We're having sleeping issues here. Again.
William used to be a pretty good sleeper. Most nights, he was sleeping from 8:30 p.m. 'til around 6 a.m. Sometimes, he'd even last until 6:30.
Then came Saturday night. He woke up around 1 a.m. and then again around 4. He was starving and inconsolable both times, and I ended up having to feed him. Repeat on Sunday night, with slightly altered times. Repeat on Monday night, only he was exceptionally hungry that night. He nursed around 12:30, then drank TEN ounces of formula from a sippy cup around 4:30. Then nursed again around 6 or so. Last night, he woke up screaming around 10. I went into his room to find him on his stomach, pushing up and screaming. I finally got him settled back to sleep without feeding him, but that only lasted 'til around 2:45. Once again, I found myself doing a middle-of-the-night feed. And he woke up before 5, too.
What is the deal? I mean, William is nine months old now! He shouldn't need to eat in the middle of the night. He's been sleeping through the night, with a few exceptions, for months now. This is insanity!
Because he had gastroenteritis last week, he didn't eat a lot for a few days. I even had a few nursing issues because he wasn't demanding to eat very much for a few days. But he has rebounded with a vengeance. So we are speculating that he is making up for lost time and calories. But I seriously wonder if he's really still doing that, and it makes me panicky to think that this might continue.
Dr. Perkins recommended that we wait it out 'til this weekend, and then try to resort to some type of sleep training routine. We really haven't had to worry about it because he was sleeping pretty well on his own. We had trained him from pretty early on to go to sleep by himself by putting him in his crib awake at night. And we don't usually pick him up or turn on the lights in the night if he fusses; we make the visits "quick and boring," as the books all prescribe.
But these recent nighttime wakeups are not like anything else I've dealt with in a long time. His screams are piercing, and it only seems to escalate, and nothing really quiets him down. Not even nursing is a sure bet. It's misery-inducing. I am tired. How on earth did I do this for weeks on end when William was new?
And for the record, no, he doesn't seem to be teething yet. So I don't think that's the culprit. I don't know what is going on. But I dearly hope that it doesn't last much longer!
4 comments:
Sweetie, just hang with it. This too will pass. I know that is not much consolation, but things will get better. Hug William for me. Love, Moma Judi
Maybe he is trying to make up for those lost calories and will settle down again once he catches up. I'll bet he will get back on schedule again in a few days.
With love, Diane
Maybe he's making up for lost calories and hitting a growth spurt at the same time. Granted I have no children but I've heard the doctor here at work make that comment when our patients all of a sudden start eating a lot more and get cranky. We even added an evening snack because of it. Although, I don't see William being quite up for PB&J just yet. ;)
Eleanor
William is definitely going to be a snacker! And he is taking after his father in a new way: he loves yogurt. He chowed on some yogurt yesterday afternoon, so maybe that can be his new snack. Or graham crackers. He discovered graham crackers at "school" today, and I think there's no going back.
Post a Comment