If you 12+ month old wakes in the middle of the night......

what do you usually do? Let them CIO, put them in the bed with you, rock them back to sleep, etc.

If CIO doesnt work for your DC then what do you do?

I work full time and cant be up for long periods of time and I need my sleep. Im the type of person that also needs naps during the day. To sum it up, if I dont have sleep Im miserable. I guess thats why the newborn stage to me is a killer.

Anyway, do you think its bad if and when my DD wakes during the middle of the night (and CIO isnt working or you just cant do it) i put her in the bed with me to sleep again. I dont want to create bad habits at all, but I cant help but do it because I know i have to go to work the next day and function.

She was sleeping better, but last night she woke again and it might be teething, im not quite sure what is causing this. She cut two more teeth in the past 2 weeks and now I know one of her molars are coming in. Ive tried Motrin a few times but it didnt seem like it worked.

She cant fall asleep on her own anymore either. I have to hold her like a newborn again until she falls asleep and then transfer her to the crib - a habit which i blame my mom. Thats how my mom gets her to nap during the day...she holds her and rubs her legs and belly until she falls asleep. Now she is used to it.

Sorry this is so long...I just want some perspective. Up until a month ago, she has been such a good sleeper....down at 7 and up at 6 with no wakings. So im so not used to this.

Re: If you 12+ month old wakes in the middle of the night......

It could definitley be teething. A few weeks ago, DS woke up around 2AM and would Not fall back asleep. I tried everything. Finally, his little body just go so tired, he fell asleep in our bed.
I was also afraid of creating a habit out of it, but, the next night he was back in his crib no problem.

Re: If you 12+ month old wakes in the middle of the night......

My 20 month old was up all night last night - his 2 yr molars are coming in. Motrin is not helping, and I was reminded of the dreaded newborn stage as well. I've never had luck bringing him into my bed but was considering it last night. Luckily all I had to do was rock him for 10 min and put him back down - he whimpered but did fall back asleep. Just reloaded Motrin when needed. He cried in his sleep alot but I just let him roll around and whimper - sometimes I wake him up worse if I go in, so I let him work it out on his own.
As for habits and all that - I do what I gotta do to get through each day, when he's teething especially. We have yet to create a habit I can't live with!

Re: If you 12+ month old wakes in the middle of the night......

I could have written this post myself. DS is cutting his I-teeth and his molar
He is a pretty good sleeper down at 8pm up at 7am. CIO does not work, rocking does not work, he has to lay with us in our bed to calm down. I normally end up putting him back in his crib after he is back asleep

I need my sleep too and as much as I dont want to create bad habits it is my only option so this works for us. He does not wake up every night thank god.

Re: If you 12+ month old wakes in the middle of the night......

I used to put her in bed with us, but then she decided if she is in bed, she wants to "play" (roll all over, kick DH in the "jewels", headbutt mommy) so the last few times it happened, I brought her into the living room and she wound up falling asleep on her little futon with no problem.

Re: If you 12+ month old wakes in the middle of the night......

I do not rock DS to sleep. We put him down and he either goes right out or cries for 1min and is out. He hardly ever wakes during the night anymore. IF he does, I give him a couple min to CIO. If he doesn't go back to sleep on his own, it's usually something that needs help. SOmetimes it's just a stuffy nose that needs a suck or a clean diaper. He'll useually pass right out again right after I take care of whatever was bothering him. Only when he has ear infections does he sometimes become inconsolable and I'll let him lay with me and he'll usually pass out after a little shuffling around.

The bedtime/nap routine you have gotten into could be causing her to have diffuculty falling back asleep on her own now if she sturs during the night. Modifying that process might make it easier for her to sleep and help you determine if she's staying awake for a reason other than just wanting you to rock her back to sleep.

Re: If you 12+ month old wakes in the middle of the night......

mine would never CIO...

he loves waking up at 4 AM to yell at me.

first, take out all night feedings...

we did that a few months ago, so now he just wakes at 4

Leo hates this plan, but now I send Leo in there to tell him to get back in bed. He doesn't want Leo, he doesn't wake up to see Leo...

So, slowly its starting to change...3 days this week he made it to 6:30.

Re: If you 12+ month old wakes in the middle of the night......

There really isn't a problem with you bringing her in your bed if it works for you. It wont be so easy to get her out if you continue this routine. I did CIO (but i'd go in as often as I needed to to check on DS) at 8 mos. Every now and again DS will wake in the middle of the night - teething or sickness or just because. I am always very careful to let him cry for a bit, but if it gets out of control I just go in say its time to go night - night, lay him down and leave. If necessary I repeat until he goes back to sleep. If teething or sick sometimes Tylenol or Motrin are necessary.

You should do whatever works for you and your family.

Re: If you 12+ month old wakes in the middle of the night......

I am proud to say...
my ds wakes up..he can sleep with us! Honestly dh and I work full time jobs and we need our sleep in order to be able to function. Yes this may cause problems later on bc he will want to continue...but we will deal with it! My ds has been through alot in his short life so far so a bad night's sleep is not necessary for him!
Hey if cio worked for him then I would be singing a different song..so we do what we do...it works for us!