8 month old grizzly all week - I am beyond exhausted! 😮‍💨

[Jennyday]

My 8.5 month old has been so upset all week. He doesn’t want to be put down, and absolutely cannot be left in a room even if I just need the loo. He is getting upset (crying) much more easily, and none of his toys are really keeping his interest. If I put him down he just reaches out his arms to be picked up again.

It feels like the only thing making him laugh/smile are if we play peekaboo, or if he looks at himself in the mirror! Or looking out of the window over my shoulder.

We have to contact nap anyway so I am used to not being able to do much for myself during the day, but this is on another level. I am absolutely shattered! Anyone else?!

Is he learning to crawl/pull up/walk right now? I went through an exhausting phase where mine only wanted to pull up on my hands all day long until they learned to pull up on furniture. Similar with learning to crawl, we had a whole month of baby being upset that they could only scoot backwards or roll until they cracked crawling. And you have to let them be frustrated a bit because otherwise they don't get enough floor time to work it out... It's tough!!!

Is he teething? My mum often tells me not to be 'scared' to give my 12month old calpol. I had a week of needing to use it daily for a very grizzly boy and was beginning to question myself until I had a good look and 8 molars were in the process of erupting! It's a bit hard to check sometimes cos he doesn't like it and he bites!

If it's not teeth, 8 month olds can be jolly hard to cope with especially if they aren't crawling. If this is the case, he'll likely get much better once he can move around. I was so relieved when mine crawled. Yes he gets into things and still wants to be picked up sometimes but overall I found it way less intense

@PithyGreenBee Eight molars?! Poor little mite! Yeah, I have weeks where it's Calpol at bed time for my 12mo nearly every day and dribble soaking through a bib an hour - and then the tooth finally cuts through and we will get some respite (until the next one).

Well, he got his bottom two teeth back in February and then in April I was convinced his top two were coming in. Well it’s June now and they’re still not here so I’ve given up thinking any kind of distress is teething haha.

I’m so exhausted it almost feels like having a newborn again, but without the three hour naps!!

Ok yes fair enough! Hope you've got someone home during the weekend so you can get some rest! It is super relentless

Also the contact napping, this is a tough one. I'm lucky, my boy will mostly go down in the cot. If he could somehow take his first nap in the cot this would help you out a bit but I don't have the answers about getting that to happen!