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AIBU?

Share your dilemmas and get honest opinions from other Mumsnetters.

Lovely neighbour banging on wall

324 replies

Pastnowfuture · 24/08/2021 07:53

We have lived in our home for 5 years. It's a terraced house and we've always had a good relationship with our neighbours. We chat in the street often and we exchange christmas cards. When our son was born 15 months ago they bought him an outfit. A few weeks later we gave them a card and wine to apologise for the newborn crying. Over the last year whenever I have apologised for any noise the female's response is "baby's cry" and the male's response is "we don't hear anything".

My little boy started nursery 4 weeks ago and ever since he has been ill a lot and cries much more during the night. We never leave him to cry but he only wants to be comforted by me. On the few occassions I am desperate for sleep he will cry loudly in my husbands arms for about half an hour before finally the crying turns to sobs and he drops off.

In the last couple of weeks the neighbours have started banging on the wall. Three times in total. Last night he was very unsettled and at 3am they were banging on the wall.

I'm not really sure what we can do. I'm trying my best but feel like such a failure. He's not a great sleeper generally but I cosleep and breast feed so whenever he wakes we snuggle and he's quickly back down so limited crying (until last 4 weeks).

My son's room joins to theirs but if we changed his room it would join to their adult daughter's so wouldn't be any better. I saw the female neighbour after the first banging and she didn't say anything and neither did I. I hadn't actually heard the banging and genuinely assumed my husband had been mistaken as it was only 9pm. She was her usual friendly self to me and my son.

It must be awful for them and I feel really guilty but I also feel like the banging is really agressive. I'm anxious about seeing them in the street and last night I couldn't sleep even when my little boy finally went down because I was worrying he would wake again and disturb them.

They've always been so lovely. AIBU to be so upset by this? What should I do/say if anything?

OP posts:
Bellee11 · 25/08/2021 21:24

My little boy used to have night terrors every night when he was 1-2 years old, nothing consoled him and if we try to calm him he just got worse. Our older, retired neighbour used to bang on the ceiling (we were the flat above) and shout. I don't know what he thought it would achieve, like we weren't already doing everything we could to stop him crying! A neighbour banging just makes it worse and more stressful. We actually moved in the end however if I was in that situation again I would just bang back.

In reality, babies cry and sometimes it takes a long time for them to stop, it is unavoidable in some cases. Having neighbours bang on the wall doesn't stop a baby crying but it does add stress to an already stressful situation.

Might be helpful to have a chat with them about it and remind them you are doing everything you can to minimise noise and politely ask they don't bang as it makes it harder to settle the baby. If it really bothers them, they could try earplugs.

onanoff · 25/08/2021 21:29

I wouldn't worry. The baby still very young and adjusting to nursery. Its a phase snd and woll pass soon enough

Anits52 · 25/08/2021 21:56

Hope you read the supportive and positive posts. Remember you are doing great. The more anxious you are the more he will be. Get daddy to keep a top of yours close by so baby can still smell you when trying to settle. I would the send a little card with some ear plugs round to the neighbours perhaps a bottle of wine and leave it there. I am sure they have not always been as quiet as a mouse. It is such a small window of time that this will go on for. So breathe and know you are doing great and certainly no in the wrong. Sending lots of hugs.

LikeTheOceansWeRise · 25/08/2021 22:06

What do they hope to achieve by banging the wall? That is so passive aggressive. And at 9pm?! That is seriously shitty behaviour. Maybe they thought you were trying cry it out but hopefully now realise that is not the case, and you or OH are indeed comforting your baby.

My little one will only settle with me when she is ill or teething and it's exhausting. Sometimes I get her dad to settle her and yes it will take longer and she might be a bit pissed off that it's dad and not me. But.... I work and need to sleep too. Some posters on here seem to think that being a mum means sacrificing your sleep, happiness and wellbeing for all of eternity. Dad's don't get judged for this shit.

You are not in the wrong, and I'm sorry your neighbours are being like this, it just adds stress to an already hard situation.

mussymummy · 25/08/2021 22:14

OP i am so sorry you are going through this but honestly I can see it from both sides. Perhaps as another poster suggested come up with another routine? Take him downstairs when he cries? We live in a semi detached house and my dd bedroom is beside our neighbours so when dd woke during night I would take her downstairs.
From the other perspective my mums upstairs neighbours have an 8 month old and seriously that kid cries constantly and very loudly all during the day and night and its beginning to seriously affect my mum, she feels she can't even sit in her back garden as she still can't get away from the crying, its affecting her sleep and generally impacting her life majorly.
Maybe more wine, an honest conversation and buy some ear plugs for your neighbours to try to lighten the mood?

Albgo · 25/08/2021 22:29

@Farwest

Do not take over from dh! This is terrible advice, and will ensure that your baby never settles for dh, only you. It will undermine dh's confidence as well. He sounds like a great Dad.

I do think that dh needs to take the baby downstairs, and to try different strategies to settle your dc. You don't have to be the only one capable of comforting an unsettled baby.

Exactly this. I'm really disappointed by how many (presumably women) are giving you a hard time about this and telling you to take over from your partner.
fan90 · 25/08/2021 22:42

Leaving a baby to cry = leaving a baby ALONE to cry it out.

Dad holding baby and trying to soothe him to sleep isn't leaving a baby to cry FFS.

ElleOhWell · 25/08/2021 22:44

For those posters telling the OP to take the baby downstairs! Believe me, if you live in a cardboard box it will make no difference at 3am in the morning!

pecanmix · 25/08/2021 22:48

For what it's worth op, you sound like a lovely mum and I'm glad your h is supportive in the night.

ellyeth · 25/08/2021 23:01

Hopefully, now they have seen how upset and stressed you are, they will stop banging on the wall. It really is most unfair of them. I can see you are very tense and upset about this but you are doing your best and I think they will just have to put up with it.

Intermittent Paps I think your comment is nasty and uncalled for. It seems there is always somebody who likes to put the boot in when it is quite obvious that a poster is at a very low ebb. Shame on you.

Jackthementalkitten · 25/08/2021 23:19

My neighbours two babies do this most nights. Mum and dad come straight in to the room like you and your husband,try too sooth them. There babies, do they wake me? Yes, most nights. I don’t say a word because there babies and I know there doing there bloody best. They have spoke too me like you and husband did, I said it’s fine I’ve had babies. Mine were both nightmares and my old neighbour did the same as yours, I totally understand. No other advice, I really hope your neighbour can be more understanding Flowers

Blackcat333 · 26/08/2021 00:28

Pop some ear plugs in the next Xmas card.

LoisLane66 · 26/08/2021 00:49

Lucky me. None of my 5 got fed during the night nor did they cry.
Last feed was about 11-11.30 and next one at 6am. I BF for 9 months then on bottles in which I mixed a half Farley's rusk to make the 11pm feed more substantial.
I never realised so many families have disturbed nights. 😮☹️

Heliachi · 26/08/2021 02:24

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PluggingAway · 26/08/2021 02:39

Why on earth should OP always be the one to get up in the night with the children when her DH is there too? It is just as much his responsibility as it is hers.

Some people absolutely love to try and make women into martyrs. It's a load of shite and it's best to just roll your eyes and ignore it, OP.

Bellee11 · 26/08/2021 05:58

It always shocks me how intolerant people who live in terrace and semi-detached house can be of noise. There are normal unavoidable noises (like a baby crying) that you need to just put up with when you share a wall. My next door neighbours have an autistic grown up son who sometimes has meltdowns in the night which can wake us - I would never dream of banging on the wall!

There was a previous poster who said the baby next door cried so much that sometimes her and her kids couldn't hear the movie they were watching - perhaps it's worth considering the sounds of your kids and the movie are causing the baby to cry! Poorly sound-proofed walls work both ways!

Sleep deprivation is the worst and no one understands this more than a mum of a baby with disturbed sleep. OP you have my full sympathy and please believe that it is just a phase and it will get better. The wellbeing of you and your family is the priority here so try not to give the neighbours too much thought x

Newmum29 · 26/08/2021 06:00

Just wanted to say you sound like a great mum who is doing their best. Please don’t be so hard on yourself x

Billandben444 · 26/08/2021 06:37

@LoisLane66.
Well I'm sure that post helped. Smug or what?

Cuddlyrottweiler · 26/08/2021 06:41

[quote Pastnowfuture]@starrynight87 Yes, I spoke to them today as I was so teary yesterday. Explained he has been poorly and apologised for disturbing them. They said they were worried as he was screaming and they were tired and wanted to get back to sleep. I acknowledged how frustrating it must be, explained we take him downstairs, try to soothe him quickly and never leave him to cry alone or in his cot.

I was too anxious to sleep last night, worrying the baby would wake crying and disturb them again. He did wake but no crying. Hopefully can put it to the back of my mind now and concentrate on getting my baby better and surviving this phase.[/quote]
I think they sound like right dicks actually. The only correct response was "we're sorry, we know its not deliberate, we were just tired and not thinking properly."
Banging on the wall does nothing in this situation except to criticise parents who are already struggling.

londonrach · 26/08/2021 06:51

Take your Ds down to the lounge. 30 mins is a long time. Talk to the neighbours and explain. Do not bang on the wall back like one MN suggested that just made the whole situation worse. I feel for you op. I'd also suggest maybe try and break the breast feeding at night so your ds gets a hug in comfort so that your DH and yourself can do it. Can you express. Sorry not knowledgeable re breastfeeding as I FF DD so not even sure that's possible. If dh can give a bottle of expressed milk means you can sleep on. It will get better op the lack of sleeping. Xxxx

007Stocko · 26/08/2021 08:06

If its likely to be an ongoing issue for a while you might want to consider having a stud wall with plasterboard and rockwool filling put up on the party wall. My last house I could hear everything from the neighbours - not their fault just crap builders, so did this to the party wall and it solved the problem.

SquigglePigs · 26/08/2021 08:57

@Farwest

What finally worked for us was having dh take over the co-sleeping while I slept in the spare room. This broke the cycle of night feeds - each baby took a different amount of time (the stubborn one took 6 nights) and responded differently, but all learned to be settled back to sleep, by Daddy, without feeding - but there was a lot of 3am cuddling, patting, shushing, rocking - dh needed to be resilent. Obviously the variables are huge so might not work for you (baby still honestly hungry at night; your dh is a neurosurgeon or bus driver or otherwise could kill someone if sleepy at work; baby is ill, etc).
We did this too, when DD was about 14 months. She got with the program after a few nights and (illness aside) has slept through since.
Kinko · 26/08/2021 09:16

All the ppl who say you should be the one to rock him every single night no matter how desperate and sleep deprived you are (because heaven forbid your child cry for 30 minutes in the arms of their Dad.....) are quite frankly unkind and deluded.

Your neighbours are awful for banging too. Perhaps it is the daughter. Just have a word. 'We heard banging on the wall a couple of times when my son has been crying, is everything OK? Is he keeping you up?'.

Next time he cries and he's perfectly safe, well, and in the arms of his Dad - it could be an idea for Dad to take him downstairs if you're worrying so much.

Hang in their Mum. You're doing your best and this phase will pass. Everyone just has to deal with it, it's hard for them though....while they are up there on those mighty high horses.

Newbabynewhouse · 29/08/2021 16:07

My old neighbours dog used to bark all the time, I just wore ear plugs.. not much you can do really is there.. why don't they wear ear plugs if it bothers them that much

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