Mom Insomnia

[annaconda]

I've developed a nasty case of can't get back to sleep after our 3am feeding. Babe is in a crib in the other room and sleeps great, 8-3 and 3:30- 6 or so...

I can't get back to sleep after bfing then I pump for about 10 minutes and put that milk in fridge and put the pump parts in hot soapy water. I do it all in the dark or by night light. I'm up for around 45 minutes.

I have a hard time falling asleep early at night too but I do... I wind down with a relaxation tape. The tape doesn't work middle of the night.

Lo is almost 3 months and I've just returned to work which isn't helping. Of course a benadryl really works but I don't want to do that all the time. Does valerian root make your breast milk stink? It smells horrible. I have some... that? Melatonin?

Are there hormones in my system that are making me (a normally light sleeper) extra alert? Like so a bear doesn't steal the baby from the cave? It sure feels like it. When do those step down?

[McGucks]

PM'd you with one idea.  You are my hero for continuing to get up to nurse and pump though it robs you of precious and much-needed sleep!  The things mamas do for their babies are pretty amazing! 

[nstewart]

Oh gosh, I could have written your post when DS was 3 mos old, except I was fortunate enough not to be back at work yet so I could catch up on some sleep during the day.

Honestly, this is how we ended up bed sharing with DS.  I would get up to nurse him at 3, pump, then go back to bed and lay awake for an hour only to be up again at around 6 to nurse again.  I don't know if a co-sleeper or sidecaring the crib or even bed sharing is something you would consider but it made the difference for me.  I could nurse DS and go right back to sleep.  This still leaves the pumping issue.  Could you try pumping at a different time instead?  For me, DS wouldn't take a bottle and as I said I wasn't back at work yet so I just gave up the pumping.  Maybe you could put a cooler in your bedroom beside the bed and transfer the milk to the fridge in the am and clean your pump parts then as well.  If you put them in the cooler with the milk they won't get nasty (I've often just put mine in the fridge to deal with later).

Good luck finding something that works.  It's so hard to be tired all the time.

[CI Mama]

Do you eat a snack after you pump?

I ask because it took me forever to figure out that hunger was keeping me awake at night. My need for calories was just so great while I was BFing that I would need to eat a snack in the middle of the night. I was so tired that I didn't always recognize that hunger was the issue. But often eating something (even just a banana or a piece of toast) was the only thing that would allow me to fall back asleep.

[annaconda]

Thanks for all the ideas!

We used to be sidecarred and I sleep better - we all do - with separate rooms. At least for the early part of the night. Late night, everyone sleeps really well but me. Ds nursery is quieter and darker than our bedroom by far. So I'm probably not going to change that. Id rather experiment with other things first cause I love the nursery arrangement.

I do feel hunger around 5 usually so maybe a snack would help.

This morning it was moans on the monitor from 3-3:30, feed 3:30-4:05, pump for 10 minutes, drop things off, lie awake for an hour... then the birds started. I gave up.

Oh how I wish I could take benadryl regularly... it works so awesomely.

The pumping has to be at this time.... with work and supply issues and getting ready in the am I pump more than I would like. However yay for getting us off of 60%/40% formula/breast in just 11 weeks. Yes I will do a lot to have my bf relationship with my little man!