did anyone else feel realy cruel while doing cc

[mummytojames]

ds 13 months just got over being ill for a while but the illness has thrown his sleep out so decided to do cc what we do is bath him at six supper at six thirty play till seven thirty bottle then another play till eight then straight in his cot where we sit on the bed and read a book till he falls asleep it useualy (well only been doing it for three days day four tonight) only take less than a hour but in that time hes constantly standing up and calling me i tried laying him back down and saying its sleepy time now but that makes him worse so we basicaly got to ignore him and let him lie himself down and go to sleep with us just sitting there reading but the problem is its killing me every time he calls my name i just want to pick him up ad say everythings all right but i know its wrong so i just have to force myself to sit there and just say night james its sleepy time now
anyone else felt like this if so how long does it last because i dont think i can take it any more realy

I agree with all I have read, I do not even know what 'cc' is, I just knew that when mine got to about 12 months old I had to get them into a routine, so that my dh and I could have a 'life' in the evening, but I do not think I could have done it any earlier, and at the age I did it they understood that it was 'bedtime' and they were ready to give up one nap in the afternoon...I just did what felt right but I have never heard of 'cc' but assumed that that is what I had done. I hope this makes sense to someone!

Haven't read the whole thread but had to respond to Oldiemum's post. We did cc with dd when she was 6mths at the health visitor's suggestion. She is now 6 and is very happy, well adjusted, loving, top of her class and popular with all her classmates. Also, hardly anything seems to phase her - she takes most things in her stride. Loads of people comment on what a delightful child she is. Sorry if this sounds like just a boasting proud mum but really if cc does kids any harm then it's impossible to see what it could be in dd's case. In addition - since we did the cc she has always been good about going to bed - nver any problems since.

I only did it at about 12m (prompted by getting pregnant and desperately needing sleep!) - before that, he would just cry until he was sick (you know what that orange stuff is like - stains everything!).

Felt a bit cruel but it only took a few days to work then he slept like a dream and has done ever since!!

Cortisol is a stress hormone. Cortisol is produced by the adrenal glands and is triggered by the hypothalamus. It floods the body when we are stressed and is a kind of emergency-response system. Basically, it tells the body to move its energy use from regulatory systems, like the immune system, or from activities like learning, towards dealing with the source of stress (sometimes called the 'fight or flight mechanism'). It's an important defence in evolutionary terms, but it's meant to be put into action only in emergencies. If it keeps being triggered, so that high levels of cortisol remain in the body, it begins to do damage to the body and to a developing brain. In the brain, the receptors for cortisol can be weakened, providing less feedback to the hypothalamus to tell it to stop making more cortisol. This can leave the stress response stuck in the 'on' position. I've taken this account from Sue Gerdhardt, Why Love Matters, which was published this year.

The research she reports on concerning the long-term effects of stress on behaviour is based on very large samples. This means that we are dealing with probabilities and any particular child may not be damaged by the kind of long-term stress that cc can give rise to. But I wouldn't risk it myself.