The Official Zombie Mother of a Fall '07 Baby (non)Sleep Commiseration Thread

[Calliope]

:shifty

Hi, my name is Grace and I am a Zombie Mother of a Fall '07 Baby whose sleeping habits stink at the moment. It has been at least 2.5 weeks since I had a reasonable nights sleep.

:hissyfit :yawn


Anyone else? Rach? Kimberly?

[zak]

:raise


I haven't had over 4 hours of sleep in over 4 years (since my pregnancy began with Reid) and not more than 2.5 hours in the past 14 months. I middle-of-the-night nurse probably 4-8 times each night.

Cosleeping IS a saver, but I'm tired. I need a daily nap (I didn't get one today :yawn ). I need my Hubby to tuck me into bed EARLY some nights. I'm not a zombie... but maybe I'm just fooling myself because it's been so long since I've had 8 hours of sleep! :lol

:hugheart Sorry sleeping is so hard at this age. Frequent night wakings are normal, but sooo hard. :( I remember when we were in OKC temporarily I'd complain to JellyBean about Reid waking 8-10 times at night (he and PopRocks were both 12-15 months at the time).

[Calliope]

:hug Hi! I love it when you tell me stories about your kiddos. People think that because I don't complain too much that things are just honky dory. Truth is, I have survived these past 13 months almost entirely by means of positive thinking. :shifty My thinking is still positive, but my body is VERY VERY TIRED.

My new mantra is "If zak is surviving, so can I..." :yes

[zak]

:O :giggle

I trick myself with positive thinking too... that's how I birthed R without any drugs. :shifty

I'm tired too, babe. :yes2 :hugheart

[Calliope]

We should have a Fall '07 Baby (non)Slumber Party. We could all sleep in shifts and milk share. :shifty

[RosalieMarie]

Does beginning of December '07 count? Because I'm so there. :yawn I'm feeling zombie-ish lately. It's not as exasperating as it was with Lily, because I expected it this time. It seems harder to deal with during the day though, because when I just had one I could nap.

Nolan has taken to screaming LOUD when he wakes at night. I don't know why. He never did that before. He'd just fuss a bit until I latched him on. Now, he goes from dead sleep to screaming. :hunh I do NOT do well being woken up like that.

[Calliope]

Does beginning of December '07 count? Because I'm so there. :yawn I'm feeling zombie-ish lately. It's not as exasperating as it was with Lily, because I expected it this time. It seems harder to deal with during the day though, because when I just had one I could nap.

Nolan has taken to screaming LOUD when he wakes at night. I don't know why. He never did that before. He'd just fuss a bit until I latched him on. Now, he goes from dead sleep to screaming. :hunh I do NOT do well being woken up like that.


All zombies may join! :yes I mean, :yes2. :shifty

It is distressing when you are woken abruptly by your kiddo. I find that I am far more exhausted and irritable when that happens. I wonder where our synchronicity has gone? Maybe that wears off after the newborn stage... :shrug

[klpmommy]

I'm here. It has been well over a month of 2+ hour parties in the middle of the night, plus interrupted sleep the rest of the night. I think the longest stretch I am getting most nights atm is 1.5 hours. :yawn

[monkeylicious]

how 'bout a jone 07 babe? evie thinks being attached to mama is a prefectly acceptable way to sleep... too bad mama can't sleep that way :yawn

[Emerald Orchid]

August '07 here. :raise I am lucky to say that I got ONE 9 hour sleep stretch when Zac was 3-4 months. And a few 7 hours stretches. But that was a long time ago. As we are now TTC, I don't expect much improvement for well... ever it seems. I took a 1.5 hour nap today and I'm still tired. :yawn But you couldn't tell from looking at me at church or wherever because I don't complain much either since I'm one of the rare moms who won't let her kiddo CIO in order to get a full night's sleep. :shrug

[mellifera]

Count me in too. P has been refusing to nurse during the day, but making up for it in the middle of the night. I guess it's his way of dealing with the drop in supply--he's too impatient to wait for a good letdown while he's awake and running around. Sometimes I realize that I feel tired during the day, but I'm pretty used to it, I guess.

The other day I was at the local baby store that carries cloth diapers, slings, baby legs, an other "crunchy" type stuff. While browsing I eavsdropped on a conversation between a customer and an employee--and they both admitted that they had made their babies cio in order to get them on a schedule. I was a little surprised.

[Blue-EyedLady]

December '07 here, and I haven't slept in what feels like years! I remember one 7-hour stretch when DS was about 5 weeks old, and it literally went downhill from there. I'm tempted to drug the child so that I can sleep! :blush (actually, he's teething, so I did give him tylenol last night) :giggle

[mandieolivia]

september '07 here. i have two fifteen month olds in my bed who still nurse *A LOT* in the night. i am beyond tired...

[Naked Camper]

this thread makes me :giggle Glad to see what occurs in our IS *normal* despite what my CIO friends and family say. More than 2 hours at a time would be amazing :yes2

[Blue-EyedLady]

september '07 here. i have two fifteen month olds in my bed who still nurse *A LOT* in the night. i am beyond tired...


I'm sure twins are a blessing, but right about now, I'm so glad I've only got one!

[Quiteria]

My Sept 07 baby is actually sleeping right now. :rockon

His '05 brother....is still up. Yesterday, after taking turns tucking them in one at a time (one falls asleep, other takes another hour, first one awake again, repeat....) until ds1 threw up at his 3am wake up....I got to bed at 5. Yes, that's AM. :yawn

[monkeylicious]

:grouphug

[Happygrl]

Can an Oct 04/Jan 08 mama join?! I'm coming up on the 5-year mark since I've slept through the night (consistently started when I was a few months pregnant with E). I'm tired. :yawn Even just one of them sleeping through would make a huge difference. Or getting down to a cummulative wakeups of 3 or less.

We'd love to TTC later this year but there is just no way I can if they are both still waking. :/

[Blue-EyedLady]

Anybody tried the Dr Sears method of "playing dead" when baby won't sleep? I tried it last night, and after an hour of getting kicked, punched, scratched and hair pulled I finally made DH take the child. So much for that idea!

[klpmommy]

I am not sure what "playing dead" is, but I can guess. All I can say is that when I have tried to ignore S in the middle of the night she decides that means she can crawl off & play. And she can escape our room. :doh

[monkeylicious]

I am not sure what "playing dead" is, but I can guess. All I can say is that when I have tried to ignore S in the middle of the night she decides that means she can crawl off & play. And she can escape our room. :doh

evie starts un-covering me ... then pulls my shirt up and bra down :/ or she gets loud - and i feel guilty about dh and gigi trying to sleep and give in with the nursies

[filmgirl2911]

I'm a February 08 mama, but am enjoying knowing that this lack of sleep is not so out of the ordinary. Except for that first 48 hours after birth, our little darling has rarely slept more than two hour stretches. We've made it this far, so I am looking forward to the day when she sleeps three or more hours in a row as more than just a fluke :yes

[monkeylicious]

so I am looking forward to the day when she sleeps three or more hours in a row as more than just a fluke :yes


it is so hard not to get hopeful when that fluke 3-4 hour stretch happens :yes2

[klpmommy]

so I am looking forward to the day when she sleeps three or more hours in a row as more than just a fluke :yes


it is so hard not to get hopeful when that fluke 3-4 hour stretch happens :yes2

YES!!! S gave me a 5 hour stretch a couple of times, and then her sleep is *worse* the following few nights. It wears me out.

[swimming with sharks]

the dragon is a good sleeper overall, but yes we've been up for an hr to two hrs nearly every night for weeks. We're getting eye teeth - all of them :shifty I turn down the brightness and read gcm but I'm so tired. :yawn

[illinoismommy]

More than 2 hours at a time would be amazing :yes2


:jawdrop

I don't know how all of you guys do it. Really. Maya and Eli are sick so I was up a lot last night and today I feel like garbage. I couldn't do this on a regular day to day basis.

[Calliope]

Anybody tried the Dr Sears method of "playing dead" when baby won't sleep? I tried it last night, and after an hour of getting kicked, punched, scratched and hair pulled I finally made DH take the child. So much for that idea!


Sometimes it works. Sometimes it doesn't. It worked for us last night. Though we had to put up with him thumping his arm to put himself to sleep for a hour. :/

[Quiteria]

The good news is that ds Dec '05 has sometimes been sleeping through. :rockon The bad news is that it's gotten increasingly harder to get him to sleep now that we're in the process of weaning, and last night he woke up...hungry I guess...crying his little heart out and not willing to tell me what was wrong until I finally asked if he wanted to nurse. :bheart So, he's not really self-weaning so much as picking up on the fact that I want to be done. :/ :blush :(

DS '07 was actually waking up only 1-2 times, I think, when I was in bed, but it's worse lately when I'm still up with ds1 at weird hours and thereby not in bed.

[ladybug]

I have a May '07 babe, and I have NOT slept thru the night since before he was born.....so yah, I hear you...AND I'm pregnant on top of it. ugh.
I sooo need some sleep soon!!!

[klpmommy]

S's 4th pointy tooth poked through today. I am praying that will make a difference tonight. :pray4

[Blue-EyedLady]

S's 4th pointy tooth poked through today. I am praying that will make a difference tonight. :pray4


Did I mention that we're working on a series of 8 teeth? He had his first 8 teeth at 7 months, then took a little break. Around 11 months, he decided to start cutting the next eight. 4 are cut through, so 4 more to go on this set. :sigh Then maybe we'll get a break until the 2 year molars come in.

[Emerald Orchid]

Anybody tried the Dr Sears method of "playing dead" when baby won't sleep? I tried it last night, and after an hour of getting kicked, punched, scratched and hair pulled I finally made DH take the child. So much for that idea!


It works at bedtime, but I haven't tried it at night, he gets loud quickly and I don't want to disturb dh too much.

[Kannon99]

Hi My name is Erin and I'm a zombie mom of 1.5 yr old cosleeping twins (july 2007). They nurse every 2 - 3 hours day and night. Though two nights ago they slept for 6 hr straight at the same time. First 6hr in a row I've gotten in 4 years.

I've been pregnant and/or breastfeeding nonstop since Dec of 2002, and it's kicking my butt! But it can only get better, right?

We just started trying the naptime routine for bedtime and it's helping a little. For naps, I nurse them, put together in the crib, they cry/squawk at each other for 2 minutes and then konk out. They don't care for it in the middle of the night so we've started doing it with the lights on and then with dimmer and dimmer lighting. We don't CIO but 2 - 5 min of fuss is doable.

[luvinmykidz]

last night I got to sleep 7 hours! :rockon I have not slept like that in over 6 years!! I hope it wasn't just a fluke :shifty my little guy is 14 months and very close to Calliopes little one in age. (a week or two apart I think!!) Praying that you will get a fluke night like me Grace :shifty :heart :yes

[schmamy]

:jawdrop oh my, y'all. FIVE YEARS or more since you've slept through the night? does.not.compute. big :hugheart :hugheart :hugheart :hugheart to all your poor sleep deprived zombies. I cannot even fathom how you do it. I would be institutionalized. I do NOT do well on little sleep. It's seriously scary.

Can I ask an honest question without getting :duck ? Are all of you co-sleeping? Or maybe the easier question--is anyone having these awful sleep problems and NOT co-sleeping? Just curious...

[RooMama]

:yawn :raise tired May'07 and Feb '06 mommy here.

We don't co-sleep and she actually started sleeping better once we moved her out of our room.

[illinoismommy]

I do NOT do well on little sleep. It's seriously scary.

I am the same way. :yes2 The first 12 weeks is just survival for me.

Or maybe the easier question--is anyone having these awful sleep problems and NOT co-sleeping? Just curious...


I have seen these sleep problems on other boards with people who neither room share nor bed share.

[Blue-EyedLady]

We do co-sleep. It's the only way I've found to get DS to actually fall asleep to begin with. And then, for nights like last night, it's just survival. Last night he was either screaming, playing or nursing (loudly enough to wake DH). I don't think any of us slept more than an hour last night! But at least when he's in the bed with me and not actually screaming, I can snooze a little.

Oh, and I should mention - we're living with my mom, so all 3 of us have to share a room right now. There's no other choice.

[schmamy]

Or maybe the easier question--is anyone having these awful sleep problems and NOT co-sleeping? Just curious...


I have seen these sleep problems on other boards with people who neither room share nor bed share.


Fair enough :) Your new avi cracks me up, btw :heart

[zak]

Right, teething, sick, hungry babes are going to wake up, no matter where they sleep. :)

FWIW, although I've not had more than 4 hours in 4 years, I don't feel like a zombie. You can find actual quotes from me (search "zombie" by zak) saying this all along, "I don't feel like a zombie". I think cosleeping keeps me sane as well as a daily nap with my guys. :hearts I know for *me*, I wouldn't sleep well having the babe in a crib or in another room. I'm too much of a worrier, I'd be *up* checking on him all night. :lol

Funny old post from me. I am cracking up at how much I've changed since R was 3 weeks old: http://www.gentlechristianmothers.com/mb/index.php?topic=5851.0

[Ali]

Oh my goodness!  We are Nov 07 and have hit a rough patch for the last month.  Granted she is post surgery, but she was sleeping better pretty well before that.  I tried to count how many times she was up the other night, but I barely remember half of them.  That said, we had a good night last night - only three wakings!  I feel so much better today!  

A lot of it is her teeth (4 molars coming in at once) and her allergies start up in January with the cedar.  She HATES having a stuffy nose with a passion.

[jewelmcjem]

Nov 07 -- Fiona's getting better, but still contstantly on the breast which makes for uncomfortable mama. No early AM parties yet tho. She doesn't usually crash til 11:30 or so tho.

[joystrength]

I'm learning to follow my own "newborn" mom advice: SLEEP WHEN THE BABY DOES!! It's not possible during the day, but it IS possible for me at night, when DH is home to tend to the "bigs."

Do I always follow it? NO!!
Should I? YES!

Last night, we were ALL asleep by 10:15 p.m. and I feel SOO good today!! (Granted, DD (09/07) woke up about 4 times, but they were quicks. Nurse and roll over!