Please help with daycare sleep!

[kofduke]

Ds has been back and forth with his sleeping at day care. In the past week, he has refused to nap there during the day at all. The day care sent me a note home asking if they should let him cry it out - I told them absolutely not and shared my concerns with CIO (they agreed that they wouldn't go this route...)

We've just started NCSS at home - it isn't going all that great (last night went from 2-4:30 a.m. trying to get him asleep in his crib, until DH told me to just bring him to bed so we could both get a little sleep). I'm trying really hard to break the breastfeeding to sleep routine - but does anyone else have any ideas? Please, I have a sleepy little baby who won't sleep here!

[Maggie05]

I noticed your son is about 1 year old. One thing my daycare did was instead of giving hima crib to sleep in ( he co-sleeps with us, so he would NOT have handled a crib) was to give him a mat to lay on. Then one of the ladies would lay with him on the mat and snuggle him, or rub his back till he fell asleep. He started daycare at 13 months old, so this sounds like it might work for you. The toddler room usually has some mats. I think it makes the baby feel less confined and abandoned when away from mommy. Hope that helps.

[Piglet68]

When I started back at work my DH had to come up with a way to get DD to nap without nursies. She was 15 months at the time. It has taken a while, and often she'll just sleep in the car when they are out and about, or she just won't nap at all.

However, he has had some success with what Maggie suggested: he lays down with her on our bed and rubs her back, cuddles, etc. It has worked a few times now, and each time is a victory, lol.

[madison]

If you've started daycare recently, I would suggest going easy on the night weaning and transitioning from the family bed, and delay that until your babe has made a transition to preschool. One stressor at a time, you know? Night nursing is his way of reconnecting with Mom. If you can possibly stand it, I would say hang in there and keep nursing at night for another 3 months minimum, until he's adjusted to school. And night nursing is easier if babe sleeps with you (mine does, he's 8 months). If yours is a wiggle worm, how about a twin bed right up against your bigger bed? Then he's close but not on top of you, LOL.

Re: nap helps, something for him to snuggle might help. Sleep with a pillow or one of his blankets, and get it saturated with your scent (easy if you wear a perfume) for about a week or two. Then let him take that pillow or blanket to daycare - when he snuggles it, it'll get warm and scented and he'll smell you and be comforted. They also have those Snoodle dolls - really a head and blanket doll that absorbs scent - and the little ones snuggle with them. Might also work in transitioning him to his own bed, too, if that is necessary.

Good luck!

:hippie

[kofduke]

He's been at day are for over six months, so this isn't a sudden thing - he's been having the same problem since we started.

Things have been going better since we've been working on gentle nightweaning, and since he's eating tons more food during the day since hitting his first birthday. He generally takes one forty-minute nap (this is a huge improvement!), so the teachers are feeling more comfortable. I think I may be working on the mommy-blanket idea - that sounds helpful!