9MO with jetlag - I dont know what Im doing - PLEASE HELP!! sorry this is long

[LoubyLouLondon]

I dont know if this is the right place to post this but Im hoping that someone can help. We returned from hols with 9mo DS on Monday morning and he is still suffering with jetlag. I know its only 4 nights but I dont know if what we are doing is right.

I have been following his normal routine. He has two naps a day. One of about an hour and after lunch of about two hours. He is bathed and then I feed him and put him down just after 7. Usually he goes to sleep quite well. Now he is falling asleep when being feed and going straight to sleep but then waking up screaming an hour and a half later. I cant settle him so end up bringing him downstairs and playing with him till about 11 - when I give him another bottle and last night he slept through till I woke him up at 8 but the night before cried on and off till 6am and then wouldnt go back to sleep.

I am so worried that its going to get into a habit but I dont know what else to do. Have been rocking him to sleep but he wakes up immediately when I put him down in the cot. I have tried feeding him more but he isnt hungry and just pushes the bottle away. I pick him up to try and soothe him but he just scrunches his legs into my chest and hits me in the face (Nice!). I have tried leaving him to cry but i cant do it for long.

I feel so helpless as I dont have a clue what to do and if Im doing it all wrong

any advice much appreciated. TIA

Don't whatever you do, bring him down to play. You have to keep things low key and boring - stay with him, cuddle him facing outward so he can't kick you, in his room but no stimulation or have some white noise on. It might take a week or so but he'll get the idea that it's night time. Maybe have some headphones with you so you don't get bored.

Have just come back with 6mth old with dreadful jetlag so I share your pain. Stick to what his routine should be and get him out in the sunshine early in the day - it helps re-set the body to current time. Unfortunately, patience is the word here. It took us 2 weeks to get our DS back to normal, with almost hourly wakings during the night. Not great when he isn't a great napper. Try to find extra tiring things to do if you can during the day. I took my DS swimming every day as it always knackered him and meant i could bank on a nap straight after, therefore getting his nap routine happening le clockwork. We got there in the end but it wasn't easy. Agree with the minimal stimulation at night advice. I would only get up if it was after 4am. Any earlier and i would either bring DS into bed with me and/or feed him to sleep. Is he upset when awake or will he play in his cot? Hang in there - it does fade eventually.

I'm lurking shamelessly for top tips too as I'm a week into my hols and my 10mo still hasn't got over jet lag and I'm dreading coming home already... I don't know how much more of the hair-pulling-raspberry-blowing-face-kicking fest in the middle of the night I can take!

It sounds normal to me, OP, you just have to keep persevering. Agree with the lots of light in regular daylight hours advice. Always takes us about a week to get back to something resembling normal routine whichever way we travel (am a long-time veteran of UK West Coast USA trips, including many with babies/tots/young children). Am very amazed by people on MN who seem to have no jetlag problems in the family either way.

Thank you for the advice. Last night, we woke up again at 8.30pm but i went in picked him up, calmed him down and then put him back into the cot and left the room. I went back and checked on him and after a while he went off to sleep andf didnt wake up till 7 this morning. Am preparing myself for another night the same tonight but hope that in a few days he will get the message.

I have been getting him out a lot in day light and trying to be really active with lots of playdates and parks.

I knew that bringing him down was wrong but my DP seemed to think it was the right idea. That will teach me to listen to him!!

Mrs, I was the same. Think I will stick to the short haul destinations for a while!!

Thanks x