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6 mo just won't go to sleep or stay asleep

9 replies

LaurenTS · 11/01/2012 08:28

I'm completely exhausted with my 6 mo daughter. She has been in a routine from about 2 months until a week ago of bath, feed upstairs, fall asleep after the bootle, then I gently put her down asleep and she'd sleep from 7 - 7, with just one wake for a feed between 1.30 and 3.30, after which she comes into our bed (if I don't, she's restless and wakes constantly).

Last week, she just stopped doing this. I'm doing everything the same, but she's just not going off to sleep with her bottle. When I put her down, she seems asleep, but she's waking constantly. Last night, after her bedtime at 7, I was upstairs trying to resettle her at 7.30, 8.15, 8.45, 9.15 - I finally gave up at 9.45 and went to bed myself with her. But even then, she's taking ages to get back to sleep and is restless. She's up as usual for a feed, then she's unsettled from about 4ish, waking every 20 mins or so, until I give up at 6am and get up. I am completely knackered.

She's sleeping as normal during the day (although she's never been great at napping - unless she's on me / in the car or buggy, she won't nap for more then 20 mins). She has an hour or so in the morning, same at lunch and 30 mins in the afternoon.

I don't think it's teething - if anything, she's shown fewer teething symptoms in the last week than she had prior to that. I tried ibuprofen anyway, in case it was teething pain, but it made no difference. She's feeding plenty, clean bum, doesn't seem ill or in pain. Maybe the only thing that's changed in the last week or so is that she's eating a little more (she's actually eating a few teaspoons of food, instead of just 'tasting' it, iykwim), but she's still having the same amount of milk, so it's not hunger.

I'm tempted to try cc, because she doen't seem to respond to the PU/PD methods and patting/shushing her has never done anything. She just shouts and kicks about until I pick her up and rock her, or lie down with her in my arms. Please help - I don't know what to do.
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Flisspaps · 11/01/2012 22:34

No advice (was going to suggest teething, but you covered that) but didn't want to leave your post unanswered.

The only other thing I can possibly think of is a growth spurt/sleep regression connected to development such as crawling.

minibmw2010 · 12/01/2012 04:50

Reading this with interest as we are also having problems with our 7.5 month old. He was teething quite badly over Xmas but it seems to have calmed down now so I was hoping his sleeping would go back to how wells it was .... But no, it's worse ?? He is crawling, started about 3/4 days ago, does this regress them sleep wise ???

Before he might wake up at 4 (almost understandable having been asleep since 7), but now he's waking regularly, doesn't seem to need me as such but is so noisy when trying to settle himself I'm thinking of going cold turkey with the Monitor and just leaving the door open so I can hear if things do get bad.

Someone suggested a dream feed which I did the last couple of nights but that just results in huge wet nappies through the night so I'm going to knock that on the head. It's only been 3 nights so hopefully he won't really notice.

He naps twice, usually for about an hour each time and maybe 30/40 mins at 4pm to keep him going and is generally asleep by 7 after bath/bottle. Of I try to stop the naps he just falls asleep wherever he is.

Any advice gratefully received.

LaurenTS · 12/01/2012 07:30

Thanks for your replies. Maybe it is a regression linked to development - thinking about it, she has been sitting up really confidently/steadily since this started (she was wobbily/had to be propped up before). Do you know if they go back to normal after a while or do they have to be 'trained' how to sleep now?

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minibmw2010 · 12/01/2012 07:49

I just found this which might help:

www.babysleepsite.com/baby-sleep-patterns/8-9-10-month-old-baby-sleep-regression

kitcat83 · 12/01/2012 09:25

I'm in much the same position with me dd 6 months Sad had such an awful time over the last week with sleeping. Last night was the worst with hardly any sleep

minibmw2010 · 12/01/2012 09:39

I was really hoping he'd have a good nap this morning as he usually has 1 to 1.5 hrs, but wide awake after 45 mins, sigh ...Sad

Flisspaps · 12/01/2012 11:31

Usually after a week or so the sleep should return to normal, you don't have to start back at square one. There's a sleep regression every 6-8 weeks or so.

scrivette · 13/01/2012 13:50

6 month old DS is exactly the same. He now has a cold though and has been asleep on me for 2 hours, he wakes up if I put him down but at least he is getting some sleep. (unlike me, yawn)

LaurenTS · 13/01/2012 23:49

Thanks for the replies - no improvement yet, but we're taking turns to go to bed early as she settles once someone is in the room with her. I'm beginning to think it might be something like separation anxiety as she is so clingy at the moment.

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