8mo sleep

[tiredt]

I'm writing this thread as a means to have it out before I have a breakdown because I'm slowly losing my mind. 8mo wakes up 1-2 hourly all night long and has done so pretty much since birth. We've had a few 3 hrs stretches in 8 months but I can count them on one hand. It takes me so long to fall asleep that as soon as I've nodded off, he's up again and repeat over and over again. He has so far woken up 6 times since 1am and it's now an hour later and is just refusing to go back down. I KNOW babies this age are expected to wake up in the night but the amount he wakes up is insane to me. This isnt my first experience as my first was the exact same (ha! I thought perhaps the second would be easier) and didn't start sleeping through until after 2 yrs. I just can't do it again, I really really can't. My husband can't help me with the nights but he does keep them both in the evening (maybe twice a week) so I can sleep for 2 hrs and I may get 2 hrs on a sat or sun morning but not every week. It just isn't enough. We don't have family support. Baby has two naps a day (also can be a nap refuser but does go down with effort), eats well, we get fresh air, we also co-sleep. We have a bedtime routine. I won't do CIO but sometimes I feel like just leaving and shutting the door and just not return, but I know I'd never be able to do it. He is a beautiful baby, so smiley and happy albeit very demanding but why doesn't he sleep!!!! I know there's probably no magic solution to this and it's just time, but it's so mentally/physically/emotionally debilitating. I've been contemplating putting him with a childminder a couple of mornings a week just so I can sleep but I have guilt that he's just so small and I feel rubbish that I'm not coping. But I probably will.

Ahhh I feel like it was only yesterday I was posting the same about my daughter. It is rough. She only sleeps now on her own in her own bed and she is 5. I think she suffered so bad with her tummy at the beginning; I gave in and co slept, safely,
best thing we ever did. And napped for like 3 hours each during the day,

What is your feeding routine ? Do you have space for baby to go into his own room. Only way you are going to improve this will involve some amount t of crying but it does not have to be leave him to it crying. He has learnt this habit and it will take some effort to change it but it could be done. It's weather you can face going through that or not.

I used to put a mattress on the floor next to the cot. Make sure DD was safe/fed/clean. Lie down and put my arm through the bars to hold her hand so she'd know I was there and fall asleep whilst she cried next to me... At some point you need to sleep!

If you can afford it, definitely look into the child minder option.

Feeding routine is 3 meals a day plus around 3 bottles. Then two bottles over night around 7oz. He does have a feed to sleep habit which I know isn't helping but it's the only way he drifts back off and right now I'm on my knees, so just do whatever I can do get him back down. I know I need to break this habit. I did want to put him in a room alone and stop co-sleeping but I just can't bear it if it's the same but then I'd have to get up and traipse to another room to settle whilst fully waking myself up in the process. But I think we will need to try it. Husband had to miss a few hours of work this morning and let me sleep but it's still not really enough. My elder one is definitely being affected as I just dont have the energy or inclination to play with him the way he wants.