Am I the only one who laid awake for hours patting a baby's back to keep them asleep?

[DontBiteTheBoobThatFeedsYou]

Because every time I stop he wakes?

I don't know if it's reflux, constipation, a tooth coming or all of the above.

But I feel like whenever someone has a bad night with their baby they wake hourly.

But when I have a bad night with the baby he wakes constantly from 7pm but come 12am he won't sleep at all unless I'm constantly patting him.
I did this until 3am.

I'm in the midst of figuring out with a diary, because it's a pattern for months.

I'm just posting to see if anyone else had to do the same for their baby because I feel like I'm the only one who breeds these babies.

Anyone else out there who patted for hours?

Have you considered keeping a food diary in case something you are eating is irritating his reflux?

I cut out everything from my diet for 3 months (more than that I think in the end). No dairy, soya, wheat, eggs or nuts.

I lived in plain chicken, vegetables and fruit.
I lost all the baby weight! But nothing changed with regards to any of this.

When I put it all back in, nothing changed either.
We still had good nights and bad nights.

So I didn't keep a diary but I do think I did the best I could when considering whether my diet was the issue.

My middle son has multiple severe allergies so I had to eliminate all those things for the 3 years I breast fed him (not wheat, but all the rest) and that made a remarkable difference.

We've been prescribed cosmo col - think it's the baby version of movi col. I agree it's difficult at 6 months to get it down them - not sure of you can get Cosmo col without prescription tho. Might be worth a trip to the Doc!
We went lactose free and gluten free - neither made a jot of difference. There's so much trial and error at such a young age. Hope you get sorted, we're not there yet but things seem to be a bit better.

Did you cut out gluten? It's not just in wheat. But rye, barley and spelt as well.

Have you considered switching him to omeprazole or start domperidone along with the ranitidine which may help the constipation too? Ranitidine alone wasn't enough for one of mine.

You have my sympathy, reflux is hell! My baby had silent reflux (and pooing issues actually) for months. It did dramatically improve after weaning though. Do you drink fizzy drinks? That made my reflux baby a nightmare.

Oh christ op, come sit beside me if you want to hear about non sleeping kids. My boys could stay awake for England. They used to see a sleepover as a personal challenge. No sleep was had.
Anyway I tried everything, controlled crying (usually me), dummies, the back patting, lying beside them in the dark, the night lights, the countless stories or singing. The whale music 😲.. Bunkbeds, trundle beds, beds on the couch.
Every bloody thing.
And nothing worked except me sleeping beside them, I had them in with me for YEARS... everyone had a pop, telling me I was crazy, etcetera, yes I was sleep deprived and desperate. If someones kid sleeps they think they know it all, no they've just got a kid who sleeps. I never did.
I'd course they sleep for Britain now they are grown up. Doesn't help you at the time though.
You have my full sympathy.

And if anyone ever finds the solution for non sleeping babies they will become a millionaire.

Yes and I breastfed and changed my diet. Tried everything.

Just lonely? We had one who just didn't like sleeping by herself, so I gave in regularly and let her sleep beside me. Slept eventually from about two, two and a half if that makes you feel better.

Mine was like this and there was literally no reason! It didn’t last as long as it seems to be for you though...maybe a month or so but I’ve got RSI in my shoulder joint from patting him for so long in the night

Mine was in a next to me crib so I used to pat his bum and then I’d fall asleep with my hand on it. It’s only when I’d try and take my hand away the whole cycle would start again!

ssd you are the Other Me.

I could write everything you had.
My 12 year old was horrific and I eventually did controlled crying.
Every single night until he was 18 months.

I didn't do CC because I wanted to. I did it because I'd tried everything else. He cried every night, I followed the rules to the letter all that time. He didn't sleep through until he wasn't 5
The only reason it improved at 18 months was because we put him in a bed. He would climb out at midnight and get into my bed rather than lay there crying.

My second son had all kinds of health issues so I don't know where the normal non-sleeping child started and the genuine issues began. So I just endured it for years because I knew it was pain at least some of not most of the time.
He slept through the night when he was 6.

so but I’ve got RSI in my shoulder joint from patting him for so long in the night

I've sprained my wrist with all the patting!

I do drink fizzy drinks.
I had one yesterday!

Can that really effect the baby?? Surely the bubbles don't go through??

I've had no fizzy drinks today so I will keep an eye out!

I used to do the tip toe up and duck, up and duck, up and duck, for hours and hours with my first born. He wasn't and never has been a text book kid. Drove me, literally, insane.

MIL thought I wa sjust "doing it wrong" when I said he wasn't much of a sleeper/napper, thought she could do it "the right way" so I said sure! Here you go! and handed him over. Needles to say she didn;t have the magic grandmother touch, just because she had four kids 55 years ago. SOme kids just have such different needs and it's not a GIna Ford fit all/CC/rocking/co sleeping one fit for all thing. YOu're doing your best OP.

Thank you.
What is the tip toe duck?

DD was like this, needed a presence near her and DS needed a hand on him for sleep.
Nothing helped, all the ‘kind’ / shite advice was just Shite. Antihistamines eventually helped DD but she still woke several times a night for a long time. She is 6 and still wakes, DS is slightly better.
It’s tough, be kind to yourself

Thank you.

Did she have allergies then? Is that why you used antihistamines?

None of my 3 slept through until they started school so whilst I've never had a reason for it, I just wanted to let you know you have my sympathies! Even 20 years on I remember those nights when nothing would settle them except feeding or just lying on me! You feel so alone and then the added zombie state the next day - horrible.

Christ OP you’re rude. Why the hell does it make any difference to you if some other poor sod has sat up all night patting their child if you don’t want any advice from them. What do you want, 2 pages of “yes I did that”
?!

I know. What a complete bastard I am, hoping that people would read my OP for what it actually says and look on a parenting forum for empathy and support. Such a cuntish thing for me to do.
You have my sympathies.

I have a constipated, refluxy non-sleeping, allergy 8 month old. I combi feed (low supply) and he needs either the breast or motion to stay asleep. I have to co-sleep for my sanity (and there isn't much of it left, really struggling with PND and feel constantly on the verge of a breakdown). Naps are only in the car (wakes the second it stops) or on me with the breast.

My eldest had bad allergies and was a terrible sleeper and didn't sleep through until she was 6, but she was never this bad as a baby. My GP recommended using antihistamines when she was younger as it makes them drowsy. He did this with his own daughter!

I've cut out egg and milk from my diet after reactions, but I suspect something else doesn't agree with him, but I haven't got the mental energy to try and figure it out.

I believe I constipation started when we had to increase the amount of formula he drank, I also thought it would get better as he started drinking less and had more food, it hasn't. He needs at least a satchel of movicol a day which I mix in formula rather than water, during times of bottle refusal when he's been poorly I've had to syringe it into him!

I have no advice or ideas on how to get it to stop though, sorry. Wish I did though.

Go see Dr Neil Shah at Great Ormond St. Reflux and allergies can be weirdly connected & gut needs to calm or it just keeps re irritating itself.

Trying to remember the name of the specific antihistamine we had. It was prescribed together with a specific antibiotic. Over time. Can't just wallop in a dose of piritin as a one-off. Point was, our GP did not know about it and would not go there, only some consultants do it.

good luck xxx

Omg he's just pooed.

First time in a week! It was really painful even though it wasn't even that hard.
He has an anal fistula and anal fissure with countless anal abscesses since he's been born (none in the last few weeks though thankfully) and we are waiting for surgery.

It will be very interesting to see if he's sick less and sleeps better now!

We are very familiar with doctor Shah, he works at St Thomas hospital as well where my middle son goes.

The antibiotic + antihistamine thing is very interesting. Especially since it's well known that antibiotics can be the cause of allergies with regards to leaky guts and gut flora.
As a parent of a child with allergies and another with reflux and as a student children's nurse, I would love to know how that works and the concoction used and how it helps. I've never heard of that before.
The whole allergy team at GODH and st Thomas are amazing.

*GOSH