When we had Little Man this book was recommended to us. We both read it and liked the concepts that it taught. It really helped us get Little Man on a schedule and to help me know what his crying meant. Knowing where we were in our routine helped me to figure out what he needed.*I'm having a more difficult time with Baby Bear. I have a much harder time letting him "cry it out". There are days when he spends so much time crying because of the reflux that more crying is more than I can handle. So I "cheat". He has to sleep elevated, for naptimes that usually means the swing. At first I would turn on the mobile but not the swing. On "bad" days the swing got turned on, then it went a step further to almost always being on. Now he's moved to the sling. He wants to sleep strapped to my chest. And I let him because it's easy and I can still get something done. (He's there right now.) I feel like instead of making progress to a happy healthy independent sleeper, we're back tracking to a point where he has to be rocked or cuddled to sleep all the time. I know that at some point he's going to have to learn how to sleep by himself in his crib and I would love to make that transition as easy as possible. I just don't know how to do that and maintain my sanity.
I'm really good at telling friends that you have to do what's best for you, because your sanity is priority. Why can't I cut myself the same slack?
*While I was looking for the picture above, I found some other websites/opinions on Babywise. Apparently it has caused some controversy.
6 comments:
I would second your own advice to do what works best for you, and I'd also put the Babywise book on the back burner for now. I've never read it, but the philosophy sounds familiar. Once LB gets a little older and the reflux becomes less of a problem, then you can focus on sleep training him. For now, I'd just try to maintain your sanity in whatever way you know how!
Yaks lived in a sling for the first six months of his life. It saved me. He slept right on my chest almost every night for months. It was horrible, but it was the only way I could get an ounce of sleep. The Dr. said that at this stage, you can't ruin them. You just have to do what will help them and work for you! I'm sorry, pal!
PS: I really liked the book Healthy Sleep Habits, Happy Baby. I wish I had stuck to it w/ Yaks. I think he would have been a much happier baby, had he gotten a binkie sooner and I had stuck to swaddling him.
I'm with Amy -- at this age, you just have to be in survival mode. I'm a "Healthy Sleep Habits, Happy Baby" fan, and it claims you have up 'til the kid is four months to start forming any habits. Cut yourself some slack until then and do what works! It will get easier, I promise.
Hang in there.
Oh Lauren, I am with the others...do what is best for you!! Take care of yourself! Just another idea...I used the Baby Whisperer method on the twins and I really liked it!! I just read the message boards on the website babywhisperer.com and found it very helpful! Good luck!
The book I started using about a month ago (Good Night, Sleep Tight: The Sleep Lady's Gentle Guide to Helping Your Child Go to Sleep, Stay Asleep and Wake Up Happy) was very well reviewed and has really worked with Clay. He was addicted to falling asleep while eating and waking up once at 3am to eat 6-10 ounces of formula. It took about 4 days and he was no longer waking up in the middle of the night at all, not even to peep a little bit.
That said, Clay was 7 months old before I forced a schedule on him and he's always been a happy guy. Now he's just better rested and so are we. So, the 7 months of letting him fall asleep while having his bottle didn't "ruin" him. We were able to change his habits quickly with some tears, but not a lot.
I don't know if you can rewatch it on YouTube or what, but Leah Remini (King of Queens) was on Rachael Ray yesterday and was talking about her 3 and a half year old that is still hooked on bottles - having 6-8 water bottles EVERY NIGHT. Now, that's when you are in some trouble.
I'm with everyone else. Do what you have to while LB is still suffering from the reflux. You won't ruin him! (Just don't keep him in that sling until he's 3 and a half...)
Hope things get better real soon! We're thinking about you.
Fwiw. . . my younger boys "grew into" good sleep cycles without much trouble at all. With the older boys we were much more directive (ala Babywise.) In the long run, all of our boys became good sleepers, and it was much less stressful for us and them to not worry about it in the early months/years.
That's just a round-about way of saying--I agree! You do what you need to do for your family and children, and it works out in the end. *grin*
Post a Comment