Haven't slept in two weeks...

[minkajane]

Hi all. DS is 8 1/2 months old now. From 5 or 6 months on, he was sleeping through the night most of the time. The past couple of weeks, he's been waking up several times a night, crying and thrashing. We cosleep, so it gets tough for me when he's tossing around and butting his head against me and stuff. The only way to calm him is either to nurse or to hold him on my chest and wait until he decides to pop his thumb in his mouth and lay his head down for 30 seconds, then repeat seven or eight times.

This has been a stressfull time because we just moved, and DH left last weekend for Wyoming for a month. Plus he's getting over a cold. That probably has something to do with it. I've pretty much given up on doing a routine since DH left and I've just been nursing him to sleep. I was planning on starting the routine back up when DH got back.

Any tips? Should I try and work out a routine again? The routine didn't help right after we moved...he just cried for 1/2 hour after he got out of the tub, then woke up all night again. I'm getting seriously sleep-deprived here. TIA!

[fire_lady]

:hug for you mama. Sorry I don't have an advice for you.
You could try again your routine.
Hope things get better...

[onlyboys]

So, he goes back to sleep after waking up to nurse? Sounds like a plan to me! Nurse him back to sleep...

Sorry if I'm pointing out the obvious, but this is what I did with all my kids. Eventually, they stop wanting to nurse when they wake up and they self-soothe back to sleep (or with a little coaxing from mama).

Take care!

[mom2owen1]

i vote for nurse to sleep, if that is what works! with all the change in his life right now, he may need that added comfort from momma. even without all the added changes he is going through it sounds like a normal stage of babyhood. growth spurts and seperation anxiety and new learned skills to practice can be a bear to deal with at night!

i nurse to sleep and back to sleep at every waking.

try to get through this time as gently as possible :Hug

kris
owen, 11 months

[royaloakmi]

Could this be teething too? Sometimes my twins went through periods like this . . . they have always been fanatical nursers, but when they are teething it is out of control. Could try Hylands teething tablets, tylenol, motrin, whatever and see if it helps at all?

Good luck, sleep WILL come again.