new 'SLEEP IS FOR THE WEAK' thread

[tibsy]

hi ladies, the other one ran out of space, so if no one else starts a new thread, here it is....

woo-hoooo for swaddling and routine, got another 2 hours out of him at lunchtime today and AGAIN HAD TO WAKE HIM UP !!! I read somewhere that you shouldn't let them sleep more than 2 hours at this age (5 1/2 months)? Anyway he woke 3 times in night last night instead of twice which could be due to solids in the evening but he did have that loooong sleep so I'm taking no chances today...will let you know how it goes....we missed ds1's playgroup this afternoon but as long as he makes it to pre-school lo is the priority at the moment while I get his naps sorted.

can't keep up with all the posts - catch up later!

well done keira

both boys are asleep in the buggy - woohoo a few mins peace!

tibsey - lo has a little bit of cloth which I slept with in his cot, I got it with his slumber bear (which was next to useless!). don't know if it helps him or not but daren't move it just in case. I leave it near his head so he can smell it. One day I went to get him up and his head was lying on it

ginger - its interesting you said that about nervous los as my sil as you know is great advocate of cio from newborns anyway her los are reknowned for their nightmares and night terrors. ds1 never gets these. makes you think doesn't it. i work saturdays and was dreading it but now enjoy my "day off" what's plugging?!?

cc21 - poor lo, I am scared about lo teething now - hasn't had any yet...

genlay - what's going on there then? poor you {{{{{hugs}}}}}}

kate - welcome. I found things got a lot better once we got to about 9 weeks - fingers crossed it does for you. I only started with a bedtime routine at 3 months and it took him a little while (few weeks? days? can't remember) to go to sleep in cot at bedtime, and am only now trying to establish a nap routine and he is 5 1/2 months! I had to leave him to cry a bit but will go in if hysterical or if not settling after a long period of grumbling.

bampa - you might find putting him in his own room means you are getting up less anyway - I was reluctant to move lo out for same reason but he's slept better as a result so it was worth it. I'd rather get out of bed once or twice a night than be woken every 2 hours for him to suckle...can't believe they are closing the creche at your gym

thanks for your nice welcome messages! almost makes up for lack of sleep with a newborn!!
bampa - am liking the stay-in-my-pyjamas idea. at the moment i think i feel so demented trying to get back to sleep, i end up getting up at some stupid time and am then awake for the day. Did it this morning and then my baby girl slept like an angel for the rest of the morning whilst i was buzzing on caffeine!
ahhh, the joys of motherhood..!!!

kate, meant to say I remember being like that with my firstborn (assume yours is?). was much more relaxed with ds2! I think it's a first-time-mother thing...not that that helps you much!

Kiera - Great that the routine is doing you some good, DD has definately improved since I started a routine.

Kate - Welcome! At 6 weeks I would concentrate on the night/day thing and worry about routine later. From what I have read on here and from my PN group they tend to get themselves in to a pattern of sorts but you do need to teach night from day.

I have a HV tale! Checked DDs wieght today and despite starting solids she only put on 2oz. So I had a chat to the HV on duty and asked how much food how quickly etc to check I am not forcing her too quickly. She went into one on me and gave me a lecture on leaving solids till 6 months and that she should be on 3 meals by now and that because I was BFing I couldn't tell if she was having enough to eat and formula would top her up - WTF!!!!!
She then went on to comment on her (mild) cradle cap and told me I should be oiling/washing her hair every day (can't do this - excema!). She said I should go to the GP for a prescription then or she would end up with an infection!!!!

All the other HVs have been great, the one I talked to last week was v supportive. I am so cross I feel like writing to someone! You would think I was neglecting her or something, I half expect social services to turn up

Rant over, hope everyone else is ok.

GN - I am going back in Sept and starting the Childcare search too. Horrible isn't it!

Your HV doesn't know what she's talking about. Tell her where to stick it! You know you're doing the right thing, so just ignore her...

ruth, i'm sorry but your hv is talking thru her chuffing arse. that makes me SO angry just ignore the wicked witch. my dd only puts on a couple of oz's a week atm and she's having 3 meals plus boob as often as she wants. they're all different and as long as theyre having wet nappies and are happy and alert........grr. as for mild cradle cap, my dd has this too, and eczema which is predominantly on her scalp and on her forehead send the cow my way [fisticuffs emoticon]!!
oh dear, have had a glass of vino and feeling a bit feisty obviously!

kiera - dd in bed as we speak with her noo noo bear

Ruth your hv is a disgrace. She should be congratulating you on bf. So many mums won't even give it a try (bizarre!). I think they reserve their scorn for us mums who try our best and care beyond belief and the ones who give their babies coke in a bottle, crisps for lunch and who never have a coat on get the sympathy and supportive words. Very annoyed

Well we may have an answer here
One of the ladies in our playgroup has just called and said her LO has the measles and for her contagious period she spent many mornings around all 10 babies in the group! This could be fun. I'm not convinced DS has it but am taking him to get checked out anyway.
I felt bad for the other mum having to call everyone especially since her DH sent around a message just before with the tittle "diseased baby" It had two pics of their DD looking sore and sorry for herself and the message "Has your baby been in contact with DD lately? The time for panic is now!"

Ruth at your HV, how rude.

ginger yes my LO is starting to get clingy but only enough to make me feel good, he just turned 7months. Am about to start a study about the relationship between infant temperament and attachment. Great topic will let you know the results if you want

LO crying will be back soon

Kiera: Plugging = shoving dummy in!

Bampa, I'm too dreading moving lo into her own room. I'm pretty certain we disturb her and she sure as hell disturbs me but a) I worry that I'll spend half the night padding around the house and b) I like her in my room I love bringing her into bed and snuggling. It won't be the same if I have to go down a flight of stairs to get her.

What's this gym milarky? I used to go every day twice a day and had done that religiously for two years (before that I was a once a day girl!). Haven't been since DD born and I'd LOOOOOOOOOOOOOOve to go back. Unfortunately can't afford to now I'm on the unpaid bit of my maternity. booo.

Ruth, HV's anger me. From my and friends experiences they are next to frigging useless. I hate the way you mention something in passing and it ends up in your red book. I always feel totally scrutinised. I once happened to mention that DD wasn't a great sleeper (She was about 17 weeks at the time) and she just said, well, you could try controlled crying. I was totally pissed off because frankly 17 weeks is far too young and she didn't ask any questions etc etc just expected me to leave her to cry. At the time DD was COVERED in eczema and in hindsight it was probably the itch that was keeping her awake. BTW, your LO isn't loosing weight so there's no problem and frankly I would complain. Her advice is rubbish. Oh yeah. My DD had really hideous cradle cap that got all infected and inflamed which didn't seem to alarm my GP so your tiny bit isn't going to do any harm. It's perfectly normal. FWIW I don't use any 'products' on DD including shampoo. Have you seen the chemicals in those things? Not good especially if you've got eczema.

Genlay, you sound very scholarly with your study are you an academic?

I keep forgetting who owns what and whom and stuff. Would it help if we had a recap of who we are what we do and what offspring we've got? or shall we just fill in our personal pages so people can click on them for a reminder?

DD has gone down a treat this evening. OK, so I did give her medised (the first time) we've both been a bit coldy today. I'm already getting palpitations in anticipation of a good night. I bet I get so worked up I don't sleep.

Lol ginger, I am just a student. But some of the topics are just so interesting.
Will give you a recap as I get confused too, blame it on the lack of sleep.
I live just outside of Sydney in oz, Ds is 7 months now and am studying Psychology. This is not usually a talking point for me but the less sleep I get the more it's on my mind and besides it's quite humbling turning up at uni with bags under my eyes and hair not done while everyone else looks like they just went to the Salon. DH was poking fun at this the other day and said "wow things have changed, you used to be the hot one"

Lol at the sleep anticipation. I get it when I'm expecting a particularly good night and an equally bad one. It's so annoying but the more you think about it the worse it gets.

Kate don't worry there's still hope for you! She may be sleeping through before you know it and if not you can always find company here

sending you all sleep vibes

ginger recap is great idea. I forget how old everyone's lo's are. My ds turned 1 at the end of jan. I'm a SAHM after many years in retail. Started to retrain as a nutritionist but found out i was pregnant and couldn't think about anything else (pathetic i know) so have postponed course for few years.Been married to Dh for 3 years in may but been together 12!

Hope you all had a good night. Off out to meet a 'new' friend for coffee this morning. Only met her recently and really like her so it feels like a first date (in a totally un-lesbian way of course!)

Genlay: hope your LO is OK - at the email though!

Another better night - thanks in part to baby drugs - 7-10 and then 12:30 - 5am after a dose of Medised as he seemed to be in pain. The morning walk and nap (previous routine was nap in bed with me) does seem to help us both, esp with the sunny mornings.

Re swaddling, DS seems to fight his way out of the swaddle eventually, eventhe Mark 2 last night with larger blanket and extra turn round the legs. Any tips? Part of the prob is that he's really tall so can kick his way out.

I'm giong back to work at the beginning of April, hopefully p/t. We're lucky in that DH is freelance and wprks from home, so will be looking after him when I'm at work. I'm hopefully starting on 3 days, going up to 4, so will prob need a CM a day or 2 a week later on.

Personal details: I'm 31, an archivist (degree in English some time ago) and DS is 5 months old. Oh, and I live in London.

Bampa: LOL at 1st date - I've met more people, esp loacally after having DS than in years at work - one of the things I'll miss after I go back!

swizzler my ds could never be swaddled either. He's tall too and even at a few days old he could kick/wriggle out of his blankets. In hindsight refusing to comply was his personality from the beginning!

Well, my night was something like I anticipated. Druged DD with medised as she's got a bit of a cold and was grumpy with teeth yesterday. She was out cold from 6.30 - 10.30. Then was wide awake. It took a while for me to get her to feed, she just wanted to look about and coo. I gave her another dose but she didn't settle very well after that and came into bed with me at about 12.00 (DH kicked out into the spare room)She was awake on and off all night but didn't feed until 6.30. I thought medised was supposed to knock them out? She seemed to be high as a kite.

To recap: My DD is 6 months, she's my first baby, has never slept through the night, not ever. I work in London doing marketing and PR and live in Essex. Me and DH have been married 3 (?) years but together 14 (we met in my first week at Uni) I used to look youngish for my age. Used to have very toned muscles and was very fit. It's all caught up with me in the last 6 months and now I'm haggered and flabby. Don't care tho.!

hi all!
genlay hope lo ok, email very funny tho. helps to have a sense of humour with children doesnt it!wouldlove to have a peek at your assignment results when you're done please

bampa lol at your 'date'. i came home when dd few weeks old and announced to dp that 'i'd made a new friend today'!

swizzler at another better night

ginger medised doesnt do much for dd either re, sleep but as shes full of cold atm its better than calpol. try not to use either unless at night time. do you mind me asking what you use for lo's eczema?

our night was not fabulous but t.b.e when dd unwell. bed at 6.45, woke at 9 briefly but back off quickly. fed at 11pm (a nibble)then i think the next time was 4.45am but she was awake for a while then dont know when she went back off but woke at 7.30am. anyone else feel the nights blurring into feeds and other blurry stuff?

oh yes, and to recap, i'm 32, a complementary therapist, have a dd (the sleepless one! of 6months) and ds (12yrs) i've been with dp for 13 1/2 years and i too, once famed for my youthful good looks am starting to go to seed!!!

Well I think I have caught up with all the threads but can't remember who said what to respond personally but anyway...

all you good nights and hope all the bad nights and poorly lo and parents get better soon

lol at the 'dates' - we moved house when ds was 7 weeks old so making new friends has been fun.

at those hv - i have a great one (supportive of BLW, co-sleeping, bf etc) but when she is not there her 'supply' is appalling. Gave me wrong advice about excema, and told me to leave him to cry and to wean at 4 months.

Very impressed at the studying and having a baby thing - I struggle with forming coherent sentences and spelling simple words let along writing essays

Medised had a terrible effect on my lo (but as I said was wonderful for my friends lo) - I react badly to things like sudafed myself so perhaps its a genetic thing.

For my lo excema we use a cream from the doctors called 'doublebase'. It's fab and with regular use his excema is under control (although it is quite mild anyway). We don't use any baby products (the only wet wipes we can use are the huggies pure and I only use these when we are out and about) and fairy non bio washing powder.

My night was appalling - up every hour until 3 am then would not settle - did not want to do anything (lie down, sit up, cuddle, feed, ...) and just cried. Eventually he settled - who knows what time and I woke before him at about 7.30am and he woke just afterwards. Some nights I have no idea what I have done - I could have fed up once, twice, three times who knows it all goes into a blurry mess.

To recap I'm 33, have one ds who is 8 months, I teach children with severe learning difficulties when i am not on maternity leave. i used to be slim and now i am slim in most places except a rather saggy tummy. been married 2 years but together 10 - met in last year of uni.

genlay - Hope lo is OK. The email sounds like my DP!

Strange how so many of our lo's have excema, we use .5% hydrocortisone (sp?) and no products unless a really sticky poo when I use some aqueous cream as a soap substitute.
Got given Dermaol 500 which made things worse for her but I have adopted it and it works great on me

Thanks for the support on the HV thing. I am going to ignore her. It is a shame because we have 2 great HV here, one is a BF specialist and is brill! The other is just supportive of whatever methods you want to use as a Mother. She would only interfere if she thought you were really wrong eg weaning at 12 weeks etc (I overheard her being v diplomatic with a young Mum the other week!)

Profile: 1 DD 26 weeks, work in HR when not loafing around on Maternity leave. Live with DP of 12 years.

LO is calling, catch up later.....

back from my 'date' and ds is asleep. Had a great morning but now i've got the post date paranoia that i talked too much! anyone else ever do that?! x

bloody hell! I just can't keep up! things here still erratic to say the least. ds has done a couple of 7 hr stints but no rhyme or reason to why/what induces them. I witnessed something miraculous the other night though. I put ds n his cot after a bf and he fell asleep. On. his. own!!! he was awake again 10 mintues later but he can do it! He does often stir, open his eyes as I put him in cot and then goes off to sleep but he always cries again after 15 mins or so (what's that about !). He is amysery to me.
Sorry I hvae not referred to any posts on here. I have skimmed them but tbh there are so many that I cannot keep up!
to those of us still here..... Hope things are improving.
To the new ones. welcome. More later. Gotta put my ironing away - yawn.....
btw ds went down at 7 last night, had to be resettled twice and then went until 3:15am! sleep again until 5:30am and then up but defo better than previous two nights!

Sorry - meant to say he is a mystery to me