are terrible cos the kids think its wakey wakey time a 6!

Good luck and tho you are shattered now, I can honestly say IT WILL END

mirwillbeback

thanks to all for the replies. i know it will get better, but it can seem so long away. best contraception for the next time.
cheers

Snowbie

At 8,i have put our 15 month old down now.
In order was or routine is for bedtime
1.Dinner 1 hr prior to bedtime.
2.Chase around the garden/play games.
3.6oz bottle of milk
4.Soother
5.Cya at 7.30am
Now on 9/10 times this worked with the older two aswell at the same age and younger.(take out the times of sickness,teething etc)
Again its a routine to which you and baby will have to adopt.
Firstly its a big no no for a second sleep during the day,there are energy levels that need to be sapped rather than stored.But if baby needs a second sleep well then bedtime has to be later on in the evening rather than a usual 7-8:00pm norm.

EG:We have our 15 month old usually have a nap between 11am-1:00pm now not always is it 2hrs,sometimes just half hr.If any later than the time above well it usually increases the bedtime in the evening.We have being doing this since she was 8 months and is second nature now.

Try also getting baby to use the mind more like playing games or encourage baby to walk/crawl more(we adults sometimes read as an effective way of making us tired,same thing).This would tire baby out somewhat.

Now the water trick i think we all used it but also failed for us untill we put a half teaspoonfull of sugar into warmed water and sweetened the taste a tad.Worked on occasion when it was necessary.
Its tough going alright,but at an age when baby is one yr old will remember more,play off you more and also demand more if not in a routine.Not too late to start.I would start by settling the baby once a day around lunchtime.

Best of luck.:)

Davidth88

Oh Lord , I feel for you.

Question :- Is his room TOTALLY DARK , and I mean so dark you cannot see your hand in front of your face ? If not I would get blackout blinds etc etc.

Do you sit in there while he drops asleep , your description is pretty vivid which sounds like you do . I wouldn't , leave him to settle himself, man he WILL ROAR the first few times , but be strong ( it's the hardest thing ) he is just giving out.

I should modify that, obviously if he is still screaming 20-30 mins later go and check/settle him ( bet ya he stops crying instantly !)

You say this is your youngest , how old are the other(s) , how were their sleeping patterns ?

Other than that I can't think.

Best of luck

RIRI

Poor you!

Apart from all the excellent advice from everyone else re: naps, routine etc we used to give our little lad (now 2 & 1/2) a good big bowl full of porridge about an hour before bed. At least that way if he did wake we knew it couldn't be hunger & so managed to cut out the bottle - the water trick never worked for us tbh

As Davidth88 points out, it does sound like the little monkey just doesn't know how to put himself back to sleep without one of you in the room. Let him cry a little (obviously don't let him get hysterical) then go in & calm him down by speaking to him (personally I wouldn't pick him up but each to their own) You'll be up and down the stairs like a yoyo for afew nights, but you'll be surprised how quickly they adapt. Above all be consistant & persevere and keep visualising that unbroken sleep you'll be rewarded with shortly.
Best of luck!!