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Last Updated on April 12, 2021
Like every sleep deprived new mom, I fantasize about the days I used to get 8 hours of uninterrupted sleep at night. Last night, the Little (and I) slept 4 hours straight and I seriously woke up with more vim than I’ve felt in the last 2 months since teething hell began. I’m seriously being to wonder if a baby sleeping through the night is a myth.
It seems like every sleep guru is going to give you the advice that setting a schedule is the way to get your babe to sleep but then they throw in the cravat that you need to stay flexible. This, of course, doesn’t help your sleep deprived self and you start thinking that a shot of whiskey on the gums doesn’t sound like a bad idea.
So far I’ve read the “No Cry Sleep Solution” and I’m not loving it. It’s very baby lead, which is fine, but I’m looking for something with a little more structure but not the cry it out method.
The Little’s doctor recommended two books: “Good Night, Sleep Tight” and “The Sleep Easy Solution“. I’ll be honest and tell you that I have not picked them up. I need to do it. Sleep training is not for wussies. It requires a lot of extra energy and effort that will require more caffeine which I’m sure as a breastfeeding mom, he’s ingesting, and is probably not helping my problem any.
I have however started putting him down for naps in his crib and for the first leg of sleep during the night. One unexpected issue I ran into was when I got into bed without him, it takes me a good 2 hours to stop fretting and finally go to sleep. He usually will only sleep for 2 hours at a stretch so I fall asleep just as he wakes up (FUN). It’s just not easy any way I go about it. I do want to share some helpful links on baby sleep training:
31 Ways to Get Your Baby to Sleep and Stay Asleep
A Guide to Your Baby’s Sleep and Napping
What worked for you? I’d love to hear of a site or book or great mama advice on this.
Being a breastfeeding mom, there were just too many times that I would wake up on the recliner with the baby starting to eat once more. But as long as I got comfy in the recliner, we both slept pretty good there. It was nice though, when he got to sleep for longer times.
Amen to longer sleep times! I’m glad that you you found something that worked for you both. I’m still looking for the magic.
Wow a whole 4 hours sleep , lucky you 🙂 Ours used to want to sleep all day and come alive at night !! So the midwife advised us to wake him up around tea time and try to keep him awake as long as possible. Apart from the guilt of trying to keep a sleepy baby awake, little by little it worked and he started to sleep longer during the night. You just fall into a natural pattern eventually, keep smiling xx
LOL, Thanks Sharon. This boy hardly naps during the day (45 minutes yesterday) so I deal with an overtired baby on top of lots of night waking. Thanks for the smile.
It just takes time and COFFEE
Coffee might be my problem but dang I have come to rely on it to get me through the day!
I’m sure I’ll get flack for this but my son slept in my bed with me from the time he got home from the hospital until he was about 7 and occasionally he still likes to come get in my bed. (I know…I know). My daughter as well still sleeps in my bed and she’s 2 now. I don’t look to kick her out for a few more years. They’ve been sleeping through the night since they were each about 1 – 2 months old. I’ve never had a problem with them waking up unless they were sick. I didn’t put them there for no other reason than I can not put a baby in their crib and let them “cry it out”. I just couldn’t do it. I guess I don’t have the will power. But I love having them right there by me!
Thanks for sharing this Paula. I would be fine with my son sleeping with us until he was in kindergarten. I am worried about dealing with him possibly falling out of bed when he starts crawling though. I’m turning to these sleep training books in the hope he might sleep better through the night. My husband and I both snore like bears so it could be that we’re waking him up. I can’t do cry it out. I tried it last night and only lasted 6 minutes.
Nothing ever seemed to work for me. LOL My kids finally got onto a schedule, but they were older!
my son started sleeping through the night when I went back to work – he was 6 weeks old. but mommy did not sleep through the night for a long time after. occasionally I still have nights where I wake up every 2 hours to check on him – he is 2. but that’s me, not him. he has woken up a few times in the night but only if he was teething or not feeling well
I’m still figuring this out even though am onto #3 baby who is currently 18mths old.. she still wakes up all too often to nurse this few months and is also teething at the moment.. trying hard to get her to wake less but nothing seems to work as yet. Already suffered 9 yrs of interrupted sleep with the kids. I guess that it will take time with her too as it has been with her brothers.
Sorry, we were a ‘cry to sleep’ family. We’d only let her cry for 10-15 min max and that quickly dwindled. We also didn’t pick up right away when she cried during the day either. As with anything, we used it as a training tool early on and she slept through the night pretty quickly. If the child cries longer than 20 min or so then it can be dangerous and something else might be wrong. We also put her in the next room so we could sleep soundly and her little movements didn’t rattle us. She’s a happy and sound sleeper now 🙂
Thanks for sharing TerriAnn. It was a rough couple of days at first but now the Little sleeps like a champ. I seriously don’t think I could have made it with the sleep schedule he was on before we started sleep training him.
I know EVERYONE says it, but it does get better… and sounds like it already has! Good for you! I know how good it feels to get real sleep.
I’m not sure how sweet baby will sleep, but hopefully she does it haha 🙂
I hope so too 🙂
I was that mom that slept with baby in bed. We did sleep pretty good though!
Every baby is different when it comes to sleeping at night. I was a good sleeper when I was young, only waking up about once a night, at least that’s what I’m told. My sister on the other hand was a stubborn pain and would wake up many times every night, assuming you could get her to sleep in the first place.