Author Topic: 6 mo old with increased NWs - need help!  (Read 977 times)

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Offline ZacsMumme

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Re: 6 mo old with increased NWs - need help!
« Reply #15 on: March 29, 2012, 19:49:06 PM »
Great night ;) hope it continues!
***Sara***

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And textbook smiley DS2 - MSPI, reflux


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Offline ~Natalie~

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Re: 6 mo old with increased NWs - need help!
« Reply #16 on: March 31, 2012, 03:48:15 AM »
Glad he slept through for you :)



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Offline oliversmommy

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Re: 6 mo old with increased NWs - need help!
« Reply #17 on: April 13, 2012, 20:11:34 PM »
Well, I'm back . . . things were going well for a while but it's been a bad week and I need some cyber hugs! :)  For about a week DS would wake once to nurse, then either not wake again at all or wake 1-2 more times during the night but resettle independently.  And for one glorious night he did not even wake to nurse!  ;D  However things have been going downhill this week.  Monday night and Tuesday night he woke four times (once to nurse, once I had to help him resettle using sh/pat, and twice he resettled on his own); Wednesday night he only woke twice (nursed first waking, resettled independently second waking).  Then last night he woke early and I couldn't resettle him so I decided to use that waking as his one NF, then he woke again at 1:30 am and I could not resettle him - I even tried medicating him as he has had two teeth erupt in the past week - didn't work, he kept screaming - finally at 3:00 am I nursed him - he took a pretty good feed and immediately fell asleep when I put him in the crib.  I am exhausted and frustrated today - I have been trying so hard to not AP at night - I am praying last night was just a bad night and that I didn't do any damage by nursing him a second time.  These multiple NW are killing me - even when DS resettles independently, he still wakes and fusses/cries and I lay there awake until he falls back asleep (and then it takes ME forever to fall back asleep).  I am worried that he is waking so much at night (although glad he can resettle on his own - usually!)  Are multiple NWs normal?  I'm afraid he is not sleeping well because his sleep is disrupted every time he wakes up (although maybe he doesn't fully wake up even though he is fussing/crying???)

Also, my BT routine tweak has stopped working - DS has started falling asleep while nursing before bed even with the lights on, even with me talking to him and touching him - I always wake him up before putting him in the crib so he is still falling asleep on his own in the crib, but do you think this could be affecting his night sleep and ability to self soothe???  Should I move his nursing up further in his BT routine?  (Like before his bath instead of after?)

We're still having issues with naps (DS is a short napper) which could also be affecting his night time sleep however I work during the day and therefore really can't make changes there . . .

Sorry for the long post - I think that overall we are making progress, I just get so discouraged and question everything when we have a bad night.  It's SO hard when DS is screaming and can't fall asleep on his own and I can't help him.  I hope this all makes sense as I am typing in a severely sleep deprived state!  :)  Thanks for "listening"!  Would love some suggestions/advice!

Offline ZacsMumme

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Re: 6 mo old with increased NWs - need help!
« Reply #18 on: April 14, 2012, 10:08:41 AM »
Hugs Hun,
My thought is that these teeth have messed him up a bit, which ones have just popped? Are they fully through or still cutting? if they are still coming I would medicate before naps and BT and try to go with the flow a bit. Some LOs just don't sleep when in pain (mine was one ::) )

We went through a period of falling asleep on the breast. I wouldnt worry yet..maybe try bringing BT forward a bit while things are rough, it may prevent him being so tiredness cashes.

How is your EASY looking ATM? Xx
***Sara***

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And textbook smiley DS2 - MSPI, reflux


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Offline oliversmommy

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Re: 6 mo old with increased NWs - need help!
« Reply #19 on: April 14, 2012, 16:44:16 PM »
Hi Sara,
Thanks for reading my post and replying.  His two bottom teeth have come in about a week apart (last one a few days ago) - they are fully through the gums.  He was not fussy at all when they erupted - go figure.  My mom (who watches him during the day) thinks he is teething again and that is upper two will be making an appearance soon (no visible signs yet).  We will definitely try medicating before BT - maybe that will be more effective than waiting until he is awake and screaming at night.

He had 3 NW last night - first one I nursed, second one (2 hrs later) I tried to let him self-settle but he escalated to screaming - went in and couldn't calm him down in the crib with sh/pat - had to pick him up and hold him/rock him - gave him pain meds - he eventually calmed down and fell asleep in the crib.  Third one (2 hrs later) - same as second one but I didn't give him more meds as it had only been two hours.  He then slept for over 5 hours and woke an hour later than usual.  (He never sleeps in - we'll be off schedule today but I didn't wake him as I figured he needed the sleep.) 

This has been our EASY lately:
A - wakes sometime b/t 6:15-6:30
E - around 6:50-7:00 (nurses 20 min)
E - solids 1 hour later
S - around 8:30 (30-45 min nap in crib)
E - around 10:30-11:00 (4 oz formula, 4 oz EBM)
E - solids 1 hour later
S- around 12:00 (30-45 min nap in crib)
E - around 2:30 (8 oz EBM)
S - between 4-5 (30 min nap in stroller - have to AP to get in last nap)
E - around 6 (nurses); have also skipped this feed and done one feed before BT instead of top off
around 6:30 BT routine, around 7:00 nurses (top off or full feed), asleep by 7:30-7:45



His feeds are 3.5-4 hours apart during the day when my mom watches him - weekends he goes longer (usually 4-4.25 hours).  I realize his first A time is short - it has always been the shortest A time of the day - I'd like to push it out a bit but it's hard because my mom watches him during the week and likes to do her own thing (she watches for his sleepy cues) - to be fair, the times I've tried to extend this A time, he will fall asleep on my shoulder . . . maybe I can convince my mom to slowly and consistently extend the first A time to see what happens . . . looking at my EASY I'm thinking we may be in an UT/OT loop.  He's a really easygoing baby and rarely fusses - I've always worried about how little sleep he gets but it doesn't seem to affect his mood.  I'd like to get him to bed earlier but he seems to do best with an A time of 2.5 hours before BT - any earlier or later and he has trouble falling asleep independently.  If I skip the CN and put him to bed early, he stays awake until his usual BT and then ends up w/ a really long A time before bed.  I'd like his CN to be earlier but I usually have to AP his CN myself when I get home from work around 5 which then pushes back his BT . . .

So what do you think???  I feel like if we could extend the naps and get him more sleep during the day, we could drop the CT and have an earlier BT and better sleep at night.  I have the summer off from work (in 5 weeks) - I might have to wait until then to try extending his naps (my mom is not comfortable trying w2s or sh/pat . . . )

Thanks again for your help!  :)

Offline oliversmommy

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Re: 6 mo old with increased NWs - need help!
« Reply #20 on: April 14, 2012, 16:52:18 PM »
I just had to add that he has been asleep for an hour now for his first nap after only 1 hour 55 min A time . . . I definitely think he's catching up on sleep today  :)

Offline ZacsMumme

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Re: 6 mo old with increased NWs - need help!
« Reply #21 on: April 14, 2012, 20:57:41 PM »
Those top teeth were awful for us, they are so big and when they moved down they caused a lot of pain for our LO

I think your right with his naps and being UT then OT. If you can even gently extend that first nap by 15 mins every 3-5 days till you are closer to 2hrs30-3 hrs first A you may find he starts to sleep longer for that nap. What do you think?

Given you have hols soon if you feel better Waiting till then to focus on sleep then I would wait. No point getting stressed over it if you have too much on KWiM?

I found a walk around the house helped keep DS awake when we were extending. X
***Sara***

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And textbook smiley DS2 - MSPI, reflux


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Offline oliversmommy

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Re: 6 mo old with increased NWs - need help!
« Reply #22 on: April 15, 2012, 16:37:02 PM »
Last night was better - only 2 NW - one I nursed, one I had to help him resettle but I didn't have to take him out of the crib.  I was worried that it was going to be a rough night because he skipped his CN and although I tried to get him to bed early, he took forever to fall asleep and ended up with a really long A time before bed.  I did give him pain meds before bed - but I'm not sure how much of a difference they are making b/c they only last 4 hours, and he wasn't fussy at all yesterday so is he teething or not???  Maybe he slept better b/c he got a long restorative nap in, and because he woke up late and went to bed a little early so his day was 12 hours instead of the usual 13 - 13.5 . . . I don't know!!!!  :-\  I don't want to keep giving him medicine if he doesn't need it (but if he does of course I don't want him to be in pain . . . what to do . . . )

He is asleep right now going on 1.5 hours for his first nap after an A time of 2.5 hours (yay!) so we will definitely stick with that A time for tomorrow - I'm thinking he tolerated a longer A time b/c he slept better and longer than usual last night . . . so I'm going to really try for an earlier BT and 12 hour days/nights . . . however what should I do about the CN???  Which is better - to give him a CN and too short A time before bed, or skip the CN with an extra long A time before bed???  In the past if he got a CN I would push out his BT to give him a long enough A time but I'm thinking this might be contributing to his OT plus it results in too long a day/too short a night.

I think I'm going to talk to my mom tomorrow and let her decide what she wants to do - if she is not comfortable with working on the A times then I'll wait til I'm off work.  It's hard to not have control over LO's days when they affect his nights, however I am very fortunate that my mom is willing to watch him for me and at our house.

Thanks for your input and support - I can't tell you how much it helps to have someone to talk to about all of this!  :)

Offline ZacsMumme

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Re: 6 mo old with increased NWs - need help!
« Reply #23 on: April 16, 2012, 08:33:32 AM »
At this age I would be tempted to try to go with EBT and work towards dropping the CN. Sme days you will need it, but others the EBT islikelyto be a better option going forward and prevent the day getting too long.

You will have a bit of a mix during the transition really. But you want to aim for less And less CN days as hecan handle longer As between naps  KWIM?

Hugs, it's tough aye! dropping a nap is such a messy business :-*
***Sara***

Mummy to touchy spirited passionate DS1 - silent reflux


And textbook smiley DS2 - MSPI, reflux


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Offline oliversmommy

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Re: 6 mo old with increased NWs - need help!
« Reply #24 on: April 17, 2012, 02:21:04 AM »
Sara,
Thanks for the hugs!  :) 

DS ended up with a 2 hour nap yesterday after first A time of 2.5 hours; we skipped the CN and did an earlier BT, with only 2 NWs, so I think this is the way to go.

Today he took a 50 min nap after first A time of 2.5 hours - should I increase the A time as he was probably UT, or hold steady a couple more days to make sure he has adjusted?  (Before yesterday his first A time was 2 hours)

I know I've gotten off topic here so let me know if I need to move my post off the props board . . . although you've been super helpful so I am more than happy to stay put!  :)

Offline ZacsMumme

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Re: 6 mo old with increased NWs - need help!
« Reply #25 on: April 18, 2012, 03:01:47 AM »
Today he took a 50 min nap after first A time of 2.5 hours - should I increase the A time as he was probably UT, or hold steady a couple more days to make sure he has adjusted?  (Before yesterday his first A time was 2 hours)
I would increase it personally, just another 10/15 mins or so then hold.

If you get a good nap on that A time I would then offer the PM nap after 3hrs and see how he goes. Hopefully you wil lget another decent nap and the CN will be history ;)

He is at that age of dropping the CN and a lot of 6 month olds get big jumps in A times as well.

Your fine, your not too off topic. :) If you start to feel that you need EASY help with your day after a week or two then maybe head over to see what the EASY ladies think x
***Sara***

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And textbook smiley DS2 - MSPI, reflux


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Offline oliversmommy

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Re: 6 mo old with increased NWs - need help!
« Reply #26 on: April 19, 2012, 15:46:21 PM »
So we increased the first A time to 2 hrs 40 min two days ago and got a 50 min nap the first day and a 40 min nap the second day.  (not sure if the 40 min nap was UT or OT???)

Next nap of the day was also short the last two days, so ended up having to do a CN (otherwise DS would have had an extremely long - 5+ hrs - A time to BT).  In the past I have put him to bed later when he has a CN, but two nights ago I decided to stick with the same BT, even though that meant a short A time, just to see what would happen.  The first night he only woke one time (for his NF) - success!  :)  Then last night he woke one time for his NF, and then he woke up EARLY this morning - 5:20 am - I kept hoping he would fall back asleep but he was up and chatting like he normally does when he is up for the day.  I eventually tried to get him back to sleep with sh/pat then APOP incl. nursing to sleep but nothing worked - he was up and staying up.  So today is going to be completely off.  I am SO frustrated!!!  Maybe I am expecting too much but I just wish we could get some consistently good nights - I feel like I've been dealing with sleep issues ever since the 4 mo sleep regression 3 months ago . . .

My DH is home from work and watching DS today - told me his A time (from 5:20 wu) was about 3 hours - I had planned to stick with the 2 hr 40 min A time however this early wu threw everything off and I didn't want to encourage the early wu with an early nap . . . hopefully we are doing the right thing and he won't be too OT today. . . should I put him down early tonight???  That won't encourage the EW will it???  Do you think the inconsistent CN are throwing him off and caused the EW???  Hopefully this was an isolated thing - if he wakes early tomorrow I don't know what I am going to do . . . I am at work right now and can barely keep my eyes open . . .

Any thoughts/suggestions would be greatly appreciated!  :)

Offline oliversmommy

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Re: 6 mo old with increased NWs - need help!
« Reply #27 on: April 20, 2012, 20:53:13 PM »
DS was up at 5 am today  :(

I'm going to start a post on the EASY board to see if maybe we need some routine tweaking. . .

Offline ZacsMumme

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Re: 6 mo old with increased NWs - need help!
« Reply #28 on: April 21, 2012, 03:17:39 AM »
Hugs, how did that nap go after 3hr A time yesterday?

6 months is a tough time with A increases and developmental changes. I can link this post to your EASY one :) x
***Sara***

Mummy to touchy spirited passionate DS1 - silent reflux


And textbook smiley DS2 - MSPI, reflux


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