Does anyone have experience with the "cry it out" method for a 12 month old?

Question

My son had always slept through the night (since he was 3 months), but for the past few weeks, has been fighting sleep so badly. Took him to the doctor and there is nothing wrong. The doctor said that this is a fairly common thing to go through at this age, and reccomended something along the lines of the "Ferber" method-where you just let them cry and cry until they sleep. He said 99.9% go to sleep peacefully and sleep through the night on the 3rd or 4th night. It breaks my heart SO much to hear him crying. Everyone has advice, but I need some support from someone that it's worked for, or advice from someone who it hasn't worked for.
Thanks in Advance!!

Answer 1

I know EXACTLY what you mean! They stand there in that little bed and they look so sweet and you want to pick them up BUT YOU CAN'T. We know good and well that it's not hurting them. They know they aren't hurting. Before i got the luxury of a 3,000 sq ft home I would just close the door and walk away. If you sit there and look at them you're going to go pick them up. So even now I just don't look at her. When she's tired if I just keep going back and laying her down every 10 minutes and walking away she usually falls asleep fairly quickly.

Answer 2

If he's been sleepign through the night up to a few weeks ago, crying it out might work, but have you tried putting him to bed like 30 minutes earlier first?

I ask because sometimes they don't go to bed if they are overtired. My son used to go to bed at 8, but now he goes between 7 and 7:30, because his body is going through so many changes, walking, learning ect...he's just tired that much earlier.

I did have to do the cry it out with my son (as a last resort) when he was about 9 months old. Only took 3 or 4 days and he was sleeping through the night. He sometimes gets out of his rutine, but it usually coincides with his growth spurts now (mentally and physically) so we just do earlier bed time and we don't have any issues if we catch him at the right time.

Answer 3

My son is 12months old and has slept through the night since he was 4 months old. But lately he has been regressing to newborn behavior again. As it turned out he is getting his molars. The best thing to do is comfort him. If your baby is crying for more then 10 mins I wouldn't let him cry any longer obviously there's something more going on there. Him falling asleep with his heart rate up is NOT the best thing for him.

Answer 4

I've never used the cry it out technique. My oldest son started sleeping through the night at 2 months...my youngest started at 14 months. I would never use that technique. The baby thinks he/she has been abandoned and stops crying because the body wants to preserve what little energy he/she has left.

You can use the seperation technique. Sit by his crib and rub his back until he goes to sleep. A few days later sit by his crib but don't rub his back. Once a week move your chair farther and farther away from his crib until your out of his room. Voila, GENTLE sleep training technique.

Answer 5

I went through the same thing with my first. It's so hard to lay there and let them cry, but your doctor is right. After initially checking to see if he needed changed or was hungry, I would put him back in bed and he'd cry himself to sleep. It was so hard though to let him cry and cry...but after 4 days, he started sleeping all night.

Answer 6

I did it with my 5 month old and it worked great!!! The 1st night he cried for an hour (the worst hour of my life). The 2nd and 3rd nights he cried for 20 min. and he's been sleeping through the night EVER SINCE!
Some people say it's cruel...but it worked for me!!!

Answer 7

It ABSOLUTELY works. I am on my 7th baby. We have let all of them cry it out when needed. They are all fabulous, well adjusted nappers and sleepers. DO IT. There is NO method of manipulating your child to sleep that works; they ALL reinforce the child's bad habit of waking because you have to go in the room and give them attention in order to do them. Attention is desirable to your baby. So DON'T give him any during the night.

Answer 8

the cry it out method was the only thing that has worked for my daughters. i've been in your position, and it's not an easy one to be in. it's very difficult to listen to them scream like that, but you have to keep telling yourself that they are just fine, and eventually they'll tire themselves out and fall asleep. if you give in to their demands, it's going to take even longer for it to work. keep your chin up, best of luck!