how do i help 9mo dd?

[addictediam]

Dd is a really food sleeper usually has around 3 hours worth of naps a day. Thus can be 3 1 hour naps or 2 naps.

This past week she's still sleeping well in the day but when I put her to bed at night (between 7pm and 9pm depending on the timing of her last nap) she sleeps for around 30 minutes then wakes up dripping wet screaming she's then too scared to sleep and is up till the early hours just cuddling me or dh until she finally drops of and we put her back in her cot and she's fine for the rest of the night.

I thought maybe she was just hot so have been putting her to bed in just a nappy with a muslin and her comforter, but it made no difference. Last night I sat in her room with her thinking maybe if she's having a nightmare I could soothe her before she woke up, but she wast tossing or turning or squirming or any signs she was upset just all of a sudden she woke and started screaming.

When she's cuddling shes not asleep just has her eyes open looking shocked, if we try putting her back in her cot she clings on and screams, if we lie down with her on our bed she gets just as upset.

I don't know what to do next, its just at night, not during the day.

Anyone have any ideas?

Any ideas?

Yes addicted, I'm afraid I think you are dealing with this www.facebook.com/note.php?note_id=120353001604
Try the suggestions waking her 10 mins before and resettling also, keep her room as cool as possible (keep curtains drawn in the day?) if you give her a bath can you make it (not cold) a bit cooler than usual to cool her off on hot days, don't let her get overtired, keep her routine as consistent as you can. When she has this screaming, try to quietly rock her off again in your arms rather than waking her up by talking/taking her in another room, she might actually be semi conscious even though the eyes are open. If this does not work and the issue continues PM me if you like as we've had to deal with this.

Yes that sounds very similar, but I'm sure she is awake as she doesn't like us to sit or lie down while we are cuddling and as sion as we cuddle her she calms down, and that link said she wouldn't.

But it was very sudden her eyes opened, she screamed then started sobbing and was sweating so much she was drenched.

The other problem is I don't really have a routine with her, were very relaxed and 'go with the flow' type parents. Do you think having a routine will help?

have you changed anything with her diet? i just wondered if she is getting tummy pain or something and it's kicking in a certain amount of time after she eats something??

have never heard of night terrors in a baby tht young tbh, although am sure there are people who have experienced it

it still may be worth rousing her a bit before she normally wakes and seeing if you can just interrupt her sleep pattern so it doesn't happen?

No nothing on the diets changed.

So do I completly wake her up, then try to settle her down or do I just go in move her so she wakes abit then leave her?

I will try it tonight. Thanks

i think you just rouse her a little bit to bring her into a lighter sleep. don't wake her up fully, just enough maybe to make her open her eyes and then go straight back to sleep kind of thing?

Could it be the 9 month sleep regression? Dd would be up crying for 2-hr periods in the middle of the night at that age. Nothing seemed to help, I'm afraid we just had to ride it out

Addicted, that link is one of the best descriptions of night terrors that I came across but it I wouldn't say it is the ultimate authority, many times I have read to sit beside and just make sure they don't come to harm, this does not work in our case the crying only escalates.

Because you said this only happens at night, not during naps, because it is sudden and the timing is consistent it really rang a bell with me. What you describe is exactly what I have been dealing with. My advice would be to try to treat her as if she is asleep, she may well be even if she is looking at you and responding somewhat. Comfort her until the screaming subsides, hopefully she will close her eyes and settle again and you will get her into bed more quickly. If I let dd wake up fully it would be hours before I could get her back into bed just as you say.

My own reading kept turning up, over heating/over tiredness/illness especially with fever/consistency of bedtime routine as triggers. Naps important for young ones. You could also try white noise. Or talking to her ahead of the expected episode quietly and calmly in a comforting way as she sleeps and you may head it off. If none of this helps and you think it might be night terrors do PM me there is something else you could try that worked for us but the stuff about disturbing her sleep 10 mins in advance of the expected episode works in a large number of cases from what I've read.

About rousing her, some say to disturb only slightly others to basically sit them up and resettle them. I know it takes a brave person to wake a sleeping baby!