11 months old with sleep issues and now biting

[Joanna Leyla]

Hi everyone,

Frankly... I'm at the end of my rope. I'm a dedicated AP, breastfeeding, co-sleeping, no CIO, etc. I'm still commited to that.

My boy is 11 months old. Ever since he was born, he fought sleep like nothing else. Nothing, not even the boob, would work. I would rock an obviously exhausted little boy for hours (really, hours. I can't tell you how quickly I lost the pregnancy weight). After a few months, finally the boob worked. He would fall asleep at the breast with rocking, sometimes it would take a lot of work, and sometimes it would work quickly.

Now, naps are still bad. I watch for signs and watch the clock, and at 11 months I can get him to nap within 10 minutes of rocking/boob. He will sleep for only 20 minutes unless he's on me or if I catch him right when he wake and boob him back to sleep. I gave up everything to be near him and to make sure he gets enough sleep. He sleeps on me when he won't sleep on the bed, and it kills my back, but I'm OK. This too shall pass, right? I sleep with him at night, and he's such a light sleeper that my husband sleeps in another room. This too shall pass. I have to be in bed with him at 7 (his bed time) because he wakes within 40 minutes. I can't sleep until 10 because I KNOW he will wake up. I then pass out of exhaustion, I think.

Now, he's teething, I guess, because he took to biting the breast. I'm afraid of even putting the breast in his mouth because of the pain. You can see little red lines from the biting on the nipple. Last night, I just pumped while his dad rocked him and tried a baby bottle with expressed milk. We tried all we could so he would not cry, and then he fell asleep and I went to lie by him.

I don't know what to do... Any tips? Or even a story of how your kid was the same and now he STTN and whatnot?

Thank you!

[choochootwo]

I've been through the biting thing with my son. I would really just have to keep an eye on him and watch him like a hawk. The second he stopped sucking, I unlatched him. That's the only thing that worked for me. 

I'm sorry it's so hard to get him to sleep. We went through the same thing with him and I was finally able to get him into a nap schedule around 10.5 months. I took him to my sister's for a few weeks and her kids ran him ragged, so he had to sleep. It gets better, I promise. The biggest difference was made when my husband started doing most of the night time parenting. He was reluctant to get involved in the evenings, but it made a big difference.

[Joanna Leyla]

Thank you!

Yes, I watch him like a hawk with a finger right by the corner of his lips. As soon as I feel teeth, I unlatch him. Too bad he can't sleep easily without the boob, it has made things so tense. :-(

At least I got him to sleep twice a day, at 9 am and 1 pm (more or less), even if it meant giving up everything (even making food!!). He's rested, and he knows that these are times for naps. For a while, he barely fought naps anymore, but now it's back. I'm thinking it's teething... He has one tooth on top and a bottom one, and the 2nd upper tooth is ready to come out, I can see it through the gums...

Honestly, I'm terrified of having another one right now :-( Even though I love him so, so, so much. How could I take care of a child like him with a toddler? I don't even know what to do differently with the 2nd one!