Help! Sleep advice for a 10 month old who never sleeps

[Hunnybunny235]

Hola guys. I’m the proud mommy of 2 amazing kiddos- girl & a boy. I used to think my daughter was the worst sleeper in the world but boy, was I wrong. My son actually never sleeps and exhausted isn’t even the word. His nearly 10 months and still exclusively breastfed. I feel like I made an awful mistake. As my daughter was formula fed I didn’t used to have to feed her to sleep. But my son has only ever fed to sleep which I realise now it’s probably the cause of his bad sleeping skills as he can’t self soothe. I’ve tried sleep training him but it’s no use. It’s 2 and his already woken up 5 times since his been put to bed. Normally he wakes up every half an hour at night and that’s if I’m next to him. If im not he will wake up the second I leave the bed. He has about 1 2 hour nap during the day and gets about 8-9 hours sleep at night usually. Which isn’t a lot for his age group. Lately his been waking up in the middle of the night and staying up for 2 hours. One night he even woke up from 3-8 a.m. It seems his over tired but I can’t get him to sleep as he gets to excited and just wants to be with me or his sister all the time. Most days he is happy he does suffer from constipation. You would say “feed him more solids” but he eats more than my daughter. Almost more than me! I don’t know what to do from here. Crying it out isn’t really an option because he will wake my husband and my daughter. Any tips?

First of all, sorry you're going through this. My DS didn't sleep more than 3 hours at a time until he was 11 months old and I thought I would die.

Assuming he's not ill/teething? If he's constipated he could be awake due to gas or tummy pain? Are you giving him enough fruit/veg/water throughout the day?

Breastfeeding is not too blame. I breastfed my son until 19 months and I would put him in his cot asleep and he would sleep through the night. His dad cuddled him to sleep when I wasn't available.

He started sleeping through when he started walking so I'd suggest you look at his activity levels and also maybe try giving porridge or Weetabix before bed.

I would make night time very boring also. If he wakes up he's not allowed to play but he can have a cuddle with you in the dark. I still have a rocking chair in my son's room and I just cuddle him in that until he falls back asleep then pop him in the crib. He doesn't always like this but it's important to be consistent.