Can co-sleeping babies STTN?

[lisalu100]

DD is 9 mo, and goes to bed by herself at 8pm (rock/cuddle/nurse to sleep). She wakes up once or twice usually, before 10pm, when we go up. Needs a cuddle and a paci. At 10pm she nurses back to sleep, then she nurses typically at 1am, 3am, 5am, 6am. Paci doesn't do it. Occasionally she is up hourly.

Is the early night-waking (before we go to bed), and then 2-3 hour nursing wake-ups normal? Do co-sleeping babies ever just wake once or twice? I am looking at allergies right now, but I'm wondering if the usual pattern is normal, and the hourly wake-ups are diet related? TIA

[LadyCatherine185]

Every kid is different, what is "normal" for one is not for another. For us, waking up hourly at that age was normal. DS did that his entire first year. Some babies are wired to wake more frequently than others, regardless of where they sleep. We recently began nightweaning DS (20 mos old) and he went from waking every 1-3 hours, to sleeping 5-7 hour stretches, while still cosleeping. He has since been transitioned to his own bed with Daddy taking care of nightwakings, but he is still waking 2-3 times per night.

A lot is going on developmentally at 9 months, as well as teething, etc. which can cause frequent nightwaking. I would definitely look into allergies though, if the signs are there. it will get better Mama! Hang in there!

[Louisep]

9 months is a tough time, we had our roughest nights around then. Your experience was very similar to ours and DS started sleeping better around 12 months. He got all his teeth through a few weeks ago and is now sleeping very well, waking once or twice a night and ONCE he even STTN! I think once they get through the big motor skills milestones and the teeth come in, sleep gets better. I also think some babies sleep well no matter what and some babies just find it hard to sleep through all that is going on in their daily lives. I don't think co-sleeping has much to do with it.

[Alisse]

My mother reports that with her 4 daughters, everyone eventually STTN by 3months of age, (and she coslept with all of us).

This nightweaning thing seems to be the magical thing that helps babies STTN it seems. I can't wait to try it...maybe in a year or so.

Oh...to sleep through the night...drool drool drool.

[alegna]

Sure they can. Dd often STTN and still sleeps with us

Ds rarely sttn and sleeps with us. Different kids.

-Angela

[LadyCatherine185]

Originally Posted by Alisse

This nightweaning thing seems to be the magical thing that helps babies STTN it seems. I can't wait to try it...maybe in a year or so.

Oh...to sleep through the night...drool drool drool.

i have read many cases where NW'ing did not help baby STTN. DS has been nightweaned a couple weeks now, sleeping in his own bed with Daddy attending to him and he still wakes 2-3 times per night. Of course it is a HUGE improvement from waking 5-10+ times a night..

[OdinsMommy0409]

That's our normal. DS wakes every 1-2 hours to nurse or at least suckle. He rarely goes past the two hour mark. It seems to be his normal and what he needs still. Since he doesn't fully wake and nor do I, it's working for us just fine. I'll consider implementing some No Cry Sleep Solution techniques once he's older, done teething, and better able to communicate.

[moondiapers]

DD is 3mo and sleeps in a sidecarred crib until she wakes up the first time. She sleeps between 4-6 hours the first stretch.....she's sleeping 6 hours more and more often. I'd call 6 hours STTN. When she's in our bed from the begining she'll sleep really well if she's not right up against me. If she's right up against me my movements wake her up.

[lessmith23]

Seems normal to me as that sounds exactly like DD who is 9 months also. I think she's just one of those kids who's sleep is easily affected by things such as teething, developmental milestones etc.

She was a dream sleeper until about 3.5 - 4 months when we hit a sleep regression and aside from the odd night, she's never really come out of it.

I really don't have any expectations that it will get better until she's at least 1 year so in the meantime, DH and I are just doing whatever we can to maximize sleep for us all.

I find reading responses form other moms who have BTDT helpful when I feel like I can't see the light at the end of the tunnel!

[Mirrormonkey]

I found that ds2 slept throught the night almost from the beginning and I assumed that was because we co-slept from day one. We have a few bad nights, usually due to gas or needing to poop, but otherwise 5-9 hour stretches are the norm. Ds1 was nothing like that but he started out in a bassinet...

The other thing I have noticed that leads to frequent wakings is if I am having trouble sleeping so does ds2.

[Honey693]

DD didn't start sttn until about 12 months. We night weaned for 6-7 hours at night too so that helped. At 18 months she sttn 4-7 nights of the week depending on teething and the noise level.

[akind1]

DS slept a 4 hour stretch from almost the beginning (2-4 weeks, I think) and then 5-6 hours from then until around 3-4 months. Now at 5 months, he sleeps usually from 9 or 10 pm to 4-6 am - basically 8 hours or so. So it is definitely possible, I think it depends on the baby.

[staceychev]

I agree that it totally depends on the kids. DD1 was still having regular (2-3 weekly) night-wakings until she was 4 (she moved to her own room six months before that). DD2, however, who's turning 7 weeks tomorrow, has been giving me 6-8 hour stretches most nights of the week since she was 3 or 4 weeks old. Both, as babes, slept next to me and nursed on demand.

I agree with the PP that 9 months is a tough age for sleeping. I remember that with DD1. Ugh... crawling up the pillow and kicking me in the face... every. single. night!