Gradual withdrawl method - help needed

[lori21]

We are doing the GW method as described by the Millpond Clinic. We've done the rocking to sleep and are now on the holding to sleep. The next one is the 'holding in cot' to sleep. I'm a bit sonfused about how to do this. I may be being a little thick as I am rather sleep deprived. If anyone else has done it please give me some tips

Thanks

A much better night...

7pm bed
8.30pm - settled with just a sshhh and a touch
10.30pm - settled next to be on the mat on the floor then transferred to cot
5am - I wake up in a panic cos he hasn't
5.15am - he wakes (a tad early but an improvement)

Hopefully a lie in tomorrow!

lori, big for your better night.
ours have gone a bit pear shaped atm as dd still getting teething pains despite her teeth poking thru poor bubba
hope to return to our former glory soon!

I spoke too soon, lo has a nasty cold and cough (although I think the cold is linked to his teeth coming though) and we had an awful night..

7 - 10pm sound asleep then settled in cot (I was getting excited at that point!)
12am - settled on floor and returned to cot (getting a little worried)
3am - very unsettled, coughing, restless, tried settling on floor but when I returned to cot woke up immediatly
4.30am - gave up with settling on floor - I was cold and uncomfortable - toke him ino our bed and he screamed
5am - gave him calpol and a bf. He coughed and half the milk feed came back up onto the bed, me and him, but he went to sleep
7am - woke for the day happy as larry! (him that is not us, as we both feel poorly and three hours sleep is not enough!)

Sorry for the ups and downs, Lori, and sorry for the teeth, Tibsy. I feel traitorous, but have resorted to cc . Tonight is the second night. I just felt that me being there whilst trying to do the GW was winding her up and prolonging the agony. I didn't think she could cry much more with cc - LOL, I was wrong about that! Last night was pretty horrendous - basically her two hourly wakings followed by lots of crying each time. I've never really attempted to do anything except cuddle her at those later wakings before. I hope you all don't think I'm too evil (I feel it!) The only small mercy is that she has seemed fine today despite three hours plus crying in the night and only about 7 hours sleep! She has now gone quiet after 15 mins, so I'm keeping everything crossed that she's gone to sleep. Will continue to follow your progress with interest!

lori, hope ds feels better soon. dd has suffered badly with colds linked to teething too. runny eyes, nose, the lot. as if they werent suffering (and us with em!)enough
lets all hope for a sleepier night tonight

lilysma - x posted. i dont think youre evil, rather a very tired mummy desperate to get some sleep for her and baby. i wont lie to you, its not (cc that is) for me, but i wouldnt judge you on what you choose to do for your lo. i hope it works for you my lovely

lilysma - My personal motto is 'each to their own', you know your lo best and if you feel that cc is the only way to go then fingerscrossed it works for you. As tibsy says I just couldn't do it though but lots and lots and lots of people do. The nursery nurse at the HV clinic suggested it for our 6 week old

tibsy - hope your lo is feeling better now.

We had a fab night but I do feel that the medised I gave him to help with the cold had something to do with it

7 - 3.30am asleep OMG
3.30 - BF then straight back to sleep
6am - BF then up for the day.

Lets hope this continues without medised!

go lori!!! am really pleased for you (and you reminded me that i've run out of medised, so thanks!)
our night was improved (marginally) bed at 8.15pm (in cot, no boob!) woke at 10.45pm but ssshed back to sleep. huge bf at 12am fed again at 3.30am (not sure whether i should have held out on that one?) then up for day at 6.30am

lori, dont know if ive asked before, but how much is your lo eating/feeding throughout the day?

My lo eats like a horse!!! He has 3 or 4 bf during the day, 3 main meals and 2 snacks! Breakfast is a whole banana, 3 spoonfuls of readybrek with water and purree, and maybe some more fruit or some toast if still hungry. He has about a 'side plate' full of food for his main meals and a piece of fruit for pudding and some dried fruit and maybe a rice cake or similar for snacks.

Although I think what started the sleeping problems was at 4 months he became a 'distractable baby' and would only take a bf if really tired or sleepy so I could only get him to take a feed when he was going down for a nap and occasionally as he was waking up from a nap. At the same time he also went through a huge growth spurt going from the 25th percentile to the 50th percentile in 2 months. This meant that during the time when they are establishing their sleep routines he learnt that the only way to go to sleep was to be bf to sleep and that waking up every hour for food was perfectly normal

I was hoping that at 6months when he started solids then it would help but of course the pattern was well and truely in place.

So it has taken me a few months to decide to really tackle the issue as I did not want to reduce the bf until he was really ready. I've changed my mind and decided that he will get a bf after 3am if he wakes because he seems genuinely hungry and it is a long time from 7pm.

My friends lo is the same age. He is on formula and is not keen on taking a bottle. he eats a bit of baby porridge, some sweetcorn and not much else. He sleeps from 8pm until 6am most nights

your lo is eating like a horse! have wondered many times if dd not getting enough through the day to sustain her overnight iyswim? think its just cos shes a light sleeper then, not that shes necessarily hungry
we had a slightly better night last night
dp got her to sleep
she woke at 12am just gave her a cuddle in our bed 'note to self' try harder to maintain the sleep programme!
fed at 1.30am and i put her back into her cot for the 1st time in a long while
woke at 4.30am , more boob, altho i should have held out as she wasnt that fussed
up for day at 7.15am
i went to bed at 9pm last night so feel quite refreshed today
hope everyone else ok

Sorry i have forgotten - how old is your lo tibsy? Mine is 10months and seems to be on a constant growth spurt. Another good night here but again due to medised me thinks!! I really struggle to go to bed before 11pm and then he seems to be always up at about 6am at the moment (aswell as once during the night) your 9pm bed seems far more sensible!

lori, dd is 9 months on sunday
i too am an 11 o clock bedtime kinda girl usually, but last night, i was so knackered, i forced myself up them stairs did feel better for it this a.m, but am waning a bit now. think i may have a nap when dd goes down

happy bank hols, hope everyones lo's are behaving themselves and sleeping loads
we had a fab night last night,
bed 7pm
fed 2.30am
woke 6.30am
have been placing 2 drops of lavender onto dds mattress before she goes to bed and it seems to be working [fingers x'd emoticon]
wish i could take the credit, as it is in my work remit, but it was the lovely redbeki from siftw who reminded me of it. big hugs to her!!