Help ladies...

I don't know what's going on... I've posted about this before, but it's not getting any better! Caiden just will not sleep at night. He gets up anywhere from 20 minutes-2 hours all night long every night!!! He shouldn't be doing this now... he's 9 months old! I can understand a newborn, but at 9 months? I can't take it physically or emotionally anymore. I'm just exhausted, cranky, etc. I only had 3 weeks of him actually sleeping for 6 hours straight back when he was 4 months old. I've tried different things. I've been trying the techniques in the books. Nothing is working. We had our 9 month doc appt on Monday and Caiden's weight should actually be 3-4 lbs more. I've told the doc what's been going on at night, and he said he might not be getting enough milk. I'm definitely not pumping enough during the day. I just can't seem to keep up with his growth. He's so much bigger than your average 9 month old. When he gets up at night, I try not to nurse him, and just hold him until he goes to sleep. Boy does he fight it everytime! I feel bad, but mommy needs to sleep! So does baby! He does go to sleep after a while though. He doesn't act like he's hungry, he doesn't root for me that much. It must be a comfort thing. I just can't seem to brake him of it. I've even tried giving him a formula bottle at night, hoping that it might fill him up just in case he's hungry, but he'll still wake up. He also won't take it anymore. There's no way I can make a breast milk bottle. I don't pump enough for his daycare bottles as it is! I just don't know what to do. I'm just plain miserable. I dread bedtime. I just hate feeling this way. This has been going on for months, and my body can't take it anymore. At night, I just cry from exhaustion. Sorry this is so long... I just needed to vent! Thanks!

He gets up anywhere from 5-8 times a night!!!

Sorry I don't think I can help you because Aidan is 4 1/2 months old, so he's a bit different than your 9 month old, but he too has started adding back a 1am feeding to get him back to sleep. He will actually play for a while but its like he thinks its daytime again after sleeping thorugh for about 6 weeks or so now!

I am hoping its teething, or a phase, or a growth spurt or whatever... juist when you get into a routine, the little buggers change it!

Hugs! Hope you get some sleep soon!

Hmmm - I don't really know what to tell you.....One book I read talks about a few different methods for dealing with crying at night. It says that the most effective way is to just let them cry (as hard as that may be) until they fall alseep, and that it may take hours of crying at first! And you have to this each night, and eventually they get used to it and sleep on their own.
Or if you can't do it that way, then you can gradually do this by coming into the room and soothing them (but not picking them up) every 5 minutes, then after 10 minutes, after 15 mintues, etc. etc.
Have you tried just letting him cry until he falls asleep? If so, what happened?

Melissa- Caden cannot be bigger than the average 9 month old AND need to weigh 3-4 lbs more. I am sure he is just a healthy, happy 9 month old.

Does he sleep often at daycare? What is his nap routine there? Do you have a consistent bedtime routine? Meaning that every single night you do the same thing, in the same pattern for his bedtime? Do you put him to bed at the same time everynight? Every book/sleep idea I have ever read talks about how important a basic, simple bedtime routine is for babies/young children.

Could it be that Caden just wants to be with you at night because you are gone during the day? Maybe the overnight is 'his' time with you?

Molly does sleep overnight most nights but there are nights when she is just awake at 11 or 2 and doesn't want to go back to sleep. I usually put her in bed with me and she'll have a part of a bottle and fall back to sleep. I think it is her way of just getting more cuddle time and if she needs that then I am okay with giving it to her. But this is NOT everynight.


Does your husband get up too? Does he help you? Maybe you can take turns so that you can get some sleep as well.

Re:pumping. You need to add a pump in your day if you are not making enough milk or supplement with formula. Now formula at his age may cause his stomach to hurt and that would keep him up at night. If you want to supplement choice one type of formula and use it on a more consistant basis. Maybe give him one formula bottle per day for daycare and then save the breastmilk for overnight.

How much food are you giving him everyday? Is it one small jar per meal or is it a more 'complete' meal with a veggie and a fruit or a veggie/meat and a fruit?

This doesn't sound like a hungry problem anyway. It sounds like he is unable to get himself back to sleep once he wakes up. I have never let Molly cry it out but many people have and say that after 3 or 4 nights of hel l things are A LOT better. Molly, like Caden, flips when she cries and I just refuse to let her cry and cry. BUT again, lots of people do it and go into the room every 5 minutes and do NOT pick the baby up but reassure him that you are still there and that he is okay. Again, it will be a few days/nights of hel l but should get better after that.

Are you feeding him food at night that could possibly be bothering his stomach? Does he kick up his legs like he's in pain?
Or maybe he's not getting enough to eat before he goes to sleep.
( I thought I heard somewhere that fussiness could be a sign of a food allergy.)
Trying to think of what it could possibly be.
I hope he is better soon. You must be exhausted and be very frustrated also seeing your baby crying like that.

Everyone in my family with 14 nephews and 1 niece to prove it swears by adding cereal to the milk/formula at night...digestion slows a little at the end of a day so it fills a baby up faster or really has the affect of being fuller faster as it stays in the stomach longer. Everytime someone talks of this problem thats what I hear so I thought I would pass it along...


Hope you get some rest soon. I would speak to the Dr. again until you find something that helps...sounds like to me, its been too long now to be healthy for either of you.