I feel terrible!

My twins were good sleepers once we were able to get them on a pretty good schedule. My singleton has been really tough. He is 6 months and still waking up 3-4 times a night and will not go back to sleep without eating. I never did CIO with the twins but I am tempted to do a modified version with him. I just feel so guilty. He woke up at 6:30 today and at 8:30 after our soothing routine I put him down to nap. He began screaming and I know all he wanted me to do was pick him up. He was fed, changed, etc. So finally I shut the door and let him cry for 10 minutes. That was sooo hard!! Then I went in and tried to offer him a binky but he would not take it. I tried patting his back. Nothing worked. I just did not want to pick him up because I feel like I am just making it worse in the long run when I do that. So I left and let him cry for 10 more minutes until he finally fell asleep. I feel SO guilty. I never let my twins cry like that, but I didnt have any other children to take care of then. I've been trying to follow HSHHC but it's tough when he wakes up at a different time each night.

 

Hey There,

My two year old was a terrible sleeper as well and seemed to get progressively worse at 6 months... right when i was hoping he would start to get better. I put off the crying it out method for weeks until I couldn't take it anymore. It was torture doing it, but after 2 nights he never had a problem sleeping again. Before the CIO, I think he had me trained to come rushing to him all night long! I read a bunch of books beforehand and it made me feel better about doing it, but it was still hard. Good luck!

 

Thanks. I feel like he just fell asleep out of exhaustion not "learning how to sleep" kwim? That's why I feel so guilty. Are they really learning anything if they cry until they poop out?

 

:hug99: It is hard. I hope you get some sleep soon!

 

6 months was my breaking point with Jake. I couldn't do it anymore! I did CIO and did not go in at all. He cried for, at the most 20 minutes, for 2 nights, and has been a great sleeper ever since. My ped actually recommended it. His theory is that you have to teach a baby how to sleep, just like you teach them everything else. They need to learn how to self-soothe. I know it's incredibly difficult. Check out the FY Handbook sticky at the top of the forum...there is a link in there to TSer's CIO stories. Hope you get some sleep soon! :hug99:

 

You're obviously a great mum, but every baby is different and it sounds like your twins gave you a break (maybe they felt bad because they knew there were 2 of them and only 1 of you?) but your singleton is not so easy. If you're making sure that your baby is going down when tired (not over or under tired), he's comfy (room temp is good, crib is clean and cozy, diaper is clean), nut hungry, you've given him hugs and kisses and soothed him a little (set a limit, say 5 minutes) then you've done everything you can and he needs to learn to fall asleep on his own. Of course I am giving this advice and at the same time I am struggling with sleep with my James! It's not easy, is it? I just don't want you to feel guilty - what works for one baby doesn't necessarily work for the next. My babies are as different as night and day. Good luck, sweetie - you're not alone!

 

Some babies "fight" the sleep, but if yours is asleep after 10 minutes of crying, he should learn pretty soon that crib is for sleeping and it's time for sleeping now.

10 minutes is a pretty short time for crying, actually. And some babies, even if they are absolutely exhausted, are still really determined and upset and will cry a whole hour.

CIO about killed me with my first, but it changed an extremely irritable baby into a much happier baby who was a good sleeper.

 

CIO is definitely HARD but IMO, worth it in the long run. Good luck! :hug99: