Has anyone else been in this dark place and survived to tell the tale?

[ali23]

Basically, I'm on my knees with lack of sleep. DD is approaching 14 months, is running around, eats well and is still BF but doesn't sleep. She has just cut a rather large back tooth and I suspect there are at least two others just about to pop through. But last night was awful. I just need to know that others have been in this position and got there in the end. It feels like I can't see the light at the end of the tunnel this morning. I was awake with DD from 1.30am until 5am and then had to get up for work an hour later. I drove to work with fat, salty tears of exhaustion rolling down my cheeks. Somebody tell me that it gets better, that she will sleep. I just hope I don't end up in the loony bin before then. . Unless they've got some comfy beds.

Just to let you know that there is light at the end of the tunnel. Our DD was exactly like this a few months ago. She has never slept well and we dealt with that by cosleeping until she was just over 12 months, then we felt it was time to move her to her own room and she had a 2-month period from 13-15 months where her sleep was just shocking. Either waking up several times an hour throughout the night or being awake from 1:30 till 4:30, seemingly awake and wanting to play . It was awful. She didn't sleep much during the day either so we couldn't try and cut down on her naps or anything. DP and I both shattered, I was going to bed earlier and earlier to try and get a bit of rest before the long night would start. I think it was a particularly bad teething period. BUT then when she turned 16 months it just....stopped! We didn't do anything differently, no controlled crying or anything. When she was 16 months she slept her first night from 8 till 5 (which I consider 'sleeping through'!) and at 3, DP and I were hovering over her cot, whispering, 'do you think she's ok'..?

That was 2 months ago and now she sleeps through most nights but still has the odd night were she wakes occasionally, but usually goes back pretty quickly, once she's seen one of us and knows we're there.

When she was going through her really bad sleeping phase, all my friends with older children were telling me that we would 'have to leave her to cry eventually'. But it CAN just happen on its own - am just crossing fingers that it stays that way!