I am starting to get the end of my final wit.
Bit of background. DD slept through, 7AM-7PM at 16 weeks (bliss) and then promptly went into a terrible 4-month sleep regression, which she has never really gotten out of.
She was EBF until just after 6 months (took her a while to take to solids), and is still breastfed only, in that she doesn't have any formula. I am 100% confident that her sleep issues are not food or hunger-related and am completely comfortable with my decision to keep on breastfeeding and not give formula. She is around 95th centile in weight, so is more than capable (if not able) to sleep for long periods.
She has been in a routine since early on, and has had a bedtime routine since 8 weeks of age. While she was learning her routine, I always stayed with her until she fell asleep, and soon enough got to a point where I was able to put her down, leave the room and she would settle heself easily. To this day, she easily settles herself for day time naps and at bedtime, but cannot or will not settle herself when she wakes during the night (rarely she will, but not often).
At around 6 months we got down to two wakes at night - around midnight-1AM and then again around 4-5AM. I fed at both these times since the feeds were quick and always resulted in an immediate self-settling when back in the cot, even though I was sure that for the first wake at least, she wasn't really hungry. I have obviously created a rod for my own back, as it truly does feel that she now just wakes at these times out of habit.
As such, and now that she is on three meals a day plus milk feeds, when she wakes the first time, I wait until I am sure that she is not going to settle, then go in, pick her up, cuddle her and then put her back into her cot. Sometimes I have to do this a couple of times before she goes back to sleep.
Because I am breastfeeding, night times have fallen to me, although now that I have decided not to feed her for the first wake, DH will get involved in settling.
It just seems to be getting worse at the moment though, with even more wake ups, It is rare that after the first wake, she will then go for more than a 2-3 hour stretch. It is reminiscent of newborn day. Is there an 8-month sleep regression?
I know there are some teething issues from time-to-time, but it's not always that. I am also doing the dreaded comparison thing, since DS started sleeping through from 7 months of age, which she has now surpassed. She resolutely refuses to take a dummy; DS did, and it was, quite frankly was an utter Godsend.
How can I teach her to sleep for longer periods at night, and how can I teach her to settle herself back to sleep at night?
Please help and sorry this is so long! :(