Can anyone help us?!

[lisabc311]

My son is 19 mos. old and STILL wakes constantly at night. Last night he was up from 12:15am until 4am! We tried everything and he would fall asleep for a couple of minutes and then start kicking and screaming! He eventually fell asleep at 4am and slept for 30 minutes and then nursed from 4:30-7:30am. It is now 12:00pm and he STILL won't nap, either!

We are EXHAUSTED!!! He has some nights that are better and other nights that are like last night. But he has honestly only slept through the night ONCE.

What is wrong?! :(

A little background- We coslept exclusively until he was 15 months old. Naps have always been either in our arms or in the baby swing. He had painful reflux as a newborn, and was always in my arms. By the time he was 15 mos. he was nursing ALL NIGHT long but having trouble staying asleep- it was as if I were too much of a distraction. I was waking with swollen, painful nipples and getting NO sleep. So, we nightweaned at 15 mos. and started using a combination of the crib and our bed. Once he comes to our bed he will nurse until we get up, so I *try* not to bring him to bed until 4 or 5am.

We never CIO- never have and never will. So how can we help him to sleep better?

I appreciate all responses.

[mom2jack]

Wow, I could have written the first part of your post word for word. Ds did the exact same thing last week, up from 12 til 4, he wasn't upset he just couldn't fall asleep. DS has also never slept through the night and is 19 months old. Yesterday he was up at 5 am had an hour nap and would NOT nap again. I'm no help but I am right there with you! I hope somebody has some good advice.

[lisabc311]

Dana,

Thanks for your response. At least we aren't alone!

I just wanted to say that your little guy is adorable! He looks so much like my little night owl, too! ;)

[mamalita]

I almost posted the exact same thing today! My DS is 20 months old and we are in the SAME boat. I feel so envious of the people who *complain* that their child wakes 1 or 2 times a night! :rolleyes:

No tips, but TONS of sympathy!! Oh, and we also had the reflux problem as a newborn and DS napped in my arms (upright) 'til about 10.5/11 months. I am wondering if reflux is still the culprit for nightwaking - but I've been hesitant to try Zantac again (I might get flamed for this but it worked WONDERS for him as a wee babe).

Oh, also, the No Cry Sleep Solution was no help for us.


Hugs to you!

[FreeRangeMama]

After 3 years of constant waking, and 1.5 years of ds1 waking up at 2 or 3 am for the day (no naps) we have finally solved the problem!! He still wakes up at night, but HE GOES BACK TO SLEEP!! I am so happy with 6 hours of (broken) sleep a night, it beats the 1-3 hours we were getting.

Turns out it was a food allergy, first he was reacting to the food in my milk, then in the foods he was eating (thankfully we knew he was allergic, it was just a hidden ingredient that needed to be tracked down). Restlessness and waking for long periods of time are an allergy symptom. It might be someting to consider.

HTH

[EllieB]

Oh, I had a non-sleeper too. Mine finally started sleeping through the night (most of the time) around 2 . She's 3 now and sleeps so beautifully. My ds is a great sleeper luckily but I remember those nights of constant waking, lying there awake...some things I tried:

-putting her in a twin bed next to our bed (she liked her own space,but she couldn't stand the crib)
-tiring her out during the day-playing outside a lot, having dh play with her when he got home
-putting her to bed earlier so she wasn't overtired when she finally got to bed
-playing with the temperature of the room, dressing her warmer or lighter
-considering the allergy issue (wasn't for us, but is for some)
-having dh sleep in her twin bed with her (she wanted to be close with someone but I was pregant at the time and couldn't deal with the nursing at night, if I was a little further away, she seemed to forget me and sleep better)

Mostly I just kept playing around with different combinations of things until either something worked or she outgrew it. It gives you something constructive to do , it made me feel better to say "well cutting out dairy didn't help, tonight I'll try putting her to bed earlier".
Good luck! Even if nothing else works, it will pass with time.