So our wee Paddy was going through a growth spurt and just wouldn't quit crying, and at 4 months, I admit, I finally relented and gave in to the pacifier to help him fall asleep. in previous months I would glare at the pacifier and argue that I didn't want him to get used to it... But then I caved. I popped it into his little mouth and asleep he fell in minutes. It was blissful. I began to notice though that he wasn't getting a really good, hardy sleep. He would be continuously sucking or the darn thing would fall out and he'd wake screaming!
Finally two days ago, I decided that the blasted thing had to make an exit. I didn't ween him off of it, I just took it away. Oh what a hard time we're having now! It takes him forever to fall asleep and now, he's waking up more than ever!!! They say it takes 3 days for a baby to get used to something and 3 days for them to forget it... Paddy and I are on day two... and I swear we may not make it to 3. Already this evening he's woken up 3 times. and where he used to sleep till 4am, now he wakes in between 2 and 3:30am. He's sleeping lighter, so any noise will jolt the lad awake!
It's so bad that Pat, my love has been sleeping in another room (Paddy is still in our room until the holidays are over) because he has a cough and it keeps waking Paddy. Pat is sleeping on an air mattress and I am hanging by a thread to my rapidly fraying rope!
People are beginning to make me mental too with this! everyone keeps saying, "4 and a half months and he's still not sleeping through the night?" To this I say, "hey man, if you had a man that had a snore that sounds like the good year blimp with a slow leak, sleeping next to you, would you sleep peacefully?" But that can't be it, now can it? It's a hunger thing, but he still won't eat more than 4 ounces at a time... and sometimes he eats even less. All the books say he should be eating 5-8 ounces by now... So I don't get it... he's still gaining weight though so he can't be doing badly right?
Do you see now why my rope is fraying? Why I'm losing my hair and clawing my freckles off? Why I'm totally at my wit's end? I wish there was some magic wand that I could just wave and all these little hardships would just flutter away!Until that appears though, if you need to find me, I'll be clinging desperately to the last inch of my sanity!
Our oldest started sleeping through the night at 10 months and our youngest at 2 years. You are normal if your baby doesn't sleep through the night at four months. Really - it is normal and OK.
ReplyDeleteI found our kids would go through periods where they wouldn't sleep well. Maybe that's what's happening to Paddy?