8 month old won't sleep - over active walker in bed!

[Babychamski]

Hiya!
Not sure if anyone can help - never posted a query before but I'm so desperate for advice/help.
Every night my 8 and a half month old goes through a ritual whereby she has a bath, drinks her bottle (5oz of total 8oz), then falls asleep or very dopey. I lay her down in the cot and then she rolls onto her front, gets up on all fours and reaches up to stand in the cot. She's wide awake and very happy. I take her out again, give her more milk (which I thought she's finished) and then she goes dopey/sleepy again. I lay her down in cot and she stands up all over again. This time more sleepy and a bit more unsteady on her feet. This goes on a few more times, until she gets dangerous on her feet and falls into the bars and cries. I try and give her the remaining milk, but then she gets really really hysterical because I won't let her climb, even though she's half asleep.
If I persevere with the bottle, although she screams at me, she will suddenly drink it eagerly, despite pushing me away, and then by 8oz she is so sleepy she goes down without a struggle. Whole process takes almost an hour.
I know I could leave her to settle, but she's a danger to herself when climbing as she's so tired.
Anybody else experienced this? She is 9 months on 19th and has been cruising and taking small steps holding on for about 3 weeks, when the prob started.
I'm desperate for some advice!!
Many thanks

I would only give her two chances with the bottle then put it out of the room. Does she have stories before bed? You could brake this drink to sleep technique if you would like? Give bottle, then sit her up and start a story. read 2-3 books then turn out the lights and pop her into bed.
When she stands just lay her down again and say night night. If she cries then cuddle her till she's quite and put her straight down again. This contiues till she stays lying down and you can leave room.
Its Tracy Hogg 'Baby Whisperer's' -pick up put down method. It'll take a few nights to see results. She may take to it easier than you think.

Hiya- we have tried introducing a story into the routine after the milk, but she still keeps getting up to stand. I think we will try the pupd method starting tomorrow night. Thanks for the advice - will keep you posted :O)

Hi Babycham,
We have just started having a really similar thing happen. DS is 9 months on the 20th. He's not cruising yet, but has started crawling (backwards!) & is close to the frontwards crawling. He flips onto his front & all fours & goes backwards to the end of the cot & all around until he gets stuck & starts crying.
Its like something is compelling him to do it. I read somewhere that it was to do with his brain processing the new skill he has been learning & it just "makes" him get up & practice, even though he may be half asleep!
With that in mind it may just be a case of trying to comfort & re-settle until the phase passes. (It's what we're doing)
Good luck! x

Ds dis this when he first started cruising. So did all his friends at the same stage.
I think it's inevitable phase that they grow out of as the novetly wears off. Well till they start walking unaided.

We dis pick up put down with ds. Wasn't a miracle cure but helped a bit.
Didn't last long- hope that gives you some reassurance even if it doesn't help a lot.

we have the same problem with our 10 month old. I can't settle him to sleep at bedtime or for naps now, because he just keeps sitting up and then standing up. I lie him down, he stands up straight away. we repeat this countless times, until he gets hysterical.
I just don't know what to do
to add to this, he has started waking up loads at night - sometimes for his dummy, sometimes I find him standing up or sitting up in the corner of the cot, or on all fours.
last night he woke up 8 times. Today I tried getting him down for his nap for an hour and a half, ended up taking him out and he eventually fell asleep in the buggy. This was 5 hours after getting up for the day
I am soooo tired and very frustrated

It's normal. It's developmental. It's not their fault.

When they are working on new physical skills, especially standing and walking, to help them go from utter inability to cracking it as a skill, their brain changes to tell them to practice the skill constantly. They cannot help it. They lose the ability to self-settle at all. You will find them standing up in their cot, tired, frustrated, upset and so very, very confused by why they can't sleep. I promise you. Men in white coats have studied this. The reason she takes more and more milk even though she doesn't seem to want or need it, is she's tired and it helps her drop off as you've seen. She doesn't know what else to do.

Good news is it's a phase and it will pass. All you can do is help them through it. Sit with them, cuddle them, distract them, soothe them and help them nod off. You won't create bad habits and it will be over before you know it.

They do it again at around 12 months when they're learning to walk. The changes they go through at this age are enormous. They have to sacrifice self settling to get to the next bit.

It's hard I know. It's not forever.

ShowOfHands, I may have to print what you've written and read it to myself a few times a day.
thanks!

duende Your DS may be ready for just one nap after lunch. Try it.

bumbums, I have been wondering if this could be the case. He has had days recently when he has only slept once (today for example) but he seems to really struggle with this amount of sleep. Also, some days he'll sleep twice - 1.5h each time!

Is 10 months old not a bit young to only have one nap?

The average age for going down to one nap is around 15mth. But there's a wide spectrum of average. Try to go with the flow and not worry as to whether he has one sleep or two. In a few months he'll regularly be having one nap after lunch.

bumbums, I've taken your advice on board. I'm just going with the flow at the moment - today and yesterday he's had two naps, two previous days only one. If he only sleeps once, I just try and move his bedtime forward a bit.
thanks.

OP, sorry for hijacking!

My DS suddenly became quite hard to settle once he started to climb, crawl, stand! Think its just something you have to persevere with and they will gradually settle. I think I would just leave the room and see what happens. You could be starting some difficult habits by staying in.