Question for those whose babies eventually started sleeping well

[boredbuthappy]

Would you say that there were any 'signs' that the LO was about to start sleeping through the night? My DS has been doing weird things with his sleep. He has started taking much better naps in the day (2 naps with one always being at least an hour long, the other is hit and miss, but usually no longer than 45min). He was a TERRIBLE napper until recently, 3-4 half hour naps (sometimes 2 20min naps on those 'kill-me-now horrendous days). He is also having either extremely good nights (sleeping from 7:30pm till at least 6am with 1 or 2 brief wake ups or none at all) or having RIDICULOUS nights where he is waking literally every half hour. THe latter is lessening. Could this be the sings of the light at the end of the tunnel? Can anyone say to me with some confidence that in 1 months time, our sleeping issues will be virtually resolved? (grasping, I know...)

how old is your LO? mine slept through the night from 10weeks - 10m, well from 7pm-5am, and then not at all until 13m (teething mostly and bugs through last winter),waking several times a night and taking ages to be soothed back off. Then at 13m he went from 2 naps a day(am and pm) that added up to 3 hrs to 1 nap a day of an hour after lunch, and miraculously started sleeping 7-7! I do think the daytime naps have a bearing on the night, if you can get a regular nap at about the same time every day it could help? this is only my personal experience though of course :) my DS is now 25m and sleeps 7-7.30, but is mostly almost dropping that daytime nap now.... eek

He is 9 months old, and I do not kid you when I say that he has been every mother's nighmare when it comes to sleep, until recently that is. The daytime naps are pretty predicatable, so I think we're getting somewhere with that, but the nights are always up in the air...like I said, one night (like last ngiht) he'll sleep wonderfully, but then the next (2 nights ago) he'll be up every half hour. Nothing is differently during the day, nothing to phase him He was teething, but the teeth came though last week. It's just weird that his night can be so far apart on the spectrum. I really hope that this is the beginning of the end of the sleep nightmare.

the main phase of teething for us (10-12m) mine did the same on and off each week, good night/terrible wake-ten-times-a-nighters screeching and he STILL managed to look refreshed in the morning whereas I/we made zombies look wholesome! I couldn't see rhyme nor reason to it, but looking back I can see that it was all contained within the teething time, he had alot of teeth come in in that time. He used to be feverish sometimes, and I used calpol then, otherwise we just seemed to have wait it out. The only time we've had a repeat of it since was a terrible flu/ear infection a few months back, when they get ill it seems to affect the sleep patterns the worst doesn't it?!?! best of luck with it, "this too shall pass"

Routine, routine, routine, and once you've got a routine in place, more routine!!!

My DD didn't sleep through the night for about 2 years (she was a v small baby and needed feeding every 1.5 hours when she was born).

I wish I'd twigged it earlier but a routine is the best thing for her. She goes at the same time every night, bath, clean teeth, dry hair, book, kiss, hug and I leave. No ifs, no buts, I just walk out. She's 4 now.

I did the controlled crying as a baby and after the 3rd night of her crying for about 3 hours, bang - she got it, and since then, as long as the routine is there, she'll go to sleep no problem. So much so, she does it when we stay at friends houses or in hotels. Sleep is the best thing ever :)

i agree, routine is amaaaazing once you twig to being consistent with it :) mine has 7pm bedtime no matter what, and in fact runs himself to bed at this time happily!

My 8.5mo is doing this at the moment, some nights she goes 6.30pm-6.30am with no or very little wake ups (no help needed from us to get her back to sleep if she does wake) to a few consecutive nights of hourly waking and crying. I imagine teeth are to blame? Her daytime naps are still up in the air but always have been, she's been a sleep refuser since she was born really. I just take great heart in knowing that she can sleep for long periods and so will do so consistently... eventually :)

DD didn't sleep through untill She droped her daytime nap and started preschool. Sorry.

And to all those who say routine, it may work for some but doesn't for everyone. DD deffantly didn't, Has always had a bedtime routine which never help the night waking's and more sleep during the day just didn't help either. Sorry I think they just sleep when they are good and ready regardless of what you do.

We have lots of routine. It makes absolutely no difference to how DS sleeps, unless his naps have been messed up. I agree they sleep when they're ready.

Developmental leaps (sleep regressions) have been the biggest factor here. There's a really common 8/9 month sleep regression. And another at 11 m.o. And then at 13 months, 15 months, 17 months, 18 months and 21 months.

More info here, here and here.

DS did suddenly start sleeping well on his own at 13 m.o. but teething and developmental stuff were constantly messing it up again from 17 m.o. (he's 23 m.o. now). So even if it does suddenly improve, there's no guarantee it'll stay that way (sorry).

DD had a routine. She didn't sleep through till 20 months. It's not a magic solution.

7 month has just slept 5 nights in a row so fingers crossed, the biggest change has been obivously the solids but also she started only having 20 min or 40 min naps in the day so I put her down earlier (in the day) and wow suddenly she was sleeping for 1.5 hr in the morning and 1.5 hr after lunch, she then started sleeping through the night (well i've probably jinxed it now), previously she was waking and I was giving her a bottle as 3 yr old in next room with very thin walls. I think routine is important but I don't think it really solves the waking up, the same routine has been in place with both mine but they are completely different babies, second is much more relaxed, yet has been the one not to sleep through the longest (first was 3 months).
Oh actually just realised that probably the most significant thing that has also changed is that she went from 5 bottles to 3 as shewas barely finishing half her day time bottles so i cut out one of them and then hey presto she also cut out her night time one and now downs the 3 bottles completely.

Yes what the others said about routine not being magic. Ds has had a great bedtime routinue since 1 month, worked really hard sorting his naps etc and 16.5 months later still never slept more than 4 hours usually only 1-2.

Some of them are just like this, try and maximise your own sleep by going to bed early, lie ins etc.

His routine is consistent, I try my hardest not to deviate from it (although sometimes it can't be helped, if you also want to have a tiny life), generally 95% of the time it is spot on. Last night he had a good night and the night before, I'm hoping this is going to become the norm!! Nap times he's been brilliant for about 2 weeks.

carrotsanspeasifyouplease...can I ask if you just dropped the feeds out of the blue or gradually reduced them? DS is currently having 4 bottles a day but never finishes them, wondering if I should drop one as well.

My DS has only recently started sleeping through the night (20 months). I tried everything but I can honestly say I think it just coincided with most of his teeth being through - he was a truly awful teether. Don't panic just yet mine both got teeth quite late so you could be a lot luckier than us. Good daytime naps definitely equal better sleep for DS and he currently takes 3 hours in the afternoon and as I say is currently sleeping through