MSE Parent Club

Dormouse

JillD wrote: »

I have a 5 month old baby, she's my 3rd so I should know what I am doing by now but I am struggling with her nights.

She is breastfeed, we have started solids as well but very slowly so I wouldn't expect those to be helping in terms of sleep.

She is in a cot in her own room, in a grobag, and has a dummy.

This week she's been waking avery hour or so and settles either with a feed or the dumy. She also hasa nasty cold and a bit of a cough. She had been ok at night - waking for one or two feeds and then settling back down quite well.
I can't work out if she's waking more cos she isn't well, or is she just addicted to the dummy and waes up in light sleep cos she becomes aware of having lost the dummy ? We are totally shattered from getting up at night, its like the first few nights all over again.
I don't want to just leave her, I think she's too young.
I don't feel ready to commit to controlled crying until she stops being ill, but medium term I'd like to do CC to get her off the dummy.
As she is BF I dont have the confidence at night to not feed her as I havent a clue how much shes had in the day.

Should I just let things go as they are til she is over the cold, and then do CC to get her off the dummy ?

Does anyone have any ideas ?
Thanks
JIll

Hi and welcome to the thread

I'm in a very similar situation. My DS2 is almost 6 months, has a dummy and I'm seriously thinking of getting rid of it, due to the sleep problems we're having.

I agree with the others - don't do anything until the cold is over (although that's what I'm telling myself and my baby has had a lingering cold for weeks now -- he gets better and then DS1 brings another cold from the nursery! :eek: )

I'm pretty sure your LO is waking so much because of the cold. They do get lots of comfort from breastfeeding, so I'm assuming they want a few feeds at night when they're poorly like we want a Lemsip or something! I would imagine that once she's not so snuffly, she will sleep better.

But as I said, I'm planning to brace myself and ditch the dummy, as it would be much easier to do it now than in 6 months, or a year, or two years time. I took DS1's dummy off him at about this age and it was great, best thing I did, and he's been a brilliant sleeper ever since. Only problem is, I can't remember exactly how I did it - it was 4 years ago! :rotfl:

Anyway, good luck, and hope your LO feels better soon. I know exactly what you're going through.

Js_Other_Half

Dormouse wrote: »

Hi and welcome to the thread

I'm in a very similar situation. My DS2 is almost 6 months, has a dummy and I'm seriously thinking of getting rid of it, due to the sleep problems we're having.

Do investigate the research around dummies and cot death before you do this - there's some evidence to suggest once you've given them a dummy for sleeping that you should continue this until a year.
http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/health/4509240.stm

http://www.fsid.org.uk/cgi-bin/fsid/pprint.pl?efile=search&searchkeys=dummy

Lu_T

Welcome all!

I took Imogen's dummy off her at around 4-5 months. Research aside (I didn't know about that at the time) we got to breaking point when hubby was away with work and I was working too. She just decided she would wake every 45 mins from 2.30am until 5.30am and only her dummy would settle her.

She had never had her dummy to go to sleep at 7pm, but I had given it to her in the night when she was in her moses basket and got restful but didn't need feeding - so it's my own fault. She had never woken in the night in between feeds since she went in her own room, so it was a bit of a shock to the system.

After 3 consecutive nights of me managing on practically no sleep, I went cold turkey on her @ss! The next time she woke - about 2.30am - I went in and sang to her. 40 minutes of 'Twinkle Twinkle' sent her back to sleep and she never woke up again!

Admittedly this is easier than others may have found. I know with my nephew when he reached 1 we told him that he needed to give his dummy to one of the other babies whose mummy and daddy couldn't buy him one. He got a toy instead I think as well. HTH

Bay - you do sound more positive, glad you're doing okay.

Michelle - I thought you were further on than you are, sorry! Glad you're doing okay though.

Just about to have tea cooked by lovely hubby. :T Off to Tenerife for 3 weeks on Friday before I go back to the office. Can't wait :j

Mazcabs

Well tonights the night. Have settled DS in big cot in his own room and going to see what happens. Decided to do it tonight as OH is off for three days and thought if we are going to have no sleep better when no work involved.

Managed to get DS to have two longish ( for him anyway) naps today so hopefully this will also help. Read somewhere that if they sleep for long naps in the day the better they sleep at night.

We dont have to much problem with dummy as DS uses it for soothing and dropping off but never that bothered if it drops out once he us asleep... usually wakes up because of feeding or leg caught in crib.

LAst night I tried to venture out for an hour and left OH asleep in bed, DS asleep in crib and dog asleep in basket. Came home and they were all still asleep. When I woke up at 4.30 to feed DS OH told me that he had woke up and he had a screaming match with him... typical eh !

[Deleted User]

Michelle, Charlie is 15-16 months isn't he? I think he is just a tad older than Jack who turned 15 months today. How did you drop the bottles and what does he drink his milk from now? Jack still has about 18ozs of cows milk a day in a bottle, which he can hold himself. I can't imagine him wanting to give these up for a while yet. He will have a beaker but that is where water comes from and milk comes out of a bottle. He still relishes with delight his milk and the cuddle that goes with it. I hadn't even thought about giving it up yet, but as per your point, I am now hoping he won't want the baby's bottle as when other people feed their children in front of him he isn't that fussed.

suzukibabe

Adam had his first jabs on Thursday, i felt so mean. The doc had to go and a smaller needle for him, even though he is now 9 weeks old he's only the size of a newborn at the moment. I've never seen him cry like that before but five minutes later he was fast asleep. he was a bit restless that night so i gave him a little paracetamol which he decided he didn't like and puked it right up all over the moses basket and himself, cue 3am strip and change.
he has been laughing properly today and he sounds so cute.
DH was booked in for a vasectomy this wednesday but his nerves have got the beter of him and he's cancelled it so i have an appointment to see gp next week.
Hope everyone's well xx

Becles

I've never used dummy's as I can't stand them Charlotte has latched onto a small pink teddy bear. Whenever she goes in the cot, she looks for the bear and rubs it on her cheek as she goes to sleep.

It's got "my first teddy" written on it's tummy, and it was what my boys brought to the hospital when they saw her for the first time. It's quite sweet that she's picked that one out of 4 cuddly toys that are in her cot.

heather38

hello i've not been around for a few days, i've been busy with work.
re the eye thing, i noticed a problem with kennedys eyes at around 7 months, i mentioned it at her 9 month check up and she was refered to the opthalmist, they checked her out and said all was ok, it was the shape of her eyes coz one was bigger than the other! she's going back next week for a second check up but i don't expect anything to come of it.
i feeling really tired atm, i forgot how knackering early pregnancy is!, saw the midwife on friday for the first time, but i'm not sure i like her. my first midwife has moved so i can't have her again which is a pity as she was really nice. i want a home birth and the new one didn't seem that keen, she kept going on about if i had this or that problem, or that i couldn't have pain relief. not sure what to do yet, i'm not seeing her again till late april so i'll see how i get on then

izoomzoom

suzukibabe wrote: »

DH was booked in for a vasectomy this wednesday but his nerves have got the beter of him and he's cancelled it so i have an appointment to see gp next week.

My DH had one recently. I can't tell you how terrible I felt seeing him going through all that pain afterwards - it seemed to hit his stomach muscles and he was doubled over for hours.

A little bit of reverse labour, I thought.

What surprised me more was that he didn't become 'sterile' straight away. Four months down the line, we are still having to worry about birth control :mad: .

Mazcabs - good luck for tonight, and tomorrow and the next !!

Bailey - I wont say what I wanted to - I can't believe I have forgotten so quickly how infuriating that can all be :rotfl: .

And with regards to dummies - never been there and haven't got the t-shirts. Samantha quite likes her fist though !

Claire_Jones_3

Does everyone know about the healthy start program? If are claiming certain benefits (Income support, Jobseekers allowance), or have a household income of less than £14495 and getting child tax credit then you are eligable. You get vouchers worth

• £2.80 a week if you're pregnant
• £5.60 a week for each baby aged under one
• £2.80 a week for each child aged over one and under four

Have a look at http://www.healthystart.nhs.uk/index.asp for more details