Active discussions

Meet the Other Phone. A phone that grows with your child.

Meet the Other Phone.
A phone that grows with your child.

Buy now

Please or to access all these features

Talk
Other subjects
Original poster

He won't stop crying............HELP!!

67 replies

busybee123 · 11/06/2004 08:15

My ds is 17 weeks old and every night about 1 a.m he wakes up and thats it.......no more sleep for me for the rest of the night!! he just won't stop crying. He wont take a dummy or a bottle and hates bring swaddled. I have even tried putting him in my bed last night purely as a last resort to get some sleep, but he didn't like that either. He usually exhausts himself and drops off eventually about 6 a.m by which time I have to get up with the other children. But this morning he is still going now.....he has had a bottle and some breaskfast as well....but he just keeps going.....I am at the end of my tether....had about 6 hours sleep in the past 4 nights. I feel like a jibbering wreck and a total faliure cos I can't pacify him no matter what I do. DH doesnt hear a thing and sleeps through it all. He knows what is going on though and says if i wake him he will help...but its like getting blood out of a stone waking him!! and even then he is in no fit state to do anything!! I don't like to disturb him as he has to go to work the next day, and he has a very hard job labouring so he needs his energy. I have mentioned it to the health visitor and she just says its a phase i have got to sit out. But I can't.....i have 2 other children to see to. I have got to get ds2 ready for nursery this afternoon but i have no energy to do anything. I just want to collapse in front of the telly with the kids and go to sleep!!!! [we need a bleary eyed, knackered expression!!] Can anyone suggest anything? PLEEEEEEEASE!?!?!?!?!

OP posts:
gloworm · 21/06/2004 11:01

are you interested in trying an alternative remedy?

Original poster
busybee123 · 21/06/2004 11:06

I WILL TRY ANYTHING!!!!! my hv is not being any help and I am at the end of my tether!!!

OP posts:
gloworm · 21/06/2004 11:11

i'm probably crossing posts with you, but i'll give you the info anyway...

ask in your health shop for Bioforce Valerian-Hops. it comes in drops. add 1 drop to bottle (or a small bit of expressed milk and give with spoon) and give it to him at last drink before bedtime or nap time.
it is great for helping sleep. it also helps calm baby down, for example if they are stessed bcause of teething/colic/whatever.

shop assistant might say its for over 2yrs only, but this is really just a disclaimer, they have to recommend you see your GP if under 2. I have used this on my 2 from a few weeks old and wouldnt hesitate in recommending it to other babies. it has been a life saver for us!! its also good for adults too by the way.

i'm sorry your dh isn't more supportive during the night. dh and I agree that working or looking after kids/house are both equally demanding. we take turns sleeping in spare room if either baby is having a bad few nights. we either have half night each with baby, then swop over. or on a really bad night, we do 2 hours with baby, then swop every 2 hours.

Original poster
busybee123 · 21/06/2004 11:14

can i use them at the same time as i used colief drops in the bottle? we do not have a spare room unfortunately. There are 5 of us in a 2 bed first floor flat, so its cramped to say the least!!

OP posts:
gloworm · 21/06/2004 11:16

i havent reaally got time to read the whole thread but here are a few more suggestions:

he could be teething...they all get teeth at different ages, it will not necessarily be at the same age as your other children. Teetha granules are great.

if he has colic/or trapped wind try Solgar baby ABCdoplilus. it is a powder and you add a tiny bit to one of his bottles. these friendly bacteria help baby to digest milk better. can get in a health store (not H&B) or online at www.solgar.co.uk

if the val-hops doesnt work for sleeping I have a few other suggestion as well.

gloworm · 21/06/2004 11:20

yes, you can add to same bottle.

could you take it in turns to sleep on the sofa or on a duvet on the sitting room floor?

gloworm · 21/06/2004 11:26

does lying him on his belly help? dd has slept on her front from a few weeks old and has never had any wind problems. she started by lying across my/or dh lap, patting her back, rocking her gently, and she would fall asleep. if you have nothing else to do just sit back and relax...probably impossible with other kids in house...so once asleep leave him in his cot on his front and fingers crossed he will stay asleep.

gloworm · 21/06/2004 11:30

one more thing, if you are bf, avoid chocolate/sweet things for a few days and see if it makes a difference. i know a few people who say it did. must go...housework pilling up!

agy · 21/06/2004 14:15

"shop assistant might say its for over 2yrs only, but this is really just a disclaimer"

Of course it's a disclaimer - as it could be harmful! His kidneys and liver will be barely developed and this stuff could harm him (hence disclaimer).

Remember 'alternative' medicines aren't tested for effectiveness OR safety, unlike 'proper' drugs.

Original poster
busybee123 · 21/06/2004 14:28

he has the colief drop in his bottles that break down the lactose in the milk. i dont really want to put anything else in with it at the moment.

OP posts:
gloworm · 21/06/2004 19:38

agy, i'm a qualified nutritionist and do know what i'm talking about, valerian-hops will not harm a baby and will not go any where near the kidney or liver. and bioforce do carry out scientific research on their products and they are safe. just because there are few laws governing alternative remedies doesnt mean they are not tested, there are plenty of reputable companies out there.
valerian-hops has helped both my children get a good nights sleep and i would not have even considered using it on them if i was not absolutly sure of its safety and effectiveness.

agy · 21/06/2004 20:33

Why bother with the disclaimer if they are so sure its safe? Why say on the dosage instructions "(ages 2-12)"? And when the dosage is 1 drop for each year of life, how do you work out the dosage for a l7 week old? I stand by what I say. Steer clear Busybee. And surely everything has to go through the kidneys and the liver.

SofiaAmes · 21/06/2004 21:34

busybee123, you poor thing. My first (ds) was a dream baby and really rarely cried. THEN I had my dd who screeched incessantly for the first 8 months. We realized at around 5 months that she had invisible reflux (ie not actually spitting up, but it still came into her throat and hurt). And although I was exclusively bfing, we added a bottle of a special staydown formula (recommended by my paediatrician in the usa) called Enfamil AR. It really helped quite a bit. The other thing we did was put her to sleep on her belly. I realize that this is not recommnded because of the risk of SIDS, but decided that since there were no other SIDS risk factors in our household (smokers, family links, apnea etc.) that it wasn't too risky. This clearly seemed to help her sleep. Also, when holding your ds, try holding him draped over your arm, facing the floor with your hand palming his belly. For some reason, if reflux or digestive problems are present, this seems to give them some relief. It helped with my dd. Also, I too find that Calpol makes my dd vomit. I think it must irritate her stomach. Nurofen seems to be better, but if your ds does have reflux, really you need a staydown formula, not a painkiller.

Good luck. I had a hard enough time and had only one other child and a dh who had the flexibility in his job that he could do half the getting up at night.

mckenzie · 21/06/2004 21:44

busybee123, could you try a cranial osteopath? You'll have to pay for it yourself of course, depending on where you live it could be anything from £25 to £50 for half an hour but it worked a little miracle for my son when he was a similar age.

Original poster
busybee123 · 22/06/2004 08:32

So there it goes...another night the same as ever. He has gone to sleep now after crying for hours and hours again.

mckenzie we cannot afford cranial osteopathy.

SofiaAmes, calpol makes my ds2 sick as well. He used to be a very sicky baby til we changes his milk and put colief in his bottles.

Gloworm, i do not breast feed. He does like laying on his tummy to sleep, though he cannot ri=oll back himself yet, so I am a bit worried about letting him sleep like that all night when I can't keeo and eye on him.

OP posts:
biketastic · 22/06/2004 09:46

has anyone thought of reflux as causing this?
your baby will prob get it after feeding, and it is exacerbated by lying down....
my friend's baby had this and was such a screamer. It resolved really quickly once he was on the right meds and he chilled out.
please ask your dr to refer you to a good paediatrician. in my limited experience it sounds as if it worth a try...
agree with how dh sometimes deals with ds, bringing him to bed is not an option..
good luck,

Original poster
busybee123 · 28/06/2004 12:00

he has started sleeping a bit better now which is a relief. he goes down 7.30-8pm and sleeps til about 4am ish...... fingers crossed!! hope im not jinxing it!!! thank you all for your support

OP posts:
New posts on this thread. Refresh page