At end of my tether with 12 month old’s sleep

[CathyandHeathcliff]

My 12 month old DS wakes up crying for an hour or more at night. This has been happening for the past week, even before he was ill with a sick bug (he’s basically over that now) he stands at his cot crying and then we eventually bring him in with us and he continues to cry on and off and wriggle around as though he’s uncomfortable. It’s so draining and I don’t know what to do. I used to breastfeed him to sleep but I stopped that 2 months ago. I still express one bottle (which I’m planning on stopping very soon) but he won’t latch anymore.
It’s almost like he wants to get up and play, it’s normally around 12:30/1ish but sometimes later.

He literally fights sleep.

He goes down perfectly fine at the start of the night though after our bedtime routine.

It sounds awful Op, but he cries because he knows you come, I agree with going in for 5 min and trying to settle him but don’t interact with him at all so just go in lie him down & sit by the door with your back to him. Or just try to let him ride it out if you don’t go in & take him into your room he will eventually acknowledge your not going to come so he won’t wake up & cry anymore. I hope this helps x

He’s a 12mth old baby, of course he cries because he knows his mother will come - the suggestion to teach him otherwise is awful.
For whatever reason atm your baby needs you, he’s too little to tell you why so all you can do is keep comforting him and it’ll pass. DS (22mths) has had a few unsettled sleep phases but always bounces back.

Has he got a tooth coming through? After-effects of the sick bug?

Commiserations OP (great name btw) we are going through this with 16 month old DD - probably 3-4 nights out of 7.

It’s been ear ache and teething but now I think it might be nightmare.

Crying it out doesn’t seem to be an option - the longest I’ve left her is half an hour and she just winds up.

Basically we either get her up and walk around for 5 min in pitch black - giving her pamol or baby neurofen if she’s teething - and then she sometimes settles back to sleep in the cot, or she comes in the bed with me and DH goes into the single bed in her room. Terrible habits I know but it’s not forever - we need to sleep and I can’t bear listening to her scream (DH can tune out!).

Sometimes she doesn’t go straight to sleep but at least she stops crying and I can lie there like a zombie 😂

Doesn’t work if DH is in the bed as well though as not enough room and she just head-butts/kicks us both all night.

He cries because he trusts that you will come to him. How lovely is that?
This time will pass quickly, the irony is that when you want to lay with them they don’t want you to. Be kind to yourself, it’s ok to admit it’s frustrating and irritating to be woken up at ungodly o’clock. Can you co sleep ? That always worked for us. Or lay on the floor next to his cot until he falls asleep.