What's the best way to get a baby to sleep through the night?

Question

I am not a first time mom. But with my last baby I am at my WITS end! 10 months old and still getting up 2-3 times a night. Even during his nap today he slept 1 1/2 hours and woke up 3 times. There are so many things you can do but I am not sure what method to try. The only thing I do NOT want to do is put him in our bed. I usually try to pat his back while he is still in bed but he just cries the whole time until I get him out, take him down stairs, offer him a bottle and rock him back to sleep. I then put him back in his bed and he is up again a few hours later. Any Advice???

I have a routine but it is not rock solid. He goes to sleep around 9:00 and is usually awake by 6:30am. He naps only one time per day but even that is usually not without awakening. I like the ideas of better routines and feeding him a little snack at night. Thanks! Believe me with 3 older siblings, he gets plenty of activity. Thanks for all the great answers. I thought about soft music too. Oh by the way MYSTIC_EYE_ CDA, I never mentioned anything about medication or making him be anything besides a baby. I just know that his sleep is very disruptive and that cannot be good for him. I have an aquarium pet too by the way. Thanks you for the wise words of wisdom though! (cough)

Answer 1

You need to get him on a schedule and it sounds like he is used to you taking him downstairs and rocking him back to sleep. He doesn't know how to put himself back to sleep. How many naps is he taking during the day? Maybe 1 is enough. And keep him up later at night. Give him a bottle right before bed, put him in the crib and walk out. If he cries, wait a few mins, go in, don't say anything, lay him back down and leave. You will have to do this for several nights in a row until he gets the hang of it. Also, put a few toys or books in the crib with him. I did this and when they woke up, they had something to keep them occupied until they fell asleep again. Good luck.

Answer 2

at 2 a million/2 months my daughter slept 4 hours at a time. She did no longer sleep for the duration of the night till she replaced into around 6 months previous. for the duration of the night I recommend bedtime at 8 pm and getting up at 7 am day after today. She might wake atleast as quickly as a night from the time she replaced into 2 months to 5 months previous. She might decide for a bottle and diaper exchange. stable good fortune Morgaine

Answer 3

When he wakes don't turn on anym lights that aren't absolutely necessasary. Don't speak at all, no TV, keep things quiet and dark to let him know it's time to sleep, not play or eat. Offer him a bottle but only filled with plain water. It will take a few nights but be persistant and it will pay off! One other thing, be sure he is eating a good snack right before bed to keep his tummy filled.

Answer 4

Do the "supernanny sleep separation" thing.

You sit by the Bed/crib and say nothing to him and make no eye contact. If they get out of bed, you put them back and say "time for bed" with no eye contact. If they get out again, you put them back without saying anything Each night after, you move farther and farther from the bed, until you are out the door.

Answer 5

better preparation for bed time, and you gotta be firm.... for night time don't put your little one down at 7pm and expect him to stay down... put him to be at 10pm instead. Bath him... give him a warm bottle, read to him, lay him in bed, kiss him, cover him up and walk away. When you develope a routine like that your little one will learn when the bath time comes it's time to settle down and he'll know what to expect. Baby's thrive on routine! Even if they fuss for the first few times eventually they'll feel comforted in knowing what's going to happen next and they sleep so much better when they do.

Answer 6

Make sure he's good and FULL!!! Ask your pediatrican about it, it could have something to do w/ him being in pain...like a small ear infection or something like that. Maybe he's just one of those kids with loads of energy...but it sounds like something a little more serious to me...don't freak out though, it could be nothing.

Answer 7

give him a bath at night before you put him to bed, also play with him and make him tired, and tryin feeding him with cereal in his bottle. but i found that the bath always works.

Answer 8

Is he teething? That always causes havoc with their sleep pattern.Maybe you could try some soft music

Answer 9

SOUND LIKE HE'S NOT STAYING FULL THROUGH THE NIGHT. TRY MAKING HIS BABY FOOD A LITTLE THICKER. IF HE GETS A BOTTLE BEFORE HE GOES TO BED ADD CEREL TO IT. ALSO TRY AN ACTIVITY TO WEAR HIM DOWN MORE BEFORE BEDTIME. AND SOMETIMES MOM YOU HAVE TO LET THEM CRY, I KNOW IT SOUND BAD BUT I HAD TO DO IT.

Answer 10

My 10 month old eats ever 1-3 hours, night and day. Sometimes more. Sorry but that is completely normal and you can't MAKE someone sleep.

"
Goodlin-Jones BL, et al. Night waking, sleep-wake organization, and self-soothing in the first year of life.
J Dev Behav Pediatr 2001 Aug;22(4):226-33


Abstract: Few objective data are available regarding infants' night waking behaviors and the development of self-soothing during the first year of life. This cross-sectional study examined 80 infants in one of four age groups (3, 6, 9, or 12 mo) for four nights by using videosomnography to code nighttime awakenings and parent-child interactions. A large degree of variability was observed in parents' putting the infant to bed awake or asleep and in responding to vocalizations after nighttime awakenings. Most infants woke during the night at all ages observed. Younger infants tended to require parental intervention at night to return to sleep, whereas older infants exhibited a greater proportion of self-soothing after nighttime awakenings. However, even in the 12-month-old group, 50% of infants typically required parental intervention to get back to sleep after waking. Results emphasize the individual and contextual factors that effect the development of self-soothing behavior during the first year of life.




Armstrong KL, Quinn RA & Dadds MR. The sleep patterns of normal children.
Medical Journal of Australia 1994 Aug 1;161(3):202-6.

The above study is the definitive work on sleeping habits of (Australian) children to 38 months. The researchers surveyed 3269 parents, with a 96.5% response rate, over a one week period. The parents had to report on their child's sleeping habits over the past 24 hours, plus answer a few questions related to their perceptions of their child's sleep behavior.

What did they find?

There is a wide range of normal childhood sleep behavior.
Circadian rhythm is not well established until four months of age.
Daytime sleep becomes less regular with increasing age, the most marked reduction in length occurs around 3 months of age. However, a surprising 11% under 3 months of age don't have a daytime sleep every day.
Frequent night waking that disturbs parents is common from 4-12 months (12.7% disturb their parents 3 or more times every night).
Night time settling requires more parental input from 18 months.
Nearly a third of parents have a significant problem with their child's sleep behavior.
Sleeping through the night: 71.4% did this on at least one occasion by 3 months of age, but many of these relapse into more frequent waking in the 4 to 12 month period. It is not until after 24 months that regular night waking (requiring attention) becomes much less common.
Although this study did not address breastfeeding, it is relevant because a lack of understanding of "normal" sleep patterns can lead to supplementing, early solids, belief there is not enough milk, etc. The authors claim it also leads to misdiagnosis of gastro-esophageal reflux (GER) and overuse of sedative medication. A worrying 31% of 25-38 month-old children were disciplined (mostly smacking) to get them to settle. 27% of parents let their children cry, 11% at less than one month.





Scher A. A longitudinal study of night waking in the first year.
Child Care Health Dev 1991 Sep-Oct;17(5):295-302.

Abstract: A longitudinal study of the development of sleep patterns addressed the issue of continuity and change in night waking in the course of the first year. Mothers of 118 infants, who took part in a follow-up study of normal babies, completed a sleep questionnaire at 3, 6, 9 and 12 months. Regular night waking was a common characteristic throughout the first year:

Baby's age % babies waking at night
3 months 46%
6 months 39%
9 months 58%
12 months 55%

The number of awakenings per night was a function of age. Following a decline in the number of interruptions from 3 to 6 months, an increase in night waking at age 9 months was recorded. Although the methodology does not lend itself to an objective validation of the changes in sleep-wake states, nor is it suitable for causal explanations, it is, nevertheless, important to note this profile. The increase in night waking towards the end of the first year coincides with significant socio-emotional advances which characterize this developmental stage.





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