High-Need Baby Support Thread III

[TitaniaP]

Well as I'm awake I thought I'd start thread 3!

The high-need baby thread has been moved from breast & bottle feeding to sleep. In the early days of the thread I think feeding was a significant issue for many of the posters. I think those that post regularly on the thread would now agree that's it's mainly sleep that's the issue.

So if your baby fits the following criteria come and join us for wine, chocolate, coffee and matchsticks as we delight in our active, inquisitive, curious and restless babies or toddlers!

1. Feeds frequently daytime
2. Feeds frequently nighttime
3. Needs to be constantly held
4. Wont sleep alone
5. Hates the car seat/pram
6. Short naps

Hi everyone, please can I join? Just read a couple of posts and especially joyful and 2cents really made me feel like at least I know I'm not alone with this anymore! Dd is 5months and I basically exactly as you describe yours to be! Just won't sleep, I've been up about every 45mins since 10.30 and haven't slept since 12. Just fed her & she's asleep on me but I just can't face putting her down as I know she'll just wake up again. Then I'll have to go through endless rocking and shushing again - it's just so depressing!

Everyone recommends co-sleeping but she won't even sleep in our bed, so that's a non starter! Can I ask how well daytime naps go for you and what you do? Dd only naps for 1/2hr at a timebut wakes up exhausted then we battle to get het back down again & again.

She is so aware of everything she now won't feed unless make the room dark & there is no noise. She won't sleep unless in same situation. I can't go out or have people over because she just won't nap and then just screams and screams because she is so tired.

It is just so relentless - I feel I could cope if she was just bad either day or night but both is just too much for me to cope with. I too get angry with her at night and then feel so terrible. I keep telling myself how lucky I am to have her but deep down I don't feel lucky. I am completely broken by this now!

Well sorry that turned into a massive rant - I must have needed to get it off my chest! Only 20mins to go before I can go and wake dp to take over. I spend all night waiting for 4am so I can sleep!!

Welcome Zamba! Ladies, all I can say is at 5 mo ds was exactly the same!!! At 11 mo he's a lot better, naps are around 1.5 hrs am, and 1 hr pm. We get uninterrupted sleep from around 12-5, so much better and easier all round. Hang in there, it gets easier

Sorry- Zambo!!

Hi all yes I got a couple of hours when I swapped with dp at 4. Just trying to get her down for a nap now as we are going out to a jubilee fayre soon. She won't nap while we are out as everything us too exciting!

Everything does seem more bearable during the day - sorry for having such a moan! Hope you all got some sleep and are enjoying the bank hols!

It helps so much to know others are going through this and that it will pass! Unfortunately all my friends appear to have dream babies who sleep through the night and 'just nap anywhere' - how annoying!!

We just gave dd her 1st taste of solids - banana porridge followed by some banana in a nuby fruit holder net thing - she seemed to like it. I suppose I'm wrong to get my hopes up that solids might improve sleep!

Has a very poorly pickle today. God awful night last night as he just felt rotten. Teething + cough and cold and general rundownness + a likely cold sore ( or worst case scenario hand foot and mouth - praying its just a cold sore or two on his mouth...) is making DS a very unhappy boy indeed. It's heartbreaking, he's just been grizzling or full on crying all day, and is now having problems latching on as his mouth is sore :(

I'm wasted. So tired.

Welcome Zam, Joyful I feel your pain lady, hugs. Hope you all have a better night.

I may be making a big mistake here but I'm staying up to watch the Diamond Jubilee Concert! Wish my lots of luck for a good night!

Hi tickle - really sorry to hear that about your ds. Can't remember if you said you had been to dr or not? I agree that maybe bonjela might help.

Sorry you had to eat take away 1 handed joyful, it kind of takes the fun out of it a bit doesn't it?!

Well my late night was obviously a bad idea as you can see from the time of my post. I got into bed at 11 and she was awake at 1/2 past. Since then it's been pretty constant so I haven't really slept yet. I'm thinking I'll try to power on through till 6 then dp will be v grateful for extra sleep (past our usual 4am swap over time) and will say I can have a good long sleep to catch up. I'll see of he might take dd and dog out so I have a free house.

I really hope you are all having a better night than me. I'm trying so hard to stay positive tonight as last nights tears and anger at dd weren't good! If only sleep wasn't such a necessity! To think I used to complain if I only got 7 rather than 8 hours! Now I would treasure 4 or 5!

Good luck to everyone for lovely sleeps and happy babies!

Took DS to a walk-in centre and referred to out-of-hours GP. It's hand, foot and mouth :( Bastarding nursery. Give my poor little fella a break!

They've given him some antibiotics as they think that a couple of the sores on his tongue could be infected. He's had one BF directly this morning, but has cried other times I've offered. Bottles seem to be easier for him. Sigh. And hes teething too. Poor baby.

I feel so sad for him, since nursery it's just been bug after bug (which we knew would happen, but knowing it and living it are very different)...

Oh no poor baby, how old is he? At least he has anti biotics now.

I've been completely miserable today though lack of sleep and feel I've really wasted the day!

Hope everyone else is ok.

Not caught up but just wanted to have a vent. Stayed at Reading services on Saturday night and to top off a lovely w/e (tho utterly sleepless ) some utter git broke into our car and nicked the boys' carseats. Was totally and . Bloody travelodge have signs up everywhere saying they've got cctv but have they? Have they heck as like!

Hope everyone else is having a lovely bank holiday - sleeplessness notwithstanding! Will catch up soon...

He's almost 11 months, Zambo, seems far too little to be going through so much.

I've now read that antibiotics are pointless with hand, foot and mouth as its viral, am hoping GP had good reason to prescribe. He's never had antibiotics before, bless him.

Button That's awful! :( and for you!

Police gave us permission to travel a couple of miles to get to nearest car seat shop so DH drove ultra carefully and defensively all the way there. Mothercare were useless. Said the car seat we wanted wasn't available. I asked if we could purchase the display model - no, they're not allowed to sell display models if the item is available to order but how about this lovely car seat which we have in stock? It's only £100 more than the one you wanted... Funnily enough I declined and pointed out that delivery by Wednesday was useless as it was Sunday morning and what did they expect us to do in the meantime?

Argos next door was great and they had 50% off

Will be writing to Travelodge but expecting nothing. They're useless too. Only booked them cos they're cheap! Am totally livid though. And disgusted. I mean, what kind of immoral idiot steals a baby and child car seat? From a bloody motorway services? Kind of implicit that they're essential, no?

tickle if there are some sores in his mouth which are infected it'll probably be because of that. And yes - def watch out for thrush. I always get it after a course of antibiotics and ds1 had it when I had them when he was 1wk old. Was agony!

Joyful things are a bit better with dd2 (I think). She really seems to be making an effort with food. Am not relaxing though. Am going to maintain vigilance and watch like a hawk until I see an upward trend with weight and attitude.

Hi all.

Button- I've just joined the thread - can't believe that about your car seats... What a rubbish end to the bank hol for you... So no sign of getting any compensation then?

Well I've decided that dd is getting way toouch daytime sleep and this is probably why night times are so bloody awful. I started another thread to ask and everyone on there says a 5month old should need about 3hrs daytime sleep and no nap after 4.00- do you all agree with this?
Anyway so we tried it yesterday and last night was a bit better. She still woke loads but went back quickly. At 3 she seemed quite awake so I rocked her back and let her sleep in out bed where she stayed until 5.30 so still early waking but I'm hoping a few days of nee routine might help sort her out - any opinions on this would be great!

Hope you all had a good night and all is well.

Mine have always been sleepy heads and I'm normally of the opinion that they sleep when they need. However, ds2 came along and turned that confidence on its head! I have no idea... Sorry, but nothing I do helps or hinders I don't think.

Last night was truly awful. He woke at 10ish and slepot for no more than 45 mins at a stretch til 4 when he screamed til 6 then slept til 7. So he's on his second nap of the day and ois solid gone!

I know what you mean re: constant illness and nursery tickle - we're on month 3 of continuous cold/cough/etc now! Chicken pox is going round the nursery at the moment so we're just waiting for that joy

That's really crap button - there truly are some arseholes in the world.

DS is much the same, still feeding every 3 hrs but now sleep crawling and rolling all over the place so i get kicked all night. We're going to nightwean him once he's a year old as I'll be going back to working night shifts and DP is worried that he won't be able to settle DS if he'd just looking for milk all the time!

Indeed Spanner and I discovered yesterday that it wasn't me leaving a door not quite shut or dh forgetting to lock it, it was a screwdriver into each of the front doors under the locks. So that's something else to fix

I waited for years for dds to get chickenpox until I was positive that they were immune as I had shingles for the first time when dd1 was small, second time when I was pg with dd2 and then the third time a year later. |Even the gp thought they might have picked up immunity. Then dd2 got it, passed it to dd1 but only mildly. DD2 got it again a year later really badly. DS1 had it two years ago and was really unwell with it - he had them in his tummy so was sick constantly for a week. DS2's little friend had it recently and I was hoping he might pick it up to get it over with but I think we've missed that particular boat.

Joyful thistooshallpass-thistooshallpass-thistooshallpass-thistooshallpass. Repeat as often as needed. Ad infinitum if needs be. Hugs.

I'm breaking. I can't do this any more. I know that I don't have much of a choice. But I am breaking.