I feel like a failure

I just cannot get Lily to go to sleep for anything. I know I should be grateful. She is a happy baby for the most part. She's still waking up 2-3 times a night to eat, although I'm not sure she's really hungry. Napping is in short half hour spurts. I am just so tired, she's turning 5 months old tomorrow. I don't know how much longer I can get by with broken sleep. She did give us 2-3 full nights randomly. We did the same thing with her during the day & night as we do always. I just can't figure her out. We have tried CIO sorta. Right now I'm trying it again for a nap, which I know she desperately needs. I may have missed that drowsy window. I've been reading Weissbluth, but I guess I need to devote more time to reading it all the way through. Last week I tried CIO for an hour and it didn't work. HELP!!!!!!! Any advice would be so appreciated. BTW, she's still BF'ing. I think I'm going to try cereal this week. Did I already say that I'm desperate???

Re: I feel like a failure

We started cereal at 4 months and it made a WORLD of a difference. Luca was also BF and woke 2-3 times a night. After a few days adjusting to cereal he started sleeping through the night. We also do a modified CIO. We will let him go for 15-20 minutes. If we feel the crying is dying out, we'll let him put himself back to sleep. If we can tell it's just going to intensify, we go and console him and put him back to sleep. I haven't given him any bottles over night for a few weeks now, even when he does wake up, because I know he doesn't "need" it.

Re: I feel like a failure

Re: I feel like a failure

My son did not sleep through the night until 9.5 - 10 months so please do not feel bad. I know that it seems like it is something you are doing but maybe once your little one is into foods more and is a little more active - you'll see that Lily will sleep through the night. It's hard battle and people will tell you don't go in , don't feed them but you have to trust yourself. It's really frustrating but she will slepp through the night eventually.

Hang in there...and you are NOT a failure.

Re: I feel like a failure

You're not alone!

DD is almost 11m and she still wakes 2-5x a night! Now that she is teething, night time is 10x more brutal.

Re: I feel like a failure

We did CIO, however, we really stuck to it. After one night, we had no problems. That being said, CIO is not for every parent and every baby. I would suggest reading Solve your Child's Sleep Problems by Ferber. This book made so much sense to me. It wasn't even the CIO that really helped Ava sleep all night and nap, it was his explanation of "sleep conditions" that helped. We realized that her sleeping conditions were causing her to not be able to self-soothe in the middle of the night and for nap times. Now that my husband and I keep her bedtime/naptime routine strictly the same and to the exact conditions, she sleeps like a champ. There is hope, I promise you, you just have to find what works

Re: I feel like a failure

We just started cereal as well, and were also having nights like yours (also bf). Saturday she worked up to a couple of tablespoons, and I fed her at dinnertime and she slept SO WELL! The first night she slept from 7p-6a, and last night from 8p-4a. Not as good, but still a huge difference. I'm hoping we'll be able to keep this up on workdays steadily. I may start feeling human again one day, at least until she starts teething lol.

Hang in there and good luck! DD is also a little over 5 mos.

Re: I feel like a failure

we were going through the same thing with matthew, and CIO did NOT work for him. Someone on here let me borrow a book, called a "No-cry solution", and I have tried some of it and he is no longer waking up at 11am. He is actually going till 4:30am...whic by far is an accomplishment.

I believe CIO is NOT for every baby.

Message edited 4/9/2007 1:35:27 PM.

Re: I feel like a failure

Thank you all. Tonight is going to be tough. DH is leaving for the next few days for work. He travels alot for his job. Just when I was starting to get used to it, he was home for 3 weeks, which was wonderful. But now it makes it so much harder when he leaves. I tried the cereal earlier & Lily LOVED it! I'm not sure it will make a difference tonight, but tomorrow I'll give her more and see how it goes. CIO definitely seems like it doesn't work for everyone. I'll try some of the advice you ladies gave. Thanks!! I don't know what I'd do without this board.