Sleep Training Suggestions

I would try to comfort without removing him from the crib. Rub his tummy, sing or talk softly, but do not take him from bed. If he gets up than lay him back down. It may make for a few long nights, but in the end it will be well worth it.

I was really resistant to any cry it out methods, but I have to admit that they work. I dont advise full on cry it out, but a version of the Ferber method really does work. Let him cry for 5 minutes, then go in and comfort him without picking him up (stay for only 1 minute) and then leave. Then let him cry for 10 minutes, go in and confort him without picking him up (again stay for only one minute) and then leave the room. Next tiime wait 15 minutes, and so on and so on. You will have a rough 3-4 nights of doing this, but then he will get the idea and should be falling alseep quickly. Here is the trick though, you absolutely can not break the pattern. After an hour, I promise you will want to give up. Don't! If you do, you have wasted your time and will have to start fresh another time. If he learns that all he has to do is cry long enough until you give up, it will never work. You must hold strong for this to work. Again, it is a tough 3-4 days but after that your problelm should be solved. I tried this after months and months and months of sleep issues when my son was about the same age, and it worked like a charm. My son did not sleep throught the night until he was about 10 months old and we did this. I felt like a zombie and was back to work full time and I just could not function any longer like that. It is important for mom to be well so that we can be the best moms we can be, and getting some alone time and some quality sleep is a must. I also highly recommend a video monitor if you dont have one. It will give you peace of mind to be able to see him and to see that he is physically just fine, he is just "protesting" because he would rather be held by mommy, but he is just fine. They are expensive but in my opinion worth every penny. Good luck, I hope this helps.

Try a Sleep Sack.
Look at Amazon, to see what this is.
They have it for all sizes/ages of baby.
Maybe that will help make him feel "cocooned" and more cozy.
He is missing, having you close.
Maybe the sleep sack will help make him feel, cozier....

BUT, once he falls asleep by co-sleeping, can't you just get up and leave the room?
My kids were like that, and I co-slept. But once they fell asleep, I could get up and leave the room.

AND, 9 months is a Growth-Spurt period.... hence, intake/nursing increases and the frequency of feedings. My kids, nursed constantly, when hitting growth-spurts. And that was aside from solids.

Or, is he teething?
That wakes them too.

At this age, many things occur, developmentally, which also tweak a baby's sleep. Teething, growth-spurts, hunger, hitting milestones and changing motor-skills, gas, ... ALL tweaks a baby's sleep. And separation-anxiety too.

Try... a Sleep Sack.

And nurse him when he wakes... he may be very hungry.
My kids at babies, had GINORMOUS appetites... and just nursing them before bed, was not enough. They drank me dry, at each waking... and I nursed from both boobs each session.

HI AB

Ugh, getting a baby to sleep can be excruciating! We went through a lot with my son, to teach him to fall asleep on his own. I did lots of reading, and we tried many things. Here's what worked for us.

1) my biggest a-hah! moment was reading that with the cry-it-out approach, the crying is secondary, meaning that the goal is to help the child learn to fall asleep on his own. I'm not a big fan of cry-it-out (though I did certainly fall back on it when nothing else worked) because it wasn't right for my kid. I know it works really well for other families, though.

2) so we decided to figure out a way to help him relax and fall asleep without too much crying. We went to Target an bought a $10 "glow-worm" toy, that has a button on the tummy. When you push the button, the glowworm played a song and his face light up.

This would relax the baby enough to fall asleep on his own, in the crib. Mind you, this entailed pushing the darned button for about 45 minutes at first, but gradually, the time shortened. The first few times, I played that glowworm constantly. After a few days of this, I would push it for a couple of songs until he was relaxed, then wait until he got a little fussy (but before crying), push it again a few times, wait for him to relax, etc. etc.

It took a couple of weeks, but it worked really well, and I ended up with a baby and young child that could be put in his crib, sleepy, but awake, and have him fall asleep on his own. What a miracle! :-)

We also got one of those hang-on-the-crib aquariums and would play that some, though it was better for when he got older, and could kick a foot up to start it on his own.

Remember: your goal is to help your child learn to fall asleep on his own in the crib. How you get there doesn't matter too much, whether it involves crying it out or not. You know your child, and will figure out what works well for him, and you!

good luck
C.

Our pedi recommended this book when my son was about 9 months old. It is a gentle approach, and it did work. Keep in mind that it will take a commitment from you, but it will be well worth it! Good luck!

http://www.amazon.com/Sleep-Ladys-Good-Night-Tight/dp/B00...

My baby slept very well from the time I brought him home from the hospital. Do you swaddle him? If you keep him wrapped up tight, he might not notice when you put him in the crib.

When my daughter was not yet 2, she fell and put her teeth through her lip and had to have stitches. The surgeon assured me that she would not remember the trauma of being stitched... but he was dead wrong. My child was changed by the experience. Even now if she gets even a tiny scrape, she is terrified to the point of going into shock and throwing up. She never wants to tell me about her injuries or show them to me, for fear she might have to go the hospital. She is nearly 4 now, but the memory and the fear persists.

Perhaps your young son was/is also traumatized from the surgery experience. If that is the case then his sleep may be filled with the terror of what bad things can happen to you when you go to sleep. I would let him sleep by you and even nap by you with the hope that he will regain confidence and the trauma will diminish with time.

We also had to do what Melanie suggested (let cry for 5 minutes, comfort, let cry for 10 minutes, comfort, etc.). No mom wants to let their kid cry, but when it came down to it, that was what we had to do. It took just 3 or 4 nights (but I'd give it a week if you had to). It was worth it to have a baby (and mama!) who slept through the night and were rested. Good luck to you!

Usually there are so many responses on here with this book as a suggestion: Healthy Sleep Habits, Happy Child. I didn't have it for my first who is now; it was recommended when he was about 1.5. It doesn't matter at what age you get it, it can still help! It is an amazing book. I buy it for all my new mommy friends. Good luck!