My 1Yr Old Daughter Is Not Sleeping Well! Help!

Updated on March 30, 2013
K.T. asks from Martinsville, IN
6 answers

Ok let me start at the beginning.... last Sunday.she got a cough and congestion.. she started running a fever that would not go away... we went back and forth on medicines like our dr. Office said... that next tues night my poor baby had what they said was probably a febrile seizure! Scary! She had an ear infection so they put her on anti-biotics and said that febrile seizures are very common in children and are harmless... so AFTER that night my daughters sleeping habits changed.... we always put her to bed a 9:30 and if she woke we could give her a paci or pat her back to sleep but mostly she was sleeping through the night.... now its a battle to get her to sleep (and yes we give her a bottle at bed I know not so good) and after we get her to sleep she sleeps til between 2am-4am. And wakes and refuses sleep... we do anything and everything possible.. try just patting her rocking her gas medicine... it gets to the point where my husband takes her for a car ride and that is onlu 50/50 .... by 6-8am she usually goews back to sleep but then my 3yr old has gotten up... and when my daughter is screaming and crying trying not to goto sleep she sometimes wakes her up at night. we are both exhausted and so is she... she's been very cranky and mean during the day. She does nore a little so slome people say it could be sleep apnea but I'm not sure... anybody have any ideas for me...

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C.B.

answers from Boston on

It is probably related to her illness and once she is well she hopefully goes back to her schedule. But I remember this: just as soon as we became aware that our kids actually were in some kind of pattern, it would change!
I would call the nurse at your pediatrician's office for advice. There may be something like baby-benadryl that would dry up her congestion and make her sleepy. The trick then becomes to actually go to bed yourself as soon as she falls asleep. Also, at age 1 is when my kids went from 2 naps to 1 longer nap at noon time. If she is not sleeping enough for you at night, I would try to cut out one of the 2 naps (assuming she is still napping twice).
The other thing you could do it alternate nights. Assign yourself 1 night and let husband sleep, then the next night he gets up and you use earplugs to get some sleep.
Additionally, when my kids were ill I would often sleep in their room on a camping pad. This may not work if she thinks this is new and exiting and just wants to play, but if kids are truly ill and need you, this can be helpful.
Hang in there, she will sleep through the night eventually.

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V.T.

answers from Washington DC on

When my son (same age as your daughter) got sick, he was put on amoxicillin. We started having the same sleep issues, no seizures thank goodness. It turns out if was the beginning signs that he was allergic to the medicine. A few days later the rash came and the sleep got worse. It took 2 full weeks for the medicine to leave his system, but after that, he went back to sleeping through the night no problems. It's probably illness related and if you can hold on until everything has left your little girls system, the sleep may return. It really went back to normal overnight.

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S.H.

answers from Honolulu on

And what about napping?
Does she nap?
She should.
She is overtired.
And because she was sick... and also because 1 years old is a growth spurt time and intake frequency increases and also she may be teething.
So MANY things, at the SAME time, are occurring.
And she is probably STILL ill and recovering.

I would put her to bed earlier.
9:30pm is late.

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A.B.

answers from Denver on

Hang in there momma! Little ones do in fact go through lots of phases. How is her cry when she wakes? Is it piercing like she is in pain or panicked liked she is scared, or a crabby cry where she may just be uncomfortable. At one lots of little ones are experiencing seperate on anxiety. That is probably the most common. Keep trying to do your best to comfort your sweetie pie. It may take a while, but she will grow out of it. Take turns with your spouse and give each other breaks to keep from getting exhausted. Don't ever feel guilty about talking to your pediatrician for advice if you are concerned. Sometimes I think I talk to my pediatrician more than my family. Lol! You are doing great. Even if the end result is that you are not getting her to sleep soundly, you are giving her love, comfort, and seeking advice. Good luck!

Updated

Hang in there momma! Little ones do in fact go through lots of phases. How is her cry when she wakes? Is it piercing like she is in pain or panicked liked she is scared, or a crabby cry where she may just be uncomfortable. At one lots of little ones are experiencing seperation anxiety. That is probably the most common. Keep trying to do your best to comfort your sweetie pie. It may take a while, but she will grow out of it. Take turns with your spouse and give each other breaks to keep from getting exhausted. Don't ever feel guilty about talking to your pediatrician for advice if you are concerned. Sometimes I think I talk to my pediatrician more than my family. Lol! You are doing great. Even if the end result is that you are not getting her to sleep soundly, you are giving her love, comfort, and seeking advice. Good luck!

1 mom found this helpful
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G.B.

answers from Oklahoma City on

She's growing for one thing and it's super common at this age to wake up during the night because she's about to have a growth spurt. Does she eat while she's awake? I bet so, if she is then that's part of it.

There is NOTHING wrong with giving a child a bottle at bedtime. NOTHING.

If you leave the bottle sitting in her mouth while she's asleep with milk in it, then that's bad. The milk drips all night into her mouth and the saliva cannot rinse her mouth out like it's supposed to.

Having a bottle then sleeping without it allows her mouth to work like it's supposed to. She should be fine doing a night time bottle as long as you want her to.

Think about it like this. Are your teeth rotted out from milk/sugar rot from your eating lunch every day? No they're not. That's because your saliva rinses out the food from lunch and keeps decay from happening.

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M.P.

answers from Portland on

Sounds like your daughter isn't feeling well and therefore not sleeping well. I'd just wait and see if this will resolve its self. In the meantime give her the extra attention she needs because she's sick. Perhaps quietly hold and rock her when she wakes up and when you're putting her down. Consider that she doesn't feel good and do what you can to make her more comfortable.

I suggest that your tension about her not sleeping will does get through to her and will make her more anxious. Try to relax, do what you can, knowing that this won't last forever. I would stop going above and beyond by taking her for a car ride. She needs you to be gentle, consoling, and relaxed.

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