Sleeping Issues

Here is a question from Jill, a working mom of an 8 month old. I am sure we can all provide helpful tips in this area - most of us have had sleeping issues with our kids I think!

I am a mother of an 8 month old girl. Up until a few weeks ago, we let our daughter stay up until 9:30 or 10:00 each night. Being a working mom, I didn't want to put her down too early and not get to spend much time with her. Also, she didn't seem tired until late. We rocked her to sleep or pushed her around in a stroller until she fell asleep. But after almost 8 months of this, my husband and I decided to try to start putting her down earlier. We wanted her to learn to put herself to sleep, and we wanted a little more time together just the two of us. Some nights she just rolls over and goes to sleep. But some nights she cries and cries, and we end up picking her up. She'll stay up to like 9:30 or 10:00 on those nights, as opposed to 7:30 or 8:00 on the other nights. Can anyone provide any sleep tips? We've tried the whole routine thing. Baths are out at night because they get her too worked up, but we do nurse and read books before bed. Any other suggestions?

Jill, here is another response from Ada-Marie:

This is a response to Jill's post regarding sleep issues. I HIGHLY recommend the book "Healthy Sleep Habits, Health Child" by Dr. Marc Weissbluth. My daughter is a wayward napper and this book has REALLY helped me with a game plan for her sleeping routine. The book addresses sleep from the newborn stage through the teen years. The book has been a life saver and I still consult it as my daughter gets older. Good luck! Thanks, Ada-Marie

Jill, sleeping is such a tough and individualized thing for kids and parents I believe. If I were you I would probably begin by moving her bedtime back 30 minutes at a time. Maybe she is just confused because some nights she is up later (a good bit later) than other nights. Keep her routine the same, but for a week do 9:30. Then 9. And so on.

Another thing I would try is to let her put herself to sleep. This is were some parents would rather do the stroller thing or whatever. For our first child, we rocked her to sleep with a bottle in her mouth. Which was just what we loved, we loved watching her fall asleep, we loved the rocking, it was great. Until about 9 months. Then we were all just tired, and even when she would wake up in the middle of the night, she would require a bottle to put herself back to sleep.

Put a few toys in her crib, and just let her jab herself to sleep. Our children go to bed religiously at 8, even if they aren't zonked out, they will sit and read (our 3 year old) or play (our 1 year old). The first few times, it was almost sad to me to think about our son in there playing in the crib, but his doctor assured us that if they are cooing and having fun, to let him!

It will be harder on you and your husband than anyone if you change her routine, but she will settle in soon. We let our daughter cry it out two nights in a row when she was 9 months old and she never has had a problem again. I know some parents can't stand the crying out, and it wasn't easy for me, but I love my sleep, so the thought of sleeping through the night was something I needed so very much.

Good luck, please let us know what you decide and how it works out. I would love to hear from other mom's with their suggestions. It will be nice to have that extra time at night to have with your husband too!