Hi Becs,
i can't complain, really, she's been having a tricky time of it what with the weather and teething but by and large she has been an excellent sleeper. having said that, the tiny amount of sleep deprivation i've had recently has left me feeling quite loopy so i can't imagine how you are managing to cope... you should be very proud of yourself even being able to type straight.
to be honest i have really tried hard to ignore the health visitors, they weren't very helpful to me when i needed them so it makes me question their advice now, if you know what i mean...
i am not, however, above quizzing complete strangers on the street if they look like they have more than a couple of kids. i reckon if they've managed not to break the first few then they probably know what they are doing.
my friend, for example, has two little girls. the first one was a terrible sleeper and all but caused her parents to divorce... one of the main things, my friend says, was that she wanted to sleep on her stomach but of course (with the HV's words ringing in her ears) my pal kept turning her around and disturbing her.
luckily, they managed to keep it together enough to have a second child and the second baby was the same and wanted to be on her tummy. by this time, my friend was more confident and let her do it. happy parents, happy baby etc etc.
not that i'm saying i would be any different with my first, of course, but i think that by the second you are probably better at trusting your instincts. luckily it wasn't a problem i faced as she sleeps in a hammock so can't turn over. thank god.
does your wee one have a lot of wind, then? have you done the whole 'winding over your knees'/ 'lying them on their back and rotating their legs with their knees together' thing? or am i trying to teach my granny to suck eggs? i'm sure you've tried everything...
remind me how old your baby is, Becs... it's funny but i was chatting to an NCT pal about the fact that i don't think i can remember anything from the first months, it was such a blur. Neither could she. It's still a bit blurry, to be honest, and she's nearly eight months old. (not sure if that's good news or bad...)
glad to hear from you, Becs. you really couldn't have come to a better place if your looking for expert advice... somewhere on this site is someone who will be able to help you... just post and they will find you.
good luck,
h x
P.S. Yikes, what an epic!