I’m prepared to be told I’m a terrible mother but please hear me out.

[stillreallytired]

My 5 month old has had one half hour sleep between 1045 this morning and now.

He is screaming with exhaustion, and I’ve been sobbing as well.

I really need advice but it does need to be actual advice I can use. So:

The sling is a no go.

He will sleep in the pram but I don’t want to be overly reliant on this.

He will feed to sleep sometimes. But the problem is if he doesn’t I then have to wait until he’s hungry enough to accept another bottle.

Dummies don’t work as he spits them out or knocks them out of his mouth.

So - I’ve no idea but I am desperate.

Oh OP you poor thing. My DS was like this and I wonder how we got through it now. I think I've blocked most of it out now but I do remember the utter exhaustion and helplessness.

I think he was just one of those high needs babies and there was no rhyme or reason for his terrible sleep. We did turn a corner at 9 months though when he started on solids.

Hope you're feeling better today.

Hello OP,
I hope your baby had a good sleep last night and you managed to get some rest!
I have a 7 month old DS and he can go all day (6am-6pm) with just one short nap!
Some times it suits him and other days he cries and cries and I know it's from being overtired. Pram indoors also doesn't work for us as like you said above I think it's the fresh air. When my DS gets in a state I open a window and stand near it holding him, the wind and trees distract and calm him enough for me to try and soothe him a bit and the fresh air helps. Mine also will not nap anywhere but on me, which can be draining but I've learnt just to go with it now so he can actually nap.
I really hope your little one is just going through a stage! At this age there's so much going on, teething, starting weaning etc!
Sending hugs, it's not your fault at all!

Hi OP I’ve not read everyone else’s replies so not sure if it’s been said but do you think he’s getting enough food?

My DD would struggle to sleep and would become overtired like your son. At the time I was BF but had to put her on a bottle for something and found that she ended up sleeping better and I think it was because she wasn’t getting enough milk from me.

How did today go, @stillreallytired?

My daughter was a nightmare, barely slept at night and didn’t nap in the day from similar age to your child. We tired loads of apps until we found a baby noise one that worked.

Have you tried a Rockit on the pram, OP?

So if you put baby in pram, attach the Rockit, it means you don’t have to go out in bad weather nor get mud all over your living room, and you can get some peace

If you think it’s the fresh air perhaps place pram near a (slightly) open window with the Rockit on.

Hey still really tired,

You are not terrible! I have a 9 month old and when he was about 3 months old my husband came home from work one day and found me in tears standing in the kitchen pushing the damn pram over and back, my son had not slept all day and I had been at it all day long.

I can only say becoming aware of appropriate wake windows saved my life, from birth a baby can only be awake 40 mins then for every month add 15 mins to this. So for 5 months he should be going down for a nap after 1 hr 40. Be super conscientious and look for that first yawn as well. Once you put them down before they get overtired it is so much easier.

I understand how important it is to you to transition from the pram to a cot nap it was to me too and we did this at 4.5 months. I would rock him and sing his favourite lullaby (you are my sunshine) then lay him in his cosleeper and lie on the bed next to him continuing to singalong to a playlist I made of nice calm songs. He would play with my face and we would have a giggle and he would eventually fall asleep. I ended up taking a nap with him in the morning but for the afternoons I would get up and get stuff done around the house.

The other thing I found with my guy was how I held him. Think of the breastfeeding hold, his stomach to your stomach and his head in the crook of your arm and you can sway back and forth. It worked like magic once we found the right position.

Also now he is older I replicate this in a glider chair in his nursery.

Lack of sleep is hell and sometimes it can make me feel irrationally angry toward my guy but I know now that he will eventually sleep. I live in the country but the road is too busy to walk so we couldn't go for a walk without a car journey, if all else fails grab your kindle or phone and take a drive around nap time.You can park up when they fall asleep and catch up on some you time. All the better if you can get a drive through cappuccino 😉

It gets better and you just have to find the routine that works for you.

Hope this helps!

I do not have any useful advice but just wanted to reiterate what others have said. You are NOT failing as a mum. Some babies are really difficult to get to sleep and some are really easy. Nothing you are doing is wrong. The fact that you are asking for help on a forum shows what a BRILLIANT mum you are and how you are putting him first.

Two of mine were horrendous with sleep and the other one was no problem . I didn't do anything different. If it is any comfort in the wee hours when you want to tear your hair out, the two which didn't sleep are insanely bright. Their overactive brains kept them from sleeping properly.

Lastly, it really does get better. One minute you think you can't do this and the next you'll feel like everything is under control. The first six months are so insanely hard. The second six months are SO much better x