Operation Get-Natalie-To-Go-To-Sleep-For-Long-Periods-Of-Time-Without-Needing-To-Be-Swaddled (say THAT five times fast) is on!
We've swaddled Natalie at night since she was born. I'm convinced that it helped her sleep better and longer in those early days and weeks.
And we still swaddle her because she has a hard time sleeping without it. Not how like a child can't go to sleep without his/her favorite teddy bear; Natalie has a hard time sleeping without being swaddled because her spazzy arms flail about and she wakes herself up. Crying.
So we kept on swaddling her, because even though she ninjas herself out of the swaddle 9 times out of 10, she at least starts off swaddled. And just that little bit of her arms not being able to flail around is enough to get her to fall asleep.
But because Natalie is physically unable to remain still for even one nanosecond, she flips and flops around while swaddled. And it's not the best thing for a swaddled baby to flip over to her stomach because she might not be able to flip back over on her back.
We've tried not swaddling her before but it always turned out terribly (getting up 3, 4, or 5 times in the middle of the night). But I spoke with a friend who had the same problem and she recommended sticking with it for her naps and at night for at least two days. She said it was tough, but by the 3rd day, her daughter slept great unswaddled.
So today is the first day of Operation GNTGTSFLPOTWNTBS. Her morning nap was a slight flop. I put her down at 8am (around the normal time). She sang, babbled, grunted, and fussed in her crib for about 20 minutes before Lee got her. I tried to put her back down at 10:30am and she immediately started crying. I fed her a little bit more and she finally fell asleep at around 11am. She slept until 1pm, but of course that threw off her schedule for her afternoon nap (which she usually takes around 1pm).
And tonight, her arms were quite flail-y while I was feeding her, but after about 15 minutes, she started looking drowsy. I put her in her crib ... and in true Natalie form, she was on her back for a nanosecond (what's shorter than a nanosecond? A micro-nanosecond?) and immediately began squirming around and rolling over. So much for that whole 'looking drowsy' thing. I guess her new-found freedom of being unswaddled in her crib was extremely exciting.
I'm not at all a fan of letting babies cry it out. But because Natalie seems to be fussier than the average baby, I don't immediately come running when I hear her fuss in her crib. Sometimes she's not even awake when she's fussing. I have my limit though. If she fusses for more than five minutes, I go get her. It wrenches my heart out to let her cry longer than that.
Like just now, she fussed in her crib for about four minutes. And now I don't hear a peep. (Cue the Hallelujah Chorus).
Perhaps we shouldn't have started Operation GNTGTSFLPOTWNTBS while Natalie is teething, because that's been adding an extra level or two of fussiness on top of her already normal fussiness. I guess Lee and I are just gluttons for punishment.
Please work, Operation GNTGTSFLPOTWNTBS. Pretty please. With sugar on top.
Subscribe to:
Post Comments (Atom)
3 comments:
Here's my two cents (not that you asked, or have to listen): Definitely stick with your plan. In a couple days I'd be willing to bet things will be fine. Also you might want to get The No Cry Sleep Solution. Worked wonders for us with Lincoln.
And on a side note ... the babbling and not going to sleep thing, and the crying and not going to sleep thing is the reason I STILL rock Linc to sleep at nap time. Not the best idea, but I prefer him to actually take a nap, and to do it at the "right" time, so I do what works, breastfeeding for a couple years, now rocking.
You do what you've gotta do, and it will all work out fine in the end. Stay strong, and I don't think it's OK to let them cry. I think it's cruel. A lot of people disagree, but you do what feels right for you and her and your family.
Love you and good luck!!
Praying with you that Operation GNTetc. works! Sleep Nat sleep!
And when Nat DOES learn to go to sleep unswaddled and more easily, you'll have another great story to tell her! Hope Operation GNTetc. (I like your abbreviation, Jamie) works quickly!
Post a Comment