What is the best way to get your child to sleep through the night? My son is 12 months and still won't sleep.

Question

i have tried everything to get him to sleep... i have tried letting him cry it out... i have taken the bottle away... but i always give in after an hour or so of crying. I feel bad if i let him cry for more than an hour... but the longest i have gone at letting him cry it out is 2 1/2 hours. That was horrible. Is there any other way? I tried letting him cry it out for about 3 weeks... and he would refuse to go back to sleep without his bottle. he wakes up twice a night... and once in the morning for a bottle. Help me please... i need sleep. lol

ok to answer some of your questions... he eats so much during the day and only takes one nap.... i put oatmeal in his bottle at night and he is completely off the bottle during the day. But before he bed we do have a routine... i give him a bath.. bring him down stairs, we read to him, he eats a jar of fruit, plays a little bit more... then we brush his teeth and put him to bed with a bottle. Which I know is the problem. He associates the bottle with bed. I have tried exhausting him and letting him fall asleep on his own but he just wakes up later and screams it out. I do go in there while he is crying and I'll soothe him and rub his back and head... but that doesn't help at all. I so didn't want to try and let him cry it out... but the retarded doctor told me too. and she makes me mad over alot of things she say to do and not to do. So I did take her advice for the bottle and haven't tried it since then I am looking for new ideas and will look into the ferber method. thank you

Ok for the people who say I am being cruel... ONE I WAS TRYING TO FOLLOW WHAT THE DOCTOR SAID TO TRY!!! Did you miss that part in my section. I don't like to let him cry it out and I will never do it again. And I can not put him in my bed because we have associated that my bed is playtime area. We take him before his bath and after his bath he plays on our bed. So that is not going to work. I do go in there and rock him, sing to him, rub his little back and play with his hair... it is a no go.... i was trying to ween him off of the botlle and that worked during the day... which i have replaced with whole milk out of a cup and water. I have tried replacing his formula with water at night... but that doesn't work either since he doesn't drink water out of a bottle he drinks it out of a cup. So i have tried everything right now... except this ferber method. So please do not try and say i am cruel.... i was told by the doctor to do this and so i tried it out...even though i didn't want to

Answer 1

I know your feeling. My youngest who is now almost 12 months old went through this.

My b/f would get up with him and give him a bottle. I told him over and over again that he needs to stop this or we will be doomed forever lol.

So finally I turned off the baby monitor so that way we wouldn't hear him wake in the night time.

Answer 2

I have a six week old son, and this is what we've done thus far, and have had great success. For the last couple of weeks, he's in bed by 9pm and sleeps until 6am, so something must be working right :-)
We try to establish a bed time routine for him each night. Pj's on at a certain time, and his last feeding is always done in his room, with the lights turned down as low as possible. We snuggle him in the same blanket each night when I feed him. Perhaps a bedtime routine would work out best for you, if you haven't tried this before. Make sure that he's aware that its his bedtime. I'm sure its agonizing to let him cry for two hours. I can surely emphasize about not getting alot of sleep. :-(
Perhaps keeping him up more during the day, and making sure that he has a full belly at night, right before bed would also help you out. I hope this has helped.

Answer 3

My baby is the same. You letting him/her cry and then giving in is cruel- basially your saying cry for 1 hour then you will get your milk so your baby will never settle. If you think your going to give in dont do it ITS CRUEL!!! I am never going to let Jess cry it out, she into a habbit for her milk since she was born- then one night people do this and they get hysterical as suddenly wheres it gone. I think doing the stopping & starting makes things worse- it makes them want to cling onto it even more- if you had just carried on he/she may have stopped by now.
If he/she wakes at the same time everynight go in a disturbe your baby -holding arms so they dont flinch too much and they will go back into a new sleep patturn so over time they dont wake.
p.s im not trying to insult- ive tried water etc myself which works but then she just wont have it and its milk and nothing else.
My next baby I will know not to try anything and eventually they will just not bother to wake. I think it couldnt have helped from the start when with every wake I would feed- she would have it of course so now she may have a little teething pain and need milk to help her sooth again
Its all trial and error im afraid! poor No.1 babies!!

My doctor also told me to do that- and I though "yeah right" my hv really isnt someones opinion I take on board either. They only have medical qualifications for illness not behaviour etc.
It really is commen sense to attend to your child when they cry- why would they cry toherwise- its the whole point- its their communication- dont ignor it.

Answer 4

I never let either of my kids cry it out. My mother-in-law said to do it - but one of her children ended up sucking her thumb until she was 12 and another wet the bed until 12.

I created a sleep environment where I could go in and sleep with my kids. I usually can get up after 15-30 minutes. Sometimes during the night, my son will still awaken - but he's back to sleep as I put his head back on his pillow. I usually only stay 5 minutes.

I found that this works for me and I like that I can soothe and touch while they're falling asleep. I also like that I can get sleep too, and I will never have to deal with the issue of sleeping with Mommy and Daddy.

Good luck.

AAAKKKK - I just read an above answer. DO NOT BY ANY MEANS DOSE YOUR BABY TO SLEEP WITH MEDICINES! Egad you selfish moron - you don't sedate your baby - makes them prime for alcohol abuse and pill-popping.

Answer 5

I take it you have been to the pediatrician? Your child may have a minor illness or an ear infection or something like that. If you HAVE been to your pediatrician, and have asked for and followed the doctor's advice, to the letter, you may try what we have done. We never sent our son to bed with a bottle filled with anything but water.

I'd breastfeed him, burp him, rock him a little, give him hugs and kisses, and put him down for the night, with a dimly lit nightlight. Then I'd walk out of the door saying good night. I'd stand silently outside the door where he couldn't see me, for at the minimum of five minutes if he cried.

I would then go back in and soothe him with my hand on his side or cheek or back, but would not pick him up out of the crib. When he stopped crying, I'd say it was all right, and that mommy was going to bed, too, but was just next door. I'd give him his pacifier, and would again walk out the door, saying good night, and slipping out of sight. I'd wait ten minutes the next time. I'd continue this until he finally would fall asleep out of sheer exhaustion. I would add 5 minute increments each time, but would not lift him out of the crib once he had gone to bed.

I'd go to bed then. After a few nights of this, he gave up. This was at 7 months of age.

Answer 6

You've let him go sleepless for 3 weeks because you've let him cry it out? I don't believe you. You HAVE to stick to a plan, and NOT give in after an hour or two or three. He knows that you will give in, so he doesn't stop. Read Dr. Ferber's sleep book, and about his plan. He doesn't advocate "cry it out", but a gradual approach to help the parent deal with it better, and to help the child not feel abandoned. Please read his book. But don't think you tried the method, because if you did, and you gave in, THAT's why it didn't work.

Answer 7

first off they say if a baby cries for more than 15 minutes he no longer knows what he is crying for so pick him up!!!!! secondly they say a very smart child will have problems sleeping through the night! my son is 11 1/2 months and i can't get him to sleep through the night to save my soul!!!!! i feel your pain and agonize with you!!!!!! i have resorted to letting him sleep with me (which is not what i am telling you to do). i am a single mom with no help so if sleep is what you need do what ever it takes!!!!! i now believe that sleeping with your child gives them comfort......remember they have only been here a short time they know what they like(mommy, daddy, etc) and they will do whatever it takes to get it. so give in and get some sleep!! soon enough your baby will be a teenager and won't want you around!! good luck

Answer 8

Babies may or may not sleep through the night at any age. Do you always sleep all night and never wake? All you teach your child by letting him cry is that you won't be there for him when he needs you. Can you imagine crying hysterically and just needing someone to hug you and the person you trusted most not being there for you? He might not be ready to sleep through the night.

That being said, check out this website for more info...http://www.askdrsears.com/html/7/T070100.asp
Dr. Sears is a great leader and has many wonderful books.

Please listen to your sons needs. Crying it out has been linked to brain damage... http://www.theregister.co.uk/2006/07...d_body_crying/

Answer 9

Man...I have twins and they were sleeping through the noght at about 3 months...I am so sorry. All I can say is if he is waking for food he is not getting enough calories durring the day, maybe. Oatmeal really "sticks to your ribs" that is one thing my girls eat and it satisfies them. Also they slept in my bed til about 6 months and when they woke I ALWAYS gave them the pacifier and they fell RIGHT back to sleep. They still wake at times in the crib and the paci always works.. good luck and bless you mama!

Answer 10

Try to limit his sleep during the day. The way I took my son off the bottle was at first I'd only give it to him at bedtime. He still had a pacifier during the day. I eventually took the bottle away at night and only gave the pacifier. After he got used to no bottle, I took the pacifier away too.