7mo driving me insane - handhold please!

[IntoTheWoods84]

Hello internet,
Sorry for long post.
My 7 month old has been waking every 45mins-1.5hrs since he was 3mo and it’s taking a toll on my mental health. I dread nighttime and I’m absolutely miserable. Very very low - I take anti-ds and do CBT but it’s not helping anymore.

I’ve tried everything over the months - we have a good bedtime routine, he’s down drowsy but awake and has white noise but he screams and screams when he wakes up.

We’ve also tried formula top up after bf, co-sleeping (which makes him worse weirdly), dummy, slings, shush pat/PUPD - everything. He generally only wants to bf every 3 hours over night - the other wakings are just random screamathons - he doesn’t want to eat.

We did Ferber for a week which improved things slightly but it’s gone back after travelling to see family and I don’t have it in me to do it again, I hated it.

He has a pretty good nap schedule if we’re out and about in a car but will only do 30–45 mins in the sling or cot.

In the daytime he’s very happy, alert and hitting milestones.

Has anyone gone through similar? When will this change? I can’t cope anymore and feel like a total failure.

Could it be teething pain?

My daughter was the same, and my heart goes out to you because it truly is the worst. I agonised over whether to do controlled crying for months, and eventually did it at 9 months and have never looked back. It’s difficult at first, but the first night we only had half an hour of crying and then she settled. The next night were the same, and then on the third she slept right through! It truly changed my life, I can’t recommend it enough. Happy to answer any questions if you want to know more!

You poor thing. I also had many, many "can't cope" moments and my son was sleeping so much better than that (2/3 wakings per night for 8 months). Eventually after one night I contacted a sleep consultant. Didn't think I'd go through with it as things always seem better in the morning. But I did, and since we implemented some of the changes he sleeps 7-5/6 and goes back to sleep with a small feed or cuddle. It does involve some crying on his part. I really think night wakings can be habitual as well as out of true "need" and the fact that he woke up with a smile every morning reassured me that he wasn't deeply traumatised.

I feel for you. It's so hard to enjoy them when you feel you are hanging on by the skin of your teeth every day. Now that I get a good stretch of sleep at night I feel like I can handle everything else so much better. I questioned many times whether I had PND too and think it my case it was more sleep-related than anything else.

Oh - and it also improved naps too. He has 1.5 hours in the afternoon so I can sit on the sofa and eat lunch and read a book (whoah).

Hi op. Months 4-11 (sorry) we’re incredibly tough for me. Waking every 45-60 mins. Then at a year, it was like a switch, she now wakes once, maaaybe twice a night! It’s bliss! She’s almost 14 months so the last 2 months have been amazing. Hang in there! Xxxx

Thank you so much everyone.

It is so relentless and it helps so much to know other people have gone through similar and come out the other side in one piece.

crazycatlady5 I’m longing for the night he just gets it! Just knowing there’s a possible end to this will keep me going - thank you, and well done for surviving for so long.

sacgonflable totally agree about the PND- it’s definitely left me depressed, but it's very much to do with lack of sleep rather than hormones or bonding. I feel like anyone would be depressed if they went through this!

rosetinted think we will try CC again soon, when we did it he only woke up every 3 hours for feeding which I’m totally happy with, but he did protest a LOT during the process (over an hour at times). Didn’t want to be comforted though - it’s like he’s furious that he’s awake and going in and soothing him makes him more angry, same thing happens when we’re cosleeping. It’s frustration rather than sadness.

chocolateraisin don’t think it’s teeth - he hasn’t got any yet but I have tried calpol and ibuprofen before, to no avail!

I can totally emphasize with you. I had PND with my first dd due to her illnesses and lack of sleep I dreaded dealing with her every day and when it got to 3pm I was a shaking mess
I now have a 8 month old DS who has never been a good sleeper and recently has decided that he will wake every 2 hours and for no reason doesn't want feeding not cold or hot and doesn't want cuddling. He just screams for 1-2 hours. I can start to feel my anxiety levels rising so much so last night I was sat in a corner at the back of the house so I couldn't hear him. I'm hoping I can keep myself above the PND this time but very close. I also keep in mind it isn't forever although functioning on 2 hours sleep daily is hard and exhausting. I can't offer much advice but now how you are feeling. I am currently sat on my bed waiting for my DS to have his next wake up and have been reading up on sleep training. X

Thank you for sharing mummy2pickle
I definitely have the same dread when evening comes around and lots of anxiety and feeling like a failure.
I hope you are able to see a doctor - don’t wait til it gets really bad. It’s so hard and we need all the help we can get.
I think I could handle it if I knew when it was going to end - just feels like it’s gobe from bad to worse and I’ll never sleep more than an hour at a time again. Just shattered.