9 month sleep regression - please tell me some stories that end well

[tinymeteor]

We are going through the 9 month sleep regression from hell. Please tell me stories of how it all got better for you? I need a light at the end of the tunnel here...

9mo DD hasn't been a great sleeper since 4 months, but it's now getting just ridiculous. We have tried so hard to get it right. Consistent bedtime routine gets her down by 7, providing she's tired out. She's always woken up a lot but self settled half the time and fed the other half. Always went down again. But now she's up at 11ish for a feed and screams blue murder as soon as you even tilt her horizontal never mind put her down. She hates to be put in her cot, won't co-sleep even, just screams herself a awake and then wants to play. Nights are a mess from there. She's so wired. I'm so exhausted. Loads of possible explanations but the question is, how the hell do you survive this phase and when does it end???

Anyone?

Well, that was not the best night ever

I feel for you! No real advice as I too have a non-sleeping DD, though a bit older (11 months) and consistently a crap sleeper. Is she going through some big developmental leaps? That definitely made my DD worse. When she was almost crawling she'd spend all night trying to do it in her flipping cot. It might just be a case of having to ride this out ...

We had an horrific 9 month sleep regression with DS. He stopped self settling, started wanting to feed three times a night (was prev once) and has to be fed right back to deep sleep for each one of those, so they lasted about 45 mins. Also started early waking to boot. This went on for about 3-4 weeks, then right at the point when I really thought I couldn't take any more, he spontaneously started sleeping through for the first one ever...it was so sudden it was like a switch flicked off overnight. I was too tired to fight the regression so just fed with every wake. It felt like a happy story to me at the time! I hop something similar happens to you, and that it doesn't take too long to get there...

Ps survival hinged on coffee, wine, chocolate (all for me, not DS!) and sticking a boob in his mouth each time he screamed (and screamed, and screamed...). Also, the memory fades quickly: I'm currently bracing myself for the 4 month regression that is about to hit DD, so it didn't put me off having another baby!

Thanks so much for the posts! 1am is a lonely old place when you're sleep deprived.

Bananaice I'm so happy to hear about your DS, that is the flipping promised land. Here's hoping mine is storing up some spontaneous sleeping through for us later. Good luck with DD and the 4 month bit, at least it won't be a shock this time round!

RooTwo, yep it's developmental leaps ahoy. She just figured out how to pull up to standing, so vertical screaming in the cot is now an option and boy is she going for it. Her speech stuff is also obviously motoring ahead all of a sudden, loads of new sounds. And a mouthful of new teeth - got the top two last week and he ones next door are right on the cusp too. And she's just getting over a stomach bug so possibly hungry trying to make up a bit of lost weight. And coping with new routines and new faces as I go back to work, and grandparents/childminder enter the picture...

Basically there are loads of good reasons why she can't sleep any more, but it is so fricking tough. Yesterday she got us up at 3.30 am, had rubbish naps, slept 7-11pm then woke as we were going to bed and stayed up til 2. Then 2 hourly feeds until morning. Early night for me tonight, I hope...

Thanks again for the tales of sleep to come!

Here we go again... Bedtime has become a catnap lately