I need real help please!?

Question

My son is 12 months old and I still cant get him to sleep through the night.He's always been a fussy sleeper ever since he was born.He still wakes up about 4 to 5 times at night and all the energy I put into making him sleep again leaves me frustrated,tired,angry and furious in the morning.Since I am a working mom,it is interfering with my job as well.My son's bed time routine is the same as everyone's-have dinner,take a bath or a quick rub-down,drink milk and go to sleep by 9.30.If I am lucky he sleeps till 3 and then wakes up and starts either crying or babbling to himself.He used to share a bed with me and my husband before,but now i put him in his cot.But when he wakes up at night and wont go back to sleep,i put him in bed with me and that is the end of my sleep.He keeps tossing and turning.He wakes up next at 6.30 for his feed(breastfeed).Breakfast is at 9.30,afternoon nap is between 12 and 5.He is very active as well.Can anyone tell me how I can get my son to sleep through?

Answer 1

we are in the same boat. my daughter is 14 months and sleeps in her crib for the first half of the night then, to bed with mom and dad for the rest. my husband could sleep through a bomb going off so he is ok. i on the other hand, get no sleep. i feel your pain. we have been trying to get her to stay longer in her crib by making her take naps in there during the day. we also try by rocking her or whatever to get her to go back to sleep when she wakes up in the wee hours. put her back in the crib and pray she doesn't wake up. the past 3 nights she has slept from 9:30 to 6 am!! amazing!! my Dr. said that some kids just take time and exhaustion. so we have been wearing her out! tough work, but she is sleeping better. she takes her nap at 1-3 and then we just play it up! good luck. it will get better for all of us... we hope! ;-)

Answer 2

Your problem is one that I've had myself. You've let your son get used to sleeping with you and now, when he wakes at night, he thinks that's where he is supposed to be. That's why he goes back to sleep when you put him in the bed with you. Trust me, I've been there myself, it won't be easy but you'll have to let him cry it out. He needs to learn that your bed is not his. My son and I shared a room until he was 20 months old and I'm still trying to get him used to having his own room. You said he naps between 12 and 5- is that FROM 12 to 5, or sometime in between there? If it's from 12 to 5, I would suggest a shorter nap time as well. If it's between the two, don't let him sleep past 3. The less sleep he gets during the day, the more he'll get at night. Hope it helps.

Answer 3

You know I had this problem before. How long does he take a nap for? Maybe he is taking to long of a nap? 9:30 seems kind of late for him to be going to sleep. You poor thing...you work and have to deal with this. I would make sure he only takes like a 2 hour nap. Then I would keep the same routine every night. Is ur child getting some teeth? However, if you every watched Super Nanny she says to keep taking the child back to his or her bed. You might be doing it many times through out that night. I think one night I did it 90 times. (no joke) My son is now 3 and he sleeps in his bed alnight. Shoot sometimes he puts himself to bed. Just don't give up about putting him back in this bed and make sure he doesn't have any teeth coming in. Good Luck...

Answer 4

I feel your pain! mine is 26 months and still doesn't sleep through the night. I wake up exhausted. I am also 37 weeks pregnant. I don't work now thank god but when I did I always was sooo tired at work. I asked advice on here yesterday about this and here are some tips I have received that I may try: A white noise machine (nature sounds)... a fan... darken the room by putting a blanket or sheet over the window. Last night i did the blanket over the window thing and my washer and dryer are on the other side of his wall so i did a load of laundry as "white noise". I think the hum of the dryer works well. I got 3 extra hours of sleep that i normally don't get . I was still up at 4 but I wasn't so groggy. and it was only night one so I think we will do well. with the baby coming I will always have at least one load of laundry a day! Good luck mom!

Answer 5

If he is not crying in the night do not go to him. He needs his own room. If he really needs you, he will come to you. Let him play and put himself back to sleep. Sounds like you need to start his day when he wakes at 6:30 and have a better schedule. I hope he is not sleeping from 12 to 5pm. If so, STOP!! That is why he is not sleeping all night. Try just an hour nap and push everything up earlier in the day.

Answer 6

Each baby is different, but general guidelines say that a 1-3 year old requires 10-13 hours of sleep each 24-hour period. If he sleeps 5 hours during the day and 5 1/2 hours at night, that may be just the right amount his body needs. I would suggest making his afternoon nap less. Decrease the time he sleeps during the day slowly, try 15 minutes less per nap for a few days or a week and see how that goes. Put him to bed at his regular time or move it up 15 minutes earlier if he seems overly tired and cranky. His internal sleep clock seems a little messed up and it will take some time and patience to reset it. It is most definitely easier to bring a fussy baby to bed with you, but resist that as much as you can. When he awakens in the night, do not go to him immediately. Try waiting just one extra minute each night before you go just to see if he can settle himself. Increase the amount of time you wait to go to him. If he becomes so agitated you know you have to go to him, take care of his needs with as little talking, as little light, and as little attention as possible. Try sitting next to his bed and rubbing his back - place a comfy chair there so you can also rest with your hand on him as he settles back in. Some babies develop seperation anxiety and this can affect sleep quality.

Answer 7

I undersatnd how difficult a sleepless child can be. My son is almost 12 months and he has a very difficult time sleeping. He kicks his legs and "sing's" himself to sleep. He is not much of a napper and despite that wakes up at night.
I still practice co-sleeping and that makes it much easier on he and I, he being the important person.
I know many people believe allowing a child to cry it out is a positive way to handle this situation. It is not positve in any way. By allowing your baby to cry it out you are allowing him to use resources he needs. You are also showing him that he cannot trust you to be there when you need him. It is important bto begin the building blocks towards respect, love and care. He learns this all from you.
It is difficult but it will not last that long in the long term.
Also, I know with my son he has problems with RLS. I have RLS and am medicated for it and his Daddy does too. You cannot discount the possiblity of a medical problem.

Answer 8

First of all, no letting him sleep with you! I made that mistake with my first and couldnt get him out of my bed until he was 3! I had the same problem with my second and third. They wouldnt sleep through the night. First, we moved him from a crib to a toddler bed. I think he was waking up because he would roll and hit the bars of the crib. Then, he started to sleep through the night. My doctor also suggested having him sleep in a room by himself because then the sounds of other people rolling over and etc wouldnt wake him up. Then if he does wake up, dont feed him. The doctor said that a one year old doesnt need a feeding at night and he only wants the attention. If you get up with him, just pat him and reassure him and leave him. If he continues to wake up, you need to just keep reassuring him. Eventually he will learn to go back to sleep himself.

Answer 9

First things are first, NO MORE HAVING HIM SLEEP IN YOUR BED. Your bed is your bed and his bed is his bed. It make take time for him to adjust, but you started the trend now you must break it. Second, if he wakes up in the middle of the night and is not crying, just talking, leave him alone and do not rush to get him. He will either go back to sleep or eventually cry. If he does start crying, again, do not rush to get him. Let him cry for about 10 minutes and if he does not settle down or seems like he is getting even fussier, then go talk to him, but do not pick him up. Just try to let him know that when it is dark out, we do not play, we sleep. You will be so surprised at how quickly he will pick up on the new routine and you should eventually get your sanity back. Just be patient.

Answer 10

It's great that you breastfeed your child, but the problem may be that he is not getting enough other food. What all do you feed him? At 12 months he should be eating baby cereal, or other breakfast food, not just milk. If he isnt getting full that could be the reason he isnt sleeping. Try to Feeding him the toddler stage foods. Most grocery stores have an aisle with baby supplies. Good Luck, hopefully you find what you need.