Anyone else starting GW/NCSS type approaches?

[Lovage]

Anyone care to join me in a support thread for gradual withdrawal / No Cry Sleep Solution type approaches? Or share your past experiences of these approaches?

I've finally decided the time is right this weekend to try and do something about DS (10m)'s nights. At the moment I'm doing a dream feed at 10.30 and then he wakes at 1 or 1.30am and then again at 4 ish, 5 on a good night and I always end up bfing him back to sleep. I've waited this long cos I wasn't confident he wasn't hungry until about 6 weeks ago when he suddenly got into solids and then he had a terrible sleep regression and a chest infection and teething and... But finally I think I feel okay about trying to wean him off night feeding.

We're going to start with his dad trying to rock him to sleep and if he's too unhappy at that, I'll bf him but do the 'Pantley pull off'. Not sure whether this'll work, but it's got to be worth a try.

After many months of NCSS, I'd say that there are definitely some good ideas and tips to help your lo move towards better sleep. But a solution, it isn't. Imho, the only real solution is time and patience. Easier said than done, I know.

The Pantley pull-off is an interesting one. It worked for me up to a point. Dd still needs the boob, but she pulls off before she is asleep and flips over. It has definitely been useful in helping her to settle herself back to sleep. Do you co-sleep?

Anyway, good luck! I'm not following any 'sleep solution', just the 'time and patience' one, but I'll be interested to see how you get on.

Thank you! Was beginning to think I'd have to talk to myself...

I've gathered already that NCSS type approaches are very slow and I guess by the time you've spent months doing it if they do stop waking you never know whether they would have done it by themselves anyway!

Last night was pretty good but just because he hadn't an unexpected good night, I think. I slept in the bedroom with the door shut, DP slept in the spare bed with the doors open and DS slept in his room (we don't co-sleep cos I sleep really badly and DS gets massively overexcited if you lie down next to him - thinks it's a lovely game, but not at all sleep inducing!). Apparently he whimpered at 1, cried at 2.30 but only needed his head stroking to go back to sleep and then woke at 4.30 when he cried seriously and I bf him. Then he woke for the day at 6.15. I didn't hear anything until 4.30 so I actually had 5 hrs sleep in a row for about the 5th time since he was born! He did have a very good eating day yesterday so that may have helped. Today hasn't been so good and his naps were difficult so not too optimistic for tonight, but you never know

Meant to say re Pantley Pull Off (name makes me think of pull up pants!) I'm not sure it's going to help much for us either. DS has always been a v quick feeder and doesn't go in much for comfort sucking. A couple of times yesterday I thought I'd try doing it but he went from vigorous sucking and swallowing to pulling off suddenly and seeming fast asleep, so I never actually managed to do it.

Blimey, 5 hours sleep all at once! That's something I'm still dreaming of! My dd was really showing signs of improving then she got gastro, followed by two colds one after the other. And all four canine teeth are pushing through

Like you said, it's just one thing after another all the time. For the last month she's been living on fresh air and breastmilk and although I've read that eating doesn't have much effect on their sleep, I'm sure it does. Anyway, dd ate loads tonight for the first time in weeks, so fingers crossed.

The NCSS did help with naps which are now always pretty good, but that doesn't affect her night sleep either.

Lucky you that your lo doesn't go in for comfort sucking! Mine can suck for England.

Sleepy vibes for tonight...

Well, will keep wittering, just in case anyone else is interested or wants to join in, but please don't feel you have to keep commenting, danceswithbaby!

Last night was okay too. Same sleeping arrangements (due to DP having a bad cough mainly) and DS woke at 1 and cried a bit on and off for about 15 mins until DP went in to him. That woke him up properly and he cried hard for a few minutes but fell asleep in his arms. But then he took another 45 mins to settle - everytime DP tried to lay him down in cot he'd wake up again and cry briefly before being soothed by being rocked again. But I didn't bf him and he then slept til 4.45. I fed him then and he slept again til 7.15.

So we're not getting any more sleep - DP is getting considerably less than he's used to, and he's ill, poor thing and I'm finding it hard to get back to sleep at 5 as well as being woken when he cries earlier but DS is clearly fine without the 1 oclock bf. We've decided not to try and do anything about the 4.30 one until (hopefully) he's stopped waking at 1. Two nights seems a bit soon to count it as progress but I'm feeling a bit encouraged. Not sure whether I'll be able to soothe him without bfing cos of smelling of milk and not being able to rock him for long due to feeble arms, but will cross that bridge when we get to a night when I'm not working the following day and DP is (Mon night)

Lovage I loved the bit about feeble arms, I am the same and have real trouble lifting DD (only 7.5 months but I am so so feeble).

We did what you are doing when LO went through a phase of waking every hour or so. It took about 2 weeks of her dad going to her when she cried. If she wouldn't seetle we assumed it was hunger and I got woken up. she only wakes for food now.

I would love to start NCSS to get her sleeping through but I think she needs the food at night. We are doing BLW and I think the amount of solid food that gets eaten is quite small. I will defo consider it in a couple of months though.

Good Luck, please carry on posting so I can see how you get on!

Hi Jorange! Yeah, feeble arms is a real problem! And DS is really small for his age, so I haven't even got that excuse...

I definitely didn't feel ready to try this when he was 7 months, even though all my RL friends were saying 'by 6 months they don't need to feed in the night'. Quite apart from a natural hatred for generalisations like that, he really wasn't into solids at that stage and like you, doing BLW means you don't know how much they're getting. But he is now clearly eating significant quantities and for once doesn't have a cold or teething, so the time feels right.

Last night was a bit of a disaster! He was really difficult to get to sleep to start with, needed attention at 9.30 (in the middle of watching Dr Who as usual - I'm fated never to get to see a whole episode) then woke at 2 and didn't cry much as long as was in DP's arms but hadn't settled by 2.30 so I fed him. That wasn't so bad up to that point but then he cried every 20 - 40 minutes until 5.30 when I fed him again. He was easily settled each time but poor DP got practically no sleep as a result. He didn't seem to be in pain (DS that is, DP was in sleep-deprivation-and-illness-pain!) and once I fed him he only stayed asleep for another 45 minutes, so I don't think it was hunger or even really wanting the comfort of being bf.

So don't really know what that was about, just hope tonight is different... My first night on duty since I don't work Tues so I'm rather dreading it.

'Pants Pull-Off' (I'm so childish) is definitely not working - he pulls off really suddenly before I would have taken him off and then is either wide awake or fast asleep. Weird baby.

Two more nights with not much progress and I'm too tired and ill to remember clearly what happened. Mon night I think he woke once at 3ish and I tried briefly to calm him but gave in and fed him quite quickly cos I was so knackered. Last night was terrible - waking every 45 mins or less from 2ish. Feeding didn't help, nor did giving paracetamol, nor did rocking. He seems okay this morning, maybe a bit clingy but doesn't seem ill or in pain. No idea what that was about. I'm feeling very discouraged because it just doesn't feel right to try and stop him feeding at night when something is clearly not right. And it seems like there's always something not right - illness, teething, mysterious attacks of crying in the night. I don't feel he really has a pattern to give me anything to work with.