Sleep deprivation and helping baby get drowsy (lavendar? rescue remedy?)

[MumAbroad]

I am losing my mind with sleep deprivation and wondering if anyone has any advice on how to get my 10mo to sleep just a tiny, tiny bit more tonight. I wondered about burning some lavender oil in his room before he goes to sleep (obviously blowing it out/taking it out once I leave the room). Does anyone have any other thoughts?

DS has been a pretty dreadful sleeper from the start. He sleeps in his own cot in his brother's room--moving him from our room into his own room about 6 weeks ago helped with his sleep a bit. I'm not against co-sleeping per se but it doesn't work for us--especially as DS wiggles non-stop and will basically only sleep if my nipple's in his mouth or if I have him on top of me jiggling him up and down. And co-sleeping makes me feel claustrophobic and grouchy. So, I see the benefits of co-sleeping but it's not an option for us. I'm not prepared to do the CIO method as I feel that if he wakes at night he needs me.

My husband's away at the moment (been away for 4 days, away one more day) and I don't feel I can manage another night like the last few and with no-one to take DS to give me a break when I've been up with him for 2 hours straight and he just won't sleep... I finally got 1 1/2 hours of uninterrupted sleep at 5:30 this morning but that's just not enough. I've not slept more than 3 hours since DS was born, and honestly 3 hours straight is unusual. I'm just too, too tired, and the cumulative effect is just dreadful--as I'm sure many of you know. As I say, co-sleeping isn't an option. DS does seem anxious at the moment, I suspect because my husband and my other DS are away. He's also a mummy's boy, and he's being especially clingy at the moment (which I think is also a developmental stage). I am trying a number of options to help him sleep longer at night (eg a silky blanket, not nursing him to sleep, etc.). Apart from the night-time business, DS is a wonderfully happy and sociable little baby and a joy to be with. But the nights.... oof.

So, if you have any suggestions for helping DS feel relaxed at nighttime, I'd love to hear them! More than long-term sleep solutions, I'm looking for ways to get through tonight. Thank you.

[Gracecody]

Hi there,

I am also crazy with sleep deprivation at the moment, if that helps you feel any better! :) My guy is almost 6 months and we've been having a lot of tough nights lately clearly due to teething pain (first tooth). now the teething pain seems to have eased and my guy had one of the worst nights ever last night due to my diet. I am generally off dairy and have also noticed that soy in significant quantities (such as a glass of soy milk) and beef are also issues. For St. Patricks day I had a dairy-free reuben with beef and suffered through a night where the longest stretch was, I belive, right around 45 minutes despite being in bed for 11 hours. Most of that I was awake or dozing. So anyway, I am right there with you.

Some suggestions I have may or may not help. I'll just list them:

--Warm bath before bed, perhaps with a few drops of lavender oil in the water, lavender shampoo, soap or lotion

--Watered down chamomile tea - give baby some sips before bed

--Lots of fresh air/sunshine during the day - late morning or early afternoon walk

--White noise in his bedroom such as a fan

Rescue Remedy or Calms Forte may help but I do not have direct experience with those.

Edited by Gracecody - 3/18/12 at 11:15am

[MumAbroad]

Thank you so much for the empathy! We do a number of these things already (bath, lots of fresh air), but I haven't yet tried white noise so I'll do that, and while tonight I'm a bit late to give him cooled camomile tea, I'll definitely try it tomorrow. I hope your little one starts sleeping better soon. It's just so hard to function without sleep, isn't it?!

[MN BabyDust]

 Just my experience: I start by wearing or carrying my 6 mo DD, the longer the better, before bed. Sometimes it's an hour, sometimes only a few minutes but it makes her more docile. I do sort of a rhythmic waltz to sway her. Then I swaddle her for the last nursing session of the evening, which keeps those hands from monkeying around and she feels cozy. I unwrap her before setting her down. She gets drowsy while nursing. I used to let her fall asleep on the boob, but this trainer her to always need me to fall back asleep, so now I make sure to put her in the crib slightly awake. I often turn on her little music box to just barely catch her attention away from fussing while not stimulating her. And I don't leave any night light or anything on. And then she has white noise on all night. This time of year it's a humidifier, in the summer will be a fan. Static on the radio also works.

In any case, I hope you get some rest soon.