I can’t be the only one whose baby just won’t sleep in a cot but why does it feel like it every night while I’m sat in the dark staring at the cot face patting and singing to a crying baby.
Pick up – He’s fine
Put down – He starts screaming
Pick up – He’s fine again
Put down – He starts screaming
Repeat, repeat, repeat
What am I going to do?
Two weeks ago today we decided it was time to try to transition Flixster to a cot. All I was hoping for was a few hours in the evening that I could get on with some housework, or blog, or go to the gym, or for a run.
Since the day he was born I have co-slept with him, every single night I am there for him at every wake up, and they usually happen every two hours throughout the night. I follow the safe sleep guidelines and he’s breastfed so I feel that our sleeping arrangement is what suits us best. However now that I am returning to work I really would like for him to spend some time in the cot.
I’m against the ‘cry it out’ method of just leaving him alone in the dark to cry. It’s not what I believe in. I want a gentle transition to his own bed. I can’t bear to hear him screaming and crying thinking he might be scared and feel lonely, which is why I sit next to the cot night after night. I thought that after two weeks of consistency we would have seen some improvement. There was one night he slept from 7pm until 10pm. I thought we might have been getting somewhere but he’s not done it again since. That was around the third or fourth day.
So here we are two weeks later and stuck in the same cycle. I still get no evening, I can’t get anything done. I’m beginning to feel pretty suffocated by it all. I don’t know where to go from here. I don’t know what I’m doing right or wrong. He’s almost 9 months now. I didn’t expect this. His brother was sleeping in his own cot by now with no fuss. We used to give him his milk feed, put him in bed, read a book and then he’d settle himself off to sleep peacefully no fuss.
So do I carry on trying? Will anything change, or do I give in and have to sit with him on my lap every night after his brother has gone to bed, getting nothing done?
I just don’t know where we go from here.
I feel for you – my son was very similar ( he’s 2 now) – it’s so hard 🙁
The 6-12 month period was particularly bad – in the end I breastfed him to sleep in the chair next to his bed and then put him in his cot. He still used to wake up regularly but as he got closer to 1 years old I started seeing small improvements . looking back I just think that’s when he was ready to start sleeping better – I used to feel it must be somethig I was doing wrong but it wasn’t.
Just hang in there and know you’re doing the best you can and it will get better. I’m still breastfeeding to sleep but takes about 15 mins and 5 nights out of 7 he sleeps through until the morning 🙂
Progress was slow – but as I said I really think that’s just how he is.
I know it’s hard and that why I decided to write a comment as it can feel you’re the only one – but you’re not 🙂
Thank you so much for taking the time to comment. I really appreciate hearing from someone else who has been through it. Its all very well reading books but hearing from someone else makes me feel so much better. I keep telling myself it will end and get better sometime but each night at the cot face it feels so isolating. It’s made all the harder recently with the pressure of going back to work in two weeks and the hubby having to deal with the two of them alone while I’m working late. Thank you again.
Ahhh hunny bless you. It’s tough to know what to do. I think if you want bedtime to be a certain way you persevere through it and stay consistent with your routine and what you do each time. He is still very young. I wish I could grant you sleeping babies so you could rest. At least you can cuddle and blog at the same time during the night. You won’t be the only one up at 3am in the blogosphere. hoping he loves his cot soon babes.
I’ve been through this with twins. They are 12 months old now and I can tell you:
1. it will get better!
2. mine do not sleep through every night either still…
But there are things you can experiment with:
1. Osanit. That’s homeopathic stuff helping with itching teetch (you can get it in any pharmacy, it is cheaper in online pharma though!)
2. Sleepy Relax. Those are discs you put under your cot’s feet to turn it into a cradle (you better check on your own what it is exactly on the manufacturer’s website: thesleepyhelp.com)
3. Put something on the moses basket sheet that smells of you
4. Make the moses basket warm before you put your LO down
5. Have some white noise on
I hope any of this will help! Don’t give up, you are not alone 🙂
Thanks for the tips and taking the time to comment. We already use white noise but I’ll be looking into the other ideas you have mentioned. Ive never heard of Osanit either but I’ll go and do some research. Thank you 🙂
oh this was really great – I remember this well…and my 20 m is currently doing something very similar after being a really good sleeper for the last two months 🙁 it will get better x
Thanks for reading, I know in my head it’ll end but when you’re in the moment its so hard to believe it!