my 6 month old son refuses to sleep. 1-i am breastfeeding and 2-he still sleeps in the bed with me. since he was born i would feed him and lay him down and he would either wake up instantly or wake up 20-30 minutes later. so i began holding him while he slept. now at 6 months i am trying to get him to sleep on his own. i feed him and lay him down and he either wakes up or only sleeps 20 minutes. ill let him cry and check on him every 510 minutes and did this for almost 2 hours for 2-3 days and he never fell asleep. i would pick him up and he would be happy intantly and 5 minutes later he will be fussy and tired again. how can i get him to nap?
Read Dr. Furber's sleep book. I have used his technique sucessfully 3 times.
Hi K.,
well, the best advice i can give you is to hang in there, but it is time to make sure that transition is made before he gets much older. there will be times where your little one will probably cry for a little while, (let him cry as long as you know he isnt hungry or hurting physically) but it will be worth it in the end. for you and your husbands sanity and for the little one's autonomy, which is so very important. yes, it is very convenient to nurse and then lay back down to go to sleep, but you are not doing yourself any favors. you also dont want your baby in the bed with you when they are 7 years old and kicking you in the face and side all night long. But you need that time apart as well as your baby. You may want to get the baby wise book--that may be a helpful guide. Good Luck!!! Rest well soon!!!
Quick, get either the Dr. Sears Nighttime Parenting Book or Elizabeth Pantley's No-Cry Sleep Solution. Both are *excellent*.
L.
Try putting in the babys bed a sweatshirt you have worn for the day or a blanket, something warm and soft that smells like you.
Hi K.!
Have you tried swaddling him? This worked wonders for my little boy. It makes them feel warm and cozy, like when they were in our bellies! My little guy is 7 months old and we don't swaddle him anymore (they do at daycare sometimes) but he used to not be able to sleep without it. He's still not the best sleeper...he always seems restless. Anyway, hope this helps...and good luck!
I breastfed my first and I followed the advice in Marc Weissbluth's "Healthy Sleep Habits, Happy Child." At four months, a child is physiologically capable of sleeping at least 6 hours without feeding, and at 6 months they can go for 12 hours! (I learned that last in "Baby 411" by Denise Fields.) When my first son discovered his thumb at a little over 4 months of age, I said, "Great! You can self-soothe!" and we began letting him cry it out in his crib with the door closed. It took one week of misery, and then he was sleeping 10, sometimes 13 hours a night, and waking up cheerful as anything. The first night he did that, I felt sure he was dead and I had to check on him several times to calm myself. :-) Some kids do well with being checked on in intervals, but others find it more distressing, so Weissbluth recommends doing "sudden extinction" (what we did), because it's overall less wearing on the parents.
Napping, you leave the kid for an hour, and if he chooses to scream the whole time, well, that's how he's chosen to spend his rest. You keep him up until the next nap time (*no more* than two hours between getting him from the crib and laying him back down in it), then soothe him to sleep and leave him for another hour. Weissbluth goes into more detail, and it's definitely helped me and several other mothers I know. You can find it at your local book store or online at Amazon.com. :)
I had the same problem with my daughter. She would only sleep while in our arms or would only sleep for 30 minute stretches. When I took her to the doctor at 4 months they found out that she had reflux and was not making her weight gains (I was breastfeeding exclusively). He told me to start giving her an extra 2 oz of formula after every breastfeed. I had been very against supplementing since I wanted her to get all the benefits of my milk. But, it turns out I was not making enough for her. She started sleeping 6-8 hour stretches after that. As far as naps, it took longer but I got and read Healthy Sleep Habits, Happy child by Mar Weissbluth, MD, (recommended by 5 of my friends) and now she naps 1-2 times a day. Totally different baby. Good luck.
This on e will have to cry. you have him totally spoiled. Sooner or later you will have to seaprate from him if you want to have any time without a child attached to you. Sooner is easier, because a 6mo old does not fight as hard as a 2 yr old. Breaking this habit will not be easy.
Mom of six
