I know, I know. I haven't posted in more than a month. But I have a really good excuse: The Wunder household is officially NOT SLEEPING
When Maya was about six weeks old, she suddenly starting sleeping through the night. And not just for five or six hours. No, no. This angel slept for 11 hours straight. Every night. It was pure bliss. Having done very little to prompt this — no sleep training or meticulously scheduled bedtime routine — I knew I was damn lucky.
Then, when she was about 4 1/2 months old, she got her first cold. (Not coincidentally, this was also a few weeks after starting daycare). So, with all the sneezing and congestion, she had some trouble sleeping. But it wasn't too bad. We'd get up with her, use the bulb syringe (or as we call, the brain sucker) to clear her nose a bit, then help her fall back to sleep. Sometimes, I'd nurse her if she were really having trouble sleeping. But all in all, this only happened once or twice a night, and only lasted for 15 minutes to an hour. No big deal, especially because one week of getting up at night while baby gets over a cold isn't that bad.
Except, after that cold, she got another one. And then another. And another. In fact, for the past two months, she has been just getting a cold or just getting over one almost every day. And her nighttime wakings have been getting worse and worse. Currently, she has a nasty chest cold that has her stuffed up and makes her cough a ton. We have a cool-mist humidifier running, but it doesn't seem to help. For a while, we had her sleeping in her bouncy chair because it kept her a little more upright, and that helped for about a week. But it's not working anymore.
The past week has been absolute hell. She will only sleep when face down on either my or Chris' chest — preferably his as it's wider and far less bumpy than mine. Unfortunately, though, neither Chris nor I can sleep like this. So we take turns not sleeping. (To be fair, Chris takes the not-sleeping duty way more than me.)
Some nights, like last night, she just won't sleep. I tried all the go-to moves: face down on chest, upright in bouncy chair, rocking, nursing, brain sucking, rhythmic butt patting. Nothing worked. She just cried, rubbed her eyes, coughed, sneezed, and cried some more. It's so frustrating. And she seems to sense this because most nights, when I feel like I've reached my limit, she'll suddenly stop crying, look up at me, take my face in both of her hands, and give me the biggest, sweetest, toothless smile. Like, "Hey Mom, I know this sucks, but thanks for sticking around. Love ya!"
At least, that's what I'd like to believe. Chances are, it's more like "So, who's holding me anyway? Oh it's you. I know you!"
Oy.
I've read up on all the sleep methods, sleep training, etc. Problem is, these all say you need to try when baby's healthy. So, maybe when cold and flu season officially ends in late-April/early-May, we'll start sleeping again.
Which should be right in time for teething.
Friday, March 26, 2010
Not sleeping
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3 comments:
Gosh, how I don't miss those days. I miss having a little baby around. But I do not miss the sleep deprivation. It does get better of course, but even when they're older (say 3 & 4) there still are nights where sleep is just not in the cards. BTW, isn't it great to have the kind of husband who regularly volunteers to take the brunt of sleep deprivation? Good men.
My boys didn't sleep through the night until they were 13 months old. Now I'm afraid to stray a minute off their schedule because I'm sure it will mean the end of thier 7pm bedtime. I work overnights so it doesn't affect me as much as my husband- he's a saint.
Something to try for the congestion, Eucalyptus essential oil. Ya just put it in a diffuser with some water & the whole room smells like vicks! Well, better than vicks but you get the idea. I use it for my girls when they're congested. Helps 'em sleep, although they're older. But it really clears ya up. Hope this helps some & you two get some sleep soon =)
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