Help! My husband and I adopted our son when he was 6 days old. He will be a year old in a couple of weeks. The problem is the child has never slept through the night. I have 3 other children (21, 20 and 18) and I never had this problem with them.
Do you think that it could be something physical or could he just be feisty? He is very on track for any 12 month old so I don't think it is a mental issue.
Any suggestions on getting him to sleep through the night would be sooooo greatly appreciated. I have tried warm baths, cereal, etc. But nothing has done the trick so far.
Hi, Everyone,
Thank you so very much for your responses. I never expected so many moms to write with so much great advice. It is nice to know that we live in an area with so many caring women. My son is still waking up, however, I have quit picking him up and have been letting him cry (one of the hardest things I have done). At first he cried for awhile but now he cries for just a few minutes and he goes back to sleep. I also put something of mine in his crib with him so he feels me close to him. These things are working. Thanks again, ladies. You are all awesome!
Have you tried giving him a bottle with rice cereal in it? I had to train my oldest to sleep through the night by letting her cry it out. She kept waking up because she knew I would pick her up and hold her, she just wanted the "mommy love." If you make them cry it off they will eventually stop waking up. Hope this helps.
Dear S.,
I know what you are going thru,Ihave a 2yr olds and a 6mth old. and when my 2 yr old was 12mths old he would not sleep thru the night, but when i was speaking with his dr. she told me that when he get up at nite dont talk to him not cup/bottle jus lay him back down and walk out. no talking to him at all.and every time i had to go back in there jus keep repeating the steps.let me tell you, it was so hard for me to let him cry himself to sleep but after a coulpe of really bad nites he finally started sleeping thru the night. now i am having to do it all over again with the 6mth old and it works he still gets up at 3am but i just go and give him his passy and walk out he may cry for a lil bit but he goes back to sleep. now i know alot of people think it is mean to let your child cry.but when you have tried everything and with no results sometimes we as mothers have to let our kids learn how to do things on their own. aslo want to say good luck and best wishes.
S.,
I have a 14 month old and he is FINALLY sleeping thru the night. I feel your frustration but I believe no matter what you try that it is ultimately going to be HE who decides when he is ready to sleep thru the night. I think I tried everything that was suggested to me and then one night it just happened. Try to be a patient and it will happen. Good luck!
Hey S.,
All of the advice that the other moms said is great. One mom suggested shortening the nap time, well I have found that was exactly what worked for me. I have 2 girls, 5 and 7 now but when the 7yr old was a baby, she took 4 naps and still slept all night. The other one I thought would do the same but I was way off!! I eventually figured out when she was 4 months old that she need just 1 nap a day. She slept from about 10-1 and she was sleeping all night immediatly. She still needs that nap in the day and she sleeps very well. If you try this, he will be ready for bed by 730. HOpe this works and good luck to you!!!
ps...try malto meal before bed....works like a charm!
well, when my daughter wouldn't sleep through the night, i started walking with her in the morning and keeping her as busy as i could during the day. i limited her nap during the day to an hour, hour and a half, until she was almost to the point of exhaustion after her bath at night. i learned with the fresh air and activities during the day, plus the shorter nap, she was definately ready for a good night's sleep. hope this works for you! God bless!
keyword is routine....our routine for our littlte one..is some formula...a small fan on for noise....he gets his baby girafee,,,a blanket..and i turn his mobile on...there is a few nights if we wait to long to put him in..he will cry a few mins...but most nights he plays with his toys and off he goest to sleep...sleeps til 7:30 am the next morning...he has slept thru the night since about 12 wks..
When my baby wouldnt sleep, I finally told myself I would commit to a schedule and it worked! I was tired of hearing about it so much! I start off every morning around 6 or 7 and give him a bottle, and he will go back to sleep for two more hours. When he wakes up again, I feed him rice cereal and 1/2 Gerber 1st foods. Then I bathe him and change him into clothes. He usually goes back to sleep after the bath. If you commit to a schedule (at least a week and a half) then he should get used to it. Also when I first put my son down for nap, he cried for almost 2 hours straight. He got the point on day 3 and he always takes his nap at 1230 and wakes up around 2. Then I feed him again and we play for the afternoon. Good Luck!
I think it had more to do with how you are responding in the middle of the night, rather than what you are doing to calm the baby before bed.
I am assuming that the baby has a schedule during the day. Maybe a nao from 10-11 and another from 2-3?? Assuming that is teh case, I woudl suggest bedtime of 7-7:30 after bath, books, etc. During the night, let the baby cry unless he is really worked up. He needs to learn to self-soothe. If he does get really worked up, go in, DO NOT PICK HIM UP, and rub his back or touch him gently until he calms down and then leave. I would do this consistently until he gets the message that you are there for him, but it's not time to get up. It's time to rest. This is actually something that should have been addressed around 4 months so you will have a little bit of trouble introducing something new at this age. I woudl make sure not to get him up in the morning until 6:30, at least.
Hi S.,
I know it is so frustrating when you are tired and need sleep so desperately but as you know babies grow so fast. I have four kids of my own and I think whether they sleep all night or not as to do with each individual child. I got divorced shortly after my four child was born so did it all alone. I don't think there is anything wrong with your son but I do feel strongly it is important for him to always know you are there for him. Kids are so different and have such different needs. It is so hard when kids are little but they grow so fast. I sometimes think the more you fight something the worse it gets. For some reason he needs you in the middle of the night----Use that as special time together. I feel any "special" time given to kids is well rewarded! Before you know it in this crazy world we live in he will have so many other "voices" in his life pulling him this way and that that you won't regret not getting quit as much sleep because you will have a very secure child. What an awesome gift to have a toddler at this point in your life! Good luck!
My oldest daughter was 5 years old before she slept through the night. Some children have a harder time with that than others. I wish you the best. Oh, does your child sleep in a crib? Does the baby want a bottle or a drink when it wakes up?
Some babies don't like to sleep. Dr. Sears talks talks about it in his "Baby Book" He and his wife had like 5 kids and one of them was a non-sleeper. She was perfectly normal and healthy otherwise.
i have a 21mth old and he doesnt sleep through the whole night but he is a very smart little boy so i believe eventually he will grow out of it.
Hi S.,
I was given some advice to help my first child to sleep, it was to take a shirt, a nightgown, a pillow, something that has your scent on it and lay it in the bed with them. The scent on the item will give him a sense of security, feeling you near by. Every other day swap out the item so that there will always be a scent. I am telling you it works. It gave my child a sense of comfort. Good luck. Also, I wanted to share with you that my husband and I have adopted twice...and love the experience.
I try to keep my daughter to a routine. We have a warm bath and I use the lavender and chamomille baby bath. The she gets a full cup of milk and we wind down with a Baby Einstein movie or book. For a while she wouldn't sleep through the night and when I realized that she was going to bed hungry and that empty stomach was waking her. Maybe if you could also give a filling snack like a banana or something hearty with little sugar. I hope this helps and you may have already tried it. Good luck.
