Question for Wiessbluth fans...

My babies (now 3 months) are amazing little things, but, quite a handful. For the first 8 weeks of their life they would go the majority of the day without napping. This went on until I learned a bit (from this site) about catching them at the first yawn and started swaddling with a miracle blanket. Since then we have gotten it down pretty well and they are back to sleep within an hour and a half consistently through the day. I don't really worry about them being on schedule with eachother, only that they get down before they are overtired. I am VERY protective of these naps. They nap very well and will each give me a couple of hour long naps and one two or three hour nap a day. I actually have to wake at least one of them up from a three hour nap each day. We also try to get a cap nap out of them between 4-6pm depending on their earlier naps (this is not easy though). They go down around 7 or 7:30 and sleep until about 7am with one or maybe two wake ups each in the middle...DD to eat and DS from a bit of gas or GI discomfort and a reswaddle is enough for him. When they do wake up to eat they are back down within 15 minutes, 20 at the most.

SO, my question is....

Wiessbluth draws a connection between sleep deprived, overtired children and those with a fussy, less adaptable, more withdrawn temperments. I really feel that my children get decent sleep but why do I end up with screamers from about 6:30pm until they are in bed??? Also, my babies are very very anxious about new people and will not even go to their grandparents without screaming until they spend a day or two around them first (they do not live nearby). My son will not even eat his bottle for the nanny who has been with us for over a month. My children have HUGE personalities, which i love, but they are also very different from my sister's laid back chill baby who will sleep anywhere if she is tired and she really doesn't sleep for longer than 45 minutes at a time. My DS and DD have to actually be put to sleep in their cribs, swaddled, on their sides in order to sleep. They also hate to be taken upstairs and cry whenever DH and I turn the corner to climb the stairs after their sponge bath at night. Correction they scream...even though they are very very tired. Last night I made a detour and took my screaming son out on the front porch and he busted out a huge smile and started playing. The second I brought him back in and headed upstairs to their room he was screaming again....

Shouldn't my babies who nap well have a more laid back temperment and go to sleep without all of the screaming that comes from being overtired?????

Amy

 

He's our pediatrician (little biased and a small advantage) and even though I consider all my children good sleepers (day and night) my twins would just scream and scream at around 5.30 - 6.00 pm when they were little. My oldest very laid-back (like my twin girl) never did that, but I could easily hold her ... and now I have 3 kids and only 2 hands.

Anyway, at 2 1/2 - 3 months ... I decided it was no longer working. Also I had to make sure my oldest was in bed on time (7.00 pm) so I started to put the twins down at 6 pm. I had been my life saver. Of course I was worried about them waking up earlier or more often, but it didn't happen. They slept about the same, but one hour longer and NO more screaming at the end of the day. I guess it really changed my life around. Then at 4 months I started with the 9 am and 1 pm nap in combination with a 6.00 pm bed time, and then I kind of got my "new life" back. They still nap twice a day, go down at 6.30 pm and are doing well. The evenings are so much easier now.

Yesterday, they were a little sick (colds) and very fussy, so I put them down at 6.00 pm ... they slept non-stop til 6.00 am (they usually wake around 5.30 - 6.00 am for a bottle ... my only issue but go back to sleep until 7 am). Early bed times are great (sometimes a little more difficult when travelling but they adapt well because they have early bedtimes 95% of the time) and very worth it.

HTH!

ETA: He always says to me. If your child appears wired / tired and/or is fussy at around 5 pm ... their bed time is too late ...

 

I agree totally with the previews poster. The babies were soooo fussy between 6:30-7:00 so I moved up their bed time to 6:00 and the go right to sleep and the house is sooo peaceful. I was forcing them to stay up and they were exhausted. Some days I can tell they are ready at 5:45
As far as temperament.. I can say that sleep dictates moods not temperament. My son is laid back and easy to please. My girly who is just as well rested likes things on her terms. SOOO I make sure she has her routine and I stick with it..

 

I agree with both PPs. I follow HSHHC to a T, and I have some of the most well rested children. My girls got really fussy between 630-7 (7pm bedtime) and I had to move their bedtime up to 6pm. There were times I put them to bed at 530pm because they were tired and they still slept until 6am. I've just recently moved their bedtime back until 630-7 and they sleep until 630-7am.

Franca- If you remember tell Dr Wiessbluth he's my hero and he saved my sanity.

ETA: QUOTE
Then at 4 months I started with the 9 am and 1 pm nap in combination with a 6.00 pm bed time
I also did this at about 4-5 months, it was great. There are so many parents I've met that don't believe me when I tell them how much my girls sleep. Thank you Dr Wiessbluth!

 

I put my gals to bed between 5:30-6, maybe an earlier bedtime is the key.......

 

I put my guys down at 6:30-7pm.

At 3 months I would put them down at any hour if they seemed tired. There's no reason to keep up a tired crabby baby and make yourself and the babies suffer.

Good luck!

 

I love HSHHC. We follow it as well. We still have naps at 9:15 and 1:30 and they go to bed at 6:30--the early bedtime is key to us as well.

Rachel

 

Hi Amy. It sounds like you're doing an amazing job. Your post brought back memories for me - it sounded like you were describing my first three months with twins. One of my babies (James) was relatively laid back (as long as he got all of the sleep and food he needed exactly when he needed it) but Evan was a handful (make that HANDFUL) for the first three months. I am willing to bet you are about to turn a corner. My philosophy with Evan is that he just wasn't ready to be born yet. Even though my guys weren't preemies, I think Evan would have loved another few months in his cozy little 24-hour-jacuzzi (otherwise known as my uterus). Evenings were especially tough around here. I wore him a lot in a Moby Wrap, to give him that tight, warm feeling he seemed to crave. The good news: Evan is now a wonderful, happy, hillarious, adorable baby who warms my heart a million times a day.

I also follow Healthy Sleep Habits Happy Child (except I never let my guys cry - I am a total wimp). My guys were doing four naps a day until about 5.5 months, then the morning naps consolidated and now we're down to two good naps and a mini nap before their bath, bottle, massage, etc. in the evening.

Just a note, my guys HATED sponge baths but love a fairly warm REAL bath, either in their little tub on in the big tub with my husband or I.

 

QUOTE(CHJH @ Sep 5 2007, 12:30 AM) [snapback]393103[/snapback]
Just a note, my guys HATED sponge baths but love a fairly warm REAL bath, either in their little tub on in the big tub with my husband or I.


My babies act the same during and after a real bath as a sponge bath. The love the entire bath or sponge bath but scream at the top of their lungs the minute it ends and the white onesies they sleep in go on.


Amy

 

I totally get the thing about earlier bedtimes, but, we have tried to put them down for cat naps around 5 and 6 and they always go down for about 30 - 40 minutes at the most and then they are up again. Does this mean that it would be too early for them or do you think that if we did the bedtime routine (sponge bath for us) they would understand it was not a cat nap but real sleep????

I wonder how the time change will affect this...

Amy

 

Amy,

I would aim for a 6.00 pm bed time, start their routine at 5.00/5.15 pm depending on how much time you need. It may take a few days before you start seeing results, just stick to your plan.

Other idea, is to slowly start moving the bedtime forward, 20-30 minutes each couple of days (that's what he usually suggests). That way the transition will go more smoothly.

I guess it also depends on when they wake up from their last nap. My twins would be up between 3 and 4 pm at the very latest in the beginning (now 3 pm at the latest) in order to secure their bed time. You want a pretty long stretch but not too long to make them overtired, KWIM?

Good luck!

 

I think Franca gives good advice. We did Weissbluth to a T with DD and the twins as well and it's worked quite well. They sleep great. That said, their temperament is their temperament. William will cry a blood curdling cry as if he's being tortured, David just whimpers quietly. It's usually because they are overstimulated, overtired or hungry.