Hi all,
My daughter is 18mo this month, she has been a terrible sleeper ever since birth; she’s only slept through the night 4 times in her little life! Because of this we have grasped at any sleep we could get, and have fallen into bad habits.
Here is our usual routine:
5pm dinner
6:30pm bath
6:50pm cup of milk, hair brushing, getting dry etc and a story (in the living room with Daddy)
7:15pm brought upstairs to me, where I rock/breastfeed her to sleep
8:30/9pm finally down in cot
She will then wake 30mins after going down, every night, and then again multiple times during the night. At which point it takes me an hour to get her back to sleep each time, sometimes 2hrs. We even have to resort to going for a 3am walk in the pram - regularly!
She will only fall asleep for me, no one else. She just screams for mummy.
This means I am doing every bedtime and every night wake up... it’s killing me! The biggest issue now is that she wants to stay in my arms. So after an hour rocking/feeding she will wake instantly upon being put down and scream the place down until I start all over again.
We have tried putting her down ‘drowsy but awake’ and we’ve tried letting her cry... but she’s so damn head strong she will cry all night if she has to. We also tried moving the bedtime routine earlier/later, but there has been no difference whatsoever.
She’s not a big cuddler, and is very independent. So when I say ‘rock’ I don’t mean a nice harmonious rocking, I mean walking up and down bouncing! This also means co-sleeping isn’t an option for us to even try, as she hates laying down and cuddling.
We really need to break this cycle, help her to fall asleep on her own, and be comforted by other people... not just me!
(A month ago I had the flu, and was still doing bedtime and night feeds, through the vomiting, as we had no other way to get her to sleep! We’ve had to cancel holidays for me my husband & I, and our anniversary weekend away, as there is just no way we could leave her with anyone - it’s rough)
It’s worth noting she does still nap, for about 1.5hrs (10:30-12pm) however she will only nap in the pram, after about a 20min walk. Never ever managed to get her to nap in her cot, even as a newborn despite months and months of driving myself mad trying.
She’s also not a big eater, despite our best efforts and the massive variety of health foods we offer her, she’s just not interested.
She is a lovely, lively, funny and happy little girl, and she is developing in every other aspect of her life just fine. She’s a joy during the day, but I find myself centering our whole day around her sleep, her naps, and things I can do to help her sleep... it’s effecting our time together and my stress levels, which will no doubt rub off on her.
I’d love any advice helping with her sleep, weaning off the boob, and just generally improving this situation.
I dread the nighttimes because this whole process is so frustrating and relentless. It’s genuinely put me off having anymore children... Averaging 4hours sleep a night for 18months isn’t doing my mental wellbeing any good at all!
(Writing this at 4:15am having been awake with her since 11:50! 
)
Thanks!