Need Professional Help with Naps and Night Sleeping

I sympathize with you. We just went through a couple of difficult sleep months with my 15 month old daughter (illness and teething) and it really had a negative effect on our family. Have you talked with your pediatrician about her sleep? Maybe you need to rule out things like an ear infection. My babies all had a lot of waking when they were teething also. I know there are people you can hire for helping with a baby's schedule and sleep, but I don't know where/how to find them. Sorry I can't help more with that. As a side note, I never used the cry it out method with my sons (3 and 15 months) and they are both great sleepers. We finally used it with my daughter and it only took two nights for her to return to sleeping all night. Trust your instincts and do what feels right to you. That said, the book Healthy Sleep Habits, Happy Baby that others referenced is really informative even if you don't employ the cry method. Good luck - definitely discuss this with her pediatrician.

I had a former client use these professionals:

http://sleepyplanet.com/

Good luck!
M

You are so smart to reach out for help. Here is my best advice: Hire, beg or barter someone you trust to take over the night-time duties for two or three nights. Once you have several good nights sleep under your belt, you can more clearly understand what is happening to interrupt her sleep.
No matter what book or plan parents follow, it seems to be a fact that the more babies sleep, the more they will sleep; the less they sleep, the less they will sleep.
YOU WILL MAKE IT!

I know you said you don't have time for books-- but even if you just get through the first few chapters of Healthy Sleep Habits Happy Child, it can change your life.

My twins did not sleep well at all. Like 1-2 20 minute naps and waking up multiple times at night. It was a nightmare. Once I read this book it saved me. I have to warn you, it basically advocates the cry it out method and it is rigid--- but it WILL help. You have to be committed to it or don't even bother-- but it will help you if you follow the advice.

Hi C.
I have a 3 1/2 yr old, Branden, who started sleeping through the night at 6 weeks old. I had him on a routine. Same thing every night. I know you mentioned your time and energy is low, understandbly, but there is a book that saved me and confirmed everything I was doing anyway. It is called "Baby Wise". It talks about routine feeding, eating, etc... I had a routine every night and played music for my son every night and that helped him fall asleep. You have to find what works best for you and your family. If you feel you need to seek medical attention there is nothing wrong with that. You know your daughter. Maybe try some other simple things first. She has high energy so maybe something soothing when she naps, music. I am sure you have tried everything. I hope that helps.

i am not sure of professional services (though you should ask your pediatrician), but a form of the Ferber method sounds like its in order. first, the less a baby sleeps, the less a baby sleeps. and goes in reverse: the more a baby sleeps the more a baby sleeps. your little one is not getting enough sleep to feel calm enough to be put down.
before reading any further, you should note if there any changes in your life/family life/household that might be effecting your child. if that is so, then there might not be a quick answer solely having to do with your child. is she healthy after her wellness checks? is she ill?
if not, and you are too busy/tired to read the Ferber book ( though totally worth the read) is take some tips from it or the tips given in an excellent book called Baby 411 that is quick and easy to read and often in q&a form.
the first tip is to begin a schedule for your baby in the evening that might include: storytime, bath, feeding, bed. make sure it happens at roughly the same time every night. then, put your child down for the evening. say goodnight to her and leave the room. wait 3 minutes before entering the room again, though she will protest. this is going to begin the relearning process of self soothing, which according to doctors, children are unable to do on their own before 5 months. after 3 minutes of crying, enter the room again. soothe her by speaking in low tones, rubbing her leg or forehead. try not to pick her up.after 1 minute, say goodnight again and leave the room. now wait 5 min. before going in again. should she stop making noise before 5 minutes, super. should she protest, keep going in at 10 minute increments until she is asleep. this will be hard on you. no one likes to hear their child cry.
try this on a weekend. you will be tired.

after 4 to 6 days of this she should be ready to sleep on her own. she will still awaken. the important part about actually reading the book, is that it asks the tough questions: where does your child sleep? do you feed her everytime she awakens? if you feed her, you might want to try water instead of milk, and maybe she will feel it is less worth the waking. mostly she is waking to be soothed, and it sounds like she is waking after every sleep cycle is finished.
if all of this sounds like a mystery, i can't recommend Baby 411 more. i am a mother of an 8 month old, with a business i run that is taxing, and a husband with a similar kind of job. we have found time to read baby 411 to eachother over a.m. tea. good luck and hope you get more zzzzzzzzzzz's.

Go see Dr Harvey Karp at Tenth Street Pediatrics in Santa Monica - he's the one who wrote the Happiest Baby and Happiest Toddler books - also my friend (same area) just hired a "baby whisperer" to come to her home for two weeks and get their baby sleeping...
you can google "baby whisperer" in your area
LauraG

Are you still nursing?

Wow, that sounds like a rough situation. I would take some things from my own experience, as I often have problems sleeping, and the things that keep me up most often are: 1. not enough physical activity during the day, 2. sleeping too much during the day, 3. being hungry at night (a little applesauce and baby cereal before bed may help that one), 4. any type of stimulant like caffeine (is she nursing?), 5. lacking calcium or magnesium. I don't know if you can find any of that useful, but I do. I also have always relied on homeopathics for my kids since they were infants. You could try giving her the teething tablets as they tend to relax a baby and could get her to sleep. They are by Hylands and can be found in the drug store baby department, or at health foods stores. They may also have something natural and safe for babies to sleep better. I remember when my younger son was a baby and needed so much less sleep than I did, I asked so many doctors to help me but they said nothing could be done at that age. Now that my boys are older, if they can't sleep, I use the Hylands (homeopathic) Insomnia formula and it works like a charm.

C.: I can't help thinking, that something has changed for your daughter in the last two months.Have you changed anything? Has her bed been moved to another part of the room? A different bed? Have you bought her new bedding? changed detergents?You really need to think of things that you may have changed, because,that alone could throw her off.Babies tend to thrive and are most comfortable with familar surrounding.I know, that the more active they become, the more their little minds race.Making sleep a little more difficult for them,but shes still very young.Do you employ day-care? has that changed? How about her formula? or food? If you can't think of a single thing, that has changed,then I'd be concerned,and take her to be checked.The only time my children woke up that many times during the night,was because of an inner ear infection.Hope this gives you a few ideas. The best of luck to you, and your darlin daughter.

I don't think there are any baby sleep clinics out there.....at least I have never heard of any. Is your baby teething? My little girl is 8 months and she still gets up about two times during the night, but she always got up more often when she was teething, like every hour or two. I go by a two to three hour rule. If she has been up that long, it's time for a nap. You have to catch her before she is overtired, otherwise she will keep fighting the sleep. I put my little one down and sometimes she cries it out for about 10-15 minutes, but then is down for about an hour. Good Luck!

I don't know of any professional help available, but I will second 'Healthy Sleep Habits, Happy Baby' book. There are so many books out there and many times they say to do the exact opposite of the one next to it! As a result, I stayed away from most books, but I do recommend that one. I had several other experienced moms tell me it's the ONE book to read. It's not full proof as every baby is different, but worth a try. I know our little girl didn't sleep through the night until about 10 months when we started letting her cry it out. It only took about 3 nights and she really didn't cry that long. Try setting a timer for 10 minutes, it can feel like an eternity but many times the crying stops by the time the buzzer goes off. Good luck!

I'm sorry but I had a little giggle when I read your post. I can't say I've ever heard or a sleep clinic for babies. What worked for us (once we got rid of the ear infections that interrupted her sleep in the first place) was to just cry it out. The first night took 55 minutes, the next 45, the next 30, and the fourth only 10. By the end of a week she was going to bed happy and napping great too. Good Luck

C.,

I hope you received some help! I am a Newborn Care Specialist and Infant Sleep Specialist. Should anyone ever need assistance in this area - please contact me directly. I work with clients and sleep issues all the time and love helping families get on the right track. I do in-home consultations, phone, email and classes on How to get your baby to sleep through the night. I love what I do and am happy to help anyone out there with their challenges.

Good Luck and I hope you are on the path to restful nights with your baby. :)

Warmly,

H. I.

This may seem crazy but it's not only good for the baby, but good for your thighs. I, too, have a pretty energetic baby and I've found if I can put her down without having to feed her, she sleeps better and longer. I discovered the exercise ball. If you had a natural birth, you might be a little more familiar with this, or you might just have one because they are great to have around. My little one is four and a half months old and she loves to be bounced on the ball. I put her in my lap facing away from me or hold her against my chest and bounce. Sometimes, I won't lie, I may be bouncing for 45 minutes, but I figure what the heck... it's just working me out at the same time. Eventually, she falls asleep, and when she's cranky and I know she's tired but still not falling asleep, she crashes really fast by being bounced. Another thing which really does help is letting them sleep on their belly. I let her nap on her belly and make sure I can hear her breathing at all times. I have the monitor in her bed and then I just walk around with it and make sure she is always breathing. She sleeps really hard and sometimes about three hours. Good luck!

I was desperate too. I had an 11 month old darling funny baby girl i was co sleeping and she was waking up to nurse every hour!! (perhaps teething, but sleep experts say that it's really from rewarding them for waking up by nursing or comforting immediately, so they wake up earlier and earlier!)

I was so exhausted that I read a great sleep book by Dr. Weissbluth, googled the dr.'s name and found a website for a sleep expert whose pediatrician IS dr. Weissbluth. Her name is Deborah and she is amazing!!!! Because we live in hawaii i contacted her by email and did several sessions by phone and it saved all of our lives and primarily the baby has been sleeping through the night from day one. But it will take effort, courage and mostly dedication to consistency. I was so inspired by her that I thought of maybe becoming a "sleep doula" myself, but i'm too busy with my family and continue to rely on Deborah for questions i have. So good luck and I hope you contact her. Her website is: familysleep.com