Baby/toddler sleep improved without sleep training

[SnugTurtle]

Just out of curiosity. When did your baby/toddler sleep start to improve? And I'm not talking sleeping through, but just longer stretches.

At 10 months , still wakes up every 2.5hrs. We co-sleep and bf, rocking for naps. Not willing to sleep train, it's just not for my baby. I try to do drowsy but awake for cot naps since baby was 3 months. But again I'm asking out of curiosity, I know every baby is different.

Mine was a horrible sleeper until 2. Co-sleeping with me but was so restless and would do circuits around the bed in her sleep. Then it just suddenly changed, and she was much better at sleeping. More settled and when she did wake up would sort herself out. I did nothing different, it was all her.

Thanks for sharing! That's what my baby does now at 10 months. I'm exhausted, I think today was every 1hr, and hopeful that he will start to sleep a little longer soon.

Sleep generally massively improves at 3 in my experience of 9 breastfed (extended) children. 3 - 3.5 has been a turning point in all of them bar one (autistic with a sleep disorder). The youngest is now 4yrs and wakes once a night where she needs laying back down and resettling but it only takes a minute or so. I do think in general we (as a nation) have unrealistic expectations around small children and sleep. Particularly the - sleep by yourself in a dark, quiet room for 12 hours without needing any kind of drink, comfort, reconnection with another person etc It's not natural imo. (No insinuation that this expectation extends to OP).

We cosleep and I bf on demand at night until she was about 19 months as she was just feeding all night and I was getting physically ill from lack of sleep. So we night weaned and DP cosleeps with her now (she was 2 in December) as she'd still have milk all night if she could. She slept through as soon as she was night weaned and we're both getting more sleep 🥳

Thank you, yes I agree with you. I don't mind co-sleeping and don't expect baby to sleep through the night. Just hoping for 3-4hr stretches instead of 1-2.5hrs, just so I get some rest.

Yes, I think we will try to night weaning around 18 months as that's the age la lache league recommends (not earlier). I don't have my hopes high for sleep improvement but hopefully we can share responsibility with DH.

I can really sympathise, it sounds very similar to my experience and it's awful. We underestimate how important a decent nights sleep is, and when every night is so disturbed it really has an impact.
The constant spinning, shifting, arms and legs everywhere around would drive me mad, but I just put it down to the fact that theres so much going on with their tiny brains and bodies, it's all just "processing".

I don't have any sound advice I'm afraid, as I say I did nothing that changed anything. Looking back, I do think there was a bit of a gradual shift where there were some nights that were more settled but for the most part the biggest changes were very sudden. I really hope that happens for you sooner rather than later.

DD1 was always a poor sleeper. BF at night until 19 months but dropping that made no difference. I agree with others with the 3 year milestone. It all seemed to change for the better once she was out of night time nappies, so 2.5 - 3 years.

My first just randomly started sleeping through at 2 but it did coincide with them going into their own room and starting nursery. Second has improved since 13 months, by that I mean instead of waking 6-8 times per night, we had a couple of nights with only 1-2 wake up which is huge for us! Still co-sleeping though but so ready for them to have their own room too. It massively varies I think.

Why don’t you want to sleep train? It’s not letting them cry it out and be abandoned.
We used a sleep consultant when DT’s were five months so that they were sleeping through when I went back to work when they were six months and they started nursery five days a week.
It was very gentle and calm and meant that we all got a full nights sleep.

They were bottle fed from birth and we never co slept.

Have you tried putting them in their own bed recently? Apologies if you have and if it doesn't work at all, I know all babies are different. We've been pretty lucky that barring illness/big changes/phases of a month or two here and there/ the first few newborn weeks etc - none of my 3 have ever woken as frequently as you're describing longer term. I've never co-slept with any of them - but I can see this could well be a chicken/egg situation.

Glad it worked for you. Baby is 10 months now, of course we considered it, because it's everywhere, seems like the only solution Google has. But as I mentioned, it's not for my baby.

Good to know, yeah 1-2 seems great! Thanks for sharing

Sounds like not for you more like it…

My second slept 3hrs at a time from the moment she arrived and by 12 months was only waking once. At 10 months she was still waking a few times a night.
My first woke me every hour or two and still wakes me at least twice a night and he’s 8. Giving a substantial snack ( Ella’s pouch beef stew) at 10 pm before a bf did help at around that age to get one longer stretch of sleep. This was advised by the dietitians
I did try sleep training ( yes I stuck at it) and every attempt has failed.

My experience is that either you have a baby that improves steadily months by months and sleeps longer stretches by themselves or you have to sleep train or endure it until they are 2/3ish. DC1 did longer stretches and 1-2 wakings at 10 months old when we sleep trained her. DC2 did longer stretches and by 2-3 months slept 6 hours regularly and then slept through the night by 8-10 months. At this age I would sleep train or be ready for another year or so of not much sleep.

Mine was a shit sleeper from the get go. He has Cmpa so that didn't help. Formula fed. Never co slept because I didn't want him to not sleep in his own bed. All of a sudden at 15 months when I felt like I was going insane he started sleeping through the night. Nothing was being done differently, he just did it. I think it just happens naturally when their little bodies are ready.

Baby had very bad colic, so that's how it started. He naps in a cot, but at night I just can't do it. He wakes up after an hour if he's on his own.

How do you know if yiu have never tried it? CIO is not the only method

Thank you for sharing

10 months she started sleeping through occasionally. It can all change quite quickly. What may have helped is that I tried to ensure she was well fed in the day so needed less at night.

I would rather not discuss it. That's why I put it in a post, that I'm not willing and that a firm no, for many reasons. I think people who love sleep training should stop putting pressure on people who don't want to do it. Be respectful please

Thank you! Yes he eats a lot during the day. But he is learning to cruise now, and I think that what makes him so restless.

Why wasn’t it for your baby? Moving to their own rooms also helped as DT’s were disturbing each other and us

Wow so dramatic, just trying to help. You think anyone loves it? Some people just understand the value of uninterrupted sleep for themselves and the child!