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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:
Pastnowfuture · 24/08/2021 13:41

@burritofan they made the comment about not hearing him before the banging started. I have seen one neighbour since but she was her usual self and didn't mention anything and I didn't as I honestly didn't belive it had happened.

OP posts:
starrynight87 · 24/08/2021 13:44

I agree with most of the posters, you need to have a chat with them, aim to be apologetic and surprised by them banging.

Pastnowfuture · 24/08/2021 13:47

@Summerishere12 Not sure why you think we aren't doing anything or why you believe their sleep has been disturbed for months? It's been 4 weeks since he started nursery. My husband has taken him a handful of times during these four weeks so I can sleep.

OP posts:
Constellationstation · 24/08/2021 13:47

@Summerishere12

Ooh, you absolute rebel. That’ll teach ‘em.

BigButtons · 24/08/2021 13:48

Now you know your child IS disturbing your neighbours. So now you can go round and apologise to them.

GoodGrief100 · 24/08/2021 13:50

@Summerishere12

You are lucky your neighbours are nice people! I would be playing loud music at 3 am for 30 min, if you would not do something about your baby’s noise after a few months of disturbing my sleep.
And the prize for biggest prat on the thread goes to....
Summerishere12 · 24/08/2021 13:54

[quote Pastnowfuture]@Summerishere12 Not sure why you think we aren't doing anything or why you believe their sleep has been disturbed for months? It's been 4 weeks since he started nursery. My husband has taken him a handful of times during these four weeks so I can sleep.[/quote]
To be honest probably won’t teach them much :) they are a young couple with a jet set lifestyle, hardly ever home and seems only visit their flat for those parties. I start feeling butterflies when I hear people talking behaving the wall, I know what’s coming. They keep my kids awake till 5 am it’s not very often, but usually lasts a couple of days and it was an absolute hell when DS1 was going through his GCSEs and had to wake up in the morning for his exams after an all night bender.

Summerishere12 · 24/08/2021 13:55

Thanks, I love prizes :)

Beautiful3 · 24/08/2021 13:55

If mine cried at night time, I'd take them straight downstairs. To avoid disturbing anyone from sleeping.

SwimmingwiththeFishes · 24/08/2021 13:57

@Beautiful3

If mine cried at night time, I'd take them straight downstairs. To avoid disturbing anyone from sleeping.
Cancel the cheque
blueberrywaffle · 24/08/2021 13:57

Bang back. What can you do!!!! He's a crying baby. God help them if they was my neighbours hahaha xx

LookItsMeAgain · 24/08/2021 14:01

I think you've got to tackle this head on @Pastnowfuture. Having read your posts, you are still breastfeeding at night so if I were you, I'd be doing the following and eliminating options as I go.
Hunger - letting DH take the night time waking (you look after the daytime stuff) and if necessary, express so that he can feed your DS at night and your boobs are not an option. If your DS doesn't take to the bottle, then try a different teat on it but don't give up. If he completely refuses the bottle of milk, try cooled boiled water. If he refuses that, he's just not hungry/thirsty at night and it's other things that are waking him.
Environment - Have you tried going in, settling him, putting on some white noise or something and leaving. Perhaps the noise might settle him in the dark?
Is his room too bright maybe - have you thought about putting tinfoil on the windows to block out the light?
Warmth - Is your DS throwing his blankets off at night? Would a Grobag be a better option? Maybe it's too stuffy so a lighter blanket might work.
Comfort - does your DS have a favourite teddy? Is he losing that as he sleeps?
Noise - Does your DS manage to sleep when there is general noise around the place?

You mentioned that he doesn't like a soother but perhaps it's the taste of the soother you tried he doesn't like. Try different ones (silicone/latex/whatever) and see if he takes to any of them.

oakleaffy · 24/08/2021 14:07

Crying babies are one of the worst sounds going- it travels through walls like armour piercing bullets..
Terraced houses are a real pain in this regard.
We had a neighbour who left the baby to scream himself ragged hour after hour and it was hell-
But banging on the wall isn’t going to help.

If parents could shut a baby up they surely would.

Heavy soundproofing isn’t massively effective either for the shrill pitch of screaming.

No easy Answers.

burritofan · 24/08/2021 14:23

If mine cried at night time, I'd take them straight downstairs. To avoid disturbing anyone from sleeping.
OP already does this. Incidentally my neighbours are in flats; taking a howling child downstairs just disturbs someone else instead. Maybe I should take her to an empty field.

PrtScn · 24/08/2021 14:24

@Pastnowfuture

Thanks everyone. I don't think it is the daughter (who is in her 30s) as it's not coming from her bedroom. She is lovely too.

My husband is cuddling, soothing my little boy not just leaving him to cry. He doesn't stay in the bedroom he takes him downstairs or walks along the hall but it's a small house so I imagine they still hear.

I appreciate people saying I should settle baby myself and I do 99.99 times out of a hundred but he's been waking loads at night for 4 weeks now. I work and we have no one who can look after him so occassionally I do need to get an hour of sleep just to keep functioning. When I settle him it's not a 5 minute and done job. He stays latched on so I'm awake all night pretty much. I already feel like the worst mum in the world. If you feel I'm being unreasonable for being upset at the neighbours banging that's fine, if you feel sorry for the neighbours that's fine but please don't shame me with your "poor baby" comments.

Can you not unlatch him without him waking up? Mine is still breastfeeding and co-sleeping at 20 months. He was a horrific baby and had colic so I feel you with the sleeping thing. We tried dad taking him at night and putting him in his own bed but had a passive aggressive comment about his crying from the neighbour so we’ve taken the easy option of carrying on breastfeeding and co-sleeping. He does occasionally sleep through, but the norm is he still wakes at least once most nights but I just unlatch him when he’s back asleep (if I’ve not already fallen asleep) and go back to sleep quite quickly. I long for the day I can have more than 4 hours uninterrupted sleep.
IntermittentParps · 24/08/2021 14:39

Approach them honestly and openly: ‘I know DS is unsettled at night at the mo and I’m so sorry for it.’ If your relationship with them is usually good then you should be able to have a conversation about it. You can explain that he’s ill a lot and you’re desperately tired and sometimes have to let DH take him.

If a neighbour with a child approached me like that I’d be sympathetic. I have earplugs already for the odd late party that goes on in the estate garden behind my house and I’d just use them while the child was crying at night. It’s not going to be for ever.

BeautyQueenIamNot · 24/08/2021 14:44

I can’t be bothered with all this passive aggressive banging and shit!

I wouldn’t even be apologising for the baby crying! That’s what they do…

MiddleParking · 24/08/2021 14:48

@Summerishere12

You are lucky your neighbours are nice people! I would be playing loud music at 3 am for 30 min, if you would not do something about your baby’s noise after a few months of disturbing my sleep.
No you wouldn’t. What a pointless lie Confused
Constellationstation · 24/08/2021 15:05

@BeautyQueenIamNot

I can’t be bothered with all this passive aggressive banging and shit!

I wouldn’t even be apologising for the baby crying! That’s what they do…

Totally agree! All this ‘go round with chocolates and wine and apologise’. Absolutely ridiculous. They were poorly children once in their lives. They need to get over themselves.
Pastnowfuture · 24/08/2021 15:11

@PrtScn I've tried to unlatch him but even if I'm successful he wakes within minutes. It's only when he's ill/teething. Usually one night, two at most that he does this but he has been ill pretty much constantly since starting nursery.

OP posts:
tegannotsovegan · 24/08/2021 15:24

This reply has been deleted

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sadperson16 · 24/08/2021 16:05

Perhaps the neighbours would kindly offer to care for baby one weekend morning to give parents a break.....no they'd rather bang on the wall in a passive aggressive manner.

icedcoffees · 24/08/2021 16:20

@sadperson16

Perhaps the neighbours would kindly offer to care for baby one weekend morning to give parents a break.....no they'd rather bang on the wall in a passive aggressive manner.
Why should they offer to do that?
Summerishere12 · 24/08/2021 16:22

It’s mumsnet, advice you get here does not make sense in real life, it’s buy chocolates/detached house/adopt neighbour’s baby etc.

sadperson16 · 24/08/2021 16:30

I would gladly help,having shown my DBS to the family.I would not bang on a wall.
I will never forget being alone with 2 screaming children and no help.