I'm stumped..

Honestly I never thought parenting would be this diffiult. I knew it wold be hard the diaper changes, feeding, no time I really never knew babies had sleep issues. Ignorant me assumed that when they are tired they just sleep like us. My what a shock. Overtired, undertired, I can't figure him out. I know my little guy for 5 months and I can't figure out what he wants most of the time. I'm sorry but to me all his cries sound the same! Is it gas, hunger, bored, tired or just annoyed? Schedule....NONE! Every day is a suprise. I really thought I would be able to figure him out...wow it's tough.

For those of you with difficult or let's say fussy babies that did not sleep through the night or nap correctly did it ever get better? Did they become wild toddlers?

btw sorry for the run-on senctences and mistakes someone is demanding my attention!

Re: I'm stumped..

Yes, it does get better (my DD will be 10 months in a week, so I can't comment on toddlerhood). The only difference I can tell in her cries is whether she is simply annoyed or really really mad. The why is only clear to me by watching the clock.

What have you tried so far for sleep? At five months you start to have lots of choices.

Re: I'm stumped..

We have tried everything for sleep...there has not been a nap or bedtime without cries.

earlier bedtime...continues to wake up evey 40 minutes until midnight to be put back to sleep

bath and bottle...no difference

pick up/put down often ends in him crying more and us exhausted

cio-not an option after about 5 minutes he is so hysterical, choking, screaming that it takes another hour to get him down


I know he is tired because hewill close his eyes for like 30 seconds and then start crying.

Right now at this moment was naptime
i put him in the crib with the mobile he squealed laughed then started crying. I gave him the paci he turned his head closed his eyes and then started crying. I repeated this a couple of times. ?Then i piked him up rocked him he still cried, put him down crying...repeat, repeat, repeat!

Now he is in the swing screaming and he just threw his pacifier...wow sorry this is so long.

Re: I'm stumped..

ok he finally fell asleep in the swing...he will wake up in exactly 35 minutes! I thinkfor the next naptime I am going to go to Macy's so he can sleep in the car.

Re: I'm stumped..

i just wanted to say i'm sorry you're having such a difficult time.

andrew was colicky and he rarely slept and i was exhausted and unhappy and crying right along with him a lot of the time. it was very hard and i didn't believe my pediatrician when she said at 3 months he'll magically get better.

but after 3 months of just being completely overwhelmed he did get better. we switched to formula from BF which helped him sleep more and he cried less.

now at almost a year he is semi-good with routines and he sleeps about 9 hours a night. he seems 'hyper' to me a lot of the time, but otherwise he's delightful!

Re: I'm stumped..

Can you clarify your attempt at CIO? After the five minutes were you picking him up and then spending the hour calming him, or are you saying that he wasn't asleep after an hour?

Sorry to be asking so many questions, but I hate to make suggestions without understanding the situation...

Re: I'm stumped..

I have had a heck of a time with Bryan in the Beggining due to reflux and colic. I used to have to walk outside for 3 hours in the middle of the night 12 am - 3 am to get him to stop crying. He is 7 months now and its definitely better-- better when we started solids and better when we gave up trying to get him to sleep in his own bed. He sleeps with us now 12+ hours and 2-3 naps per day. Its soo much better- I know that its going to be more difficult when he is a toddler becuase he has so many dependencies I feel like ie. the pacifier, sleeping with us etc. but for right now it works and we are happy and thats the most important for our sanity. As far as determining the cries Im still not that great with it- I usually go by the clock if its been over 3 hours and he is crying he is prob hungry, if its been a few hours since he napped and he rubs his eyes alot he is probably sleepy so I rock him and if his eyes start to get drowsy then I know. Gas and bored and dirty diaper I still dont really know what those cries sound like so I try every thing

Re: I'm stumped..

Re: I'm stumped..

Five minutes isn't enough to determine whether or not the baby would respond to CIO -- but that may have been long enough for you to decided you don't want to do it. For a first attempt, you would have to be prepared to hear baby crying for as long as it takes. If you aren't ready for that, that is fine, just means you'll have to keep on doing the calming.

If you are at the end of your rope, there are women here (including me) that have done full CIO sleep training and would be happy to give you support. Its not for everyone, but it was exactly what my baby needed.

Good luck tonight!

Re: I'm stumped..

aja...these exact thoughts were going thru my head today. Sidney is 6.5 months old and i just feel like I don't have a clue what i am doing. It makes me crazy that friends who have younger babies sleep thru the night and sidney can go from 1-3 wakings a night. No rhymne or reason to it that I can tell. I never know what the night will hold. I have to rock her, nurse her, sing to her to sleep...for naps also. BUT....it has gotten better - slowly. I think the reason it is better is because I have let go of trying to get her on a schedule. Once I dropped my expectations it started to get easier (mostly in my head). I am only hoping that the sleep will get better or else we will have to go the CIO route. I do not understand why babies learn so quickly yet don't know to close their eyes when they are tired.