How to get baby to sleep through the night?

Fan question

seeking advice and other stories about kids not sleeping.

My baby just won’t sleep without me. Cries many times a night for feeding. My husband cannot console him. It’s a whole wreck. I’m not really looking for advice on how to fix these problems. I just really need some support and inspiration. I need to hear your guys stories about your babies who seemed like they would never ever sleep themselves. I need to hear things like, “but she’s three now and sleeps all night just fine!”
I know this is all temporary and that babies don’t keep. But there are SO many sleep problems, and it feels hopeless.

8 Likes

Um…u can get her to sleep good now! Why wait? Sleep training is awesome. Moms need sleep too. Good luck

1 Like

Our third didn’t sleep without me until december, he was 5.5yrs old.

All kids go at their own pace. Meaning, when they are ready to do “xyz”, they will.
They are so young for such a short amount of time, next thing you know, they don’t even want to be near you in public.:joy::sob:

1 Like

I have a one month old on the 14th and she is somewhat the same way. She wants me to hold her all night or she will cry. I’ve been keeping her up in the day and giving her a bath around 5 pm …seems to help her relax and sleep in her crib. Only thing I can tell you is enjoy the snuggles, bc the Time will pass quickly and someday they wont want you to hold them . But I under stand I’m exhausted too.

2 Likes

My son didn’t sleep through a night until he was three and a half years old. Then he suddenly started sleeping ten hours a night. Hang in there. Babies sleep eventually. I’d try a white noise machine with a projector on it. My son liked his.

This is why I cosleep because I have a problem of holding my kids (they’re 3& 5 now and have no problem sleeping by themselves now)when they’re babies even when they’re asleep and they got so use to that and they would cry and scream if I try putting them in their own bed…but I have a baby boy coming in 3 weeks so I won’t be holding him like I hold his sisters because It’s hard to get them to sleep in their own beds and sleep by themselves

2 Likes

One of mine slept on a “nest” on the floor next to my bed. It was a crib mattress with fluffy blankets and pillows I booted him out of my bed because I was pregnant with #4 We then moved his “nest” to his room and finally his bed.

I co-slept both my girls.
The first one, we started putting her in her crib just after her first birthday. At 14 months, she asked to go in one night. That was the end of it. She slept by herself after.
My second, same thing, but she napped in her crib. Around 10 months, to her crib she went one night and she’s been a glorious sleeper ever since. Barely coming to sleep with me. She’s two now.
You can start small, a playpen in your room. Or naps in their crib.
It does get better. It never seems like it. But it does!

I have an 8 month old who still wakes up about 3-4 times a night :weary: and refuses to have dad put him to sleep. Sometimes we can get away with the cry it out method but sometimes he just refuses until I go in there and rock him! It’s exhausting but I know it won’t be like this forever. I have a 6 year old who was a great sleeper so this not sleeping is all new to me and I’m just ready for a full nights sleep :crossed_fingers:

1 Like

My 3 year old has slept through the night since he was 4 months.
Now… my 4 month old daughter COMPLETELY DIFFERENT
I coslept with her until 3 months and she slept SO MUCH better than she does now.
It did get better with a routine though. she also has a sound machine in her room and that definitely helps.

My husband gives my kid big warm milk and it makes him go to sleep and if he crying and don’t wanna sleep at all I give him bath it makes him sleep too

Sleep with a blanket for a few nights. Then with a hot water bottle (not to hot tho)wrap it up in the blanket u slept with try that maybe

so I slept in my girls room until 7 mo… found out I was the problem :joy::joy::joy: i purchased the little ones plans and learned a lot
of tricks- picked and chose what worked for us (mostly slowly gradually leaving her earlier and earlier)… were at 18 mo and I literally put her in her bed and she wakes 2-4 times a night. now she’s getting into sleep regression and sep anxiety so we’re working thru that with the same tactics. it’s so hard because we sleep better when they do but at this point i wake up more than she does each night and it’s SO NICE to have 6 hours of uninterrupted sleep per night and then another 2-6 hour stretch in there (i’m also pregnant with twins - 8 mo so i’m basically a bear hibernating LOL)… you got this!

My brother’s two youngest girls would not settle down until he laid on the bed with them. They would go right to sleep.

My son is 2 and half months old and has the rhino virus a cold to me and u can be fatal to him he was transported to a children’s hospital and admitted last sunday we are home now but he is still sick slowly getting better! The only way he can sleep and breathe is upright on my chest after what weve been through and i thought i was going to loose him im ok with him sleeping like this till he is 18 lol just kidding but good luck

this is one of the two reasons why I would never co sleep because I seen people and there kids are still in bed with them at 14 second reason I’m a afraid I kill them

2 Likes

Yep my first child woke up ever hr crying half the time it was just to cry she got much better as she got older but I have definitely been that mom falling asleep sitting up bouncing a baby wondering if it ever ends and it does !

2 Likes

My oldest daughter just turned 13. She didn’t sleep through the night until she was about 3.5.

That alone made me fearful to have another… but go figure… I have a 7 month old now🤣 and this baby doesn’t sleep through the night.

It’s almost painful to be so tired and I find myself praying to stay balanced, because I get so irritable with everyone, of course it’s usually a brief few minutes of aggravation, but I do try to catch up on sleep every chance I get. For the most part, I’m always making sure my family is loved and has what they need :pray:t3::grin:.

We don’t have help, it’s just my man and myself taking care of the kids.

I get mad and resent him sometimes because he gets to sleep through the night… but he’s working and I’m not.

Nothing can always be fair, but these are small normal sacrifices and part of the parenting process with babies.

I tell myself that I have what I prayed so hard for, all of this, and to be grateful… because some people can’t even have kids.

Make sure to create a nighttime routine…
and a daytime schedule.

I know you said you don’t want advice, but… best of luck…

Ouch . I did sleep with my son when we moved out of my moms from 2-7 years . When I had my daughter things changed and I did sleep trainer her slowly but surely . My baby is 3 weeks old tomorrow and 2 weeks before baby was born I had to get my 12 year old and 5 year old back on schedule before school and baby . They stayed in my bed or my 12 year old would sneak off at night . Thankfully I did that. My 3 week old wakes once a night but he is over 10 lbs and my breast make 4 o at a time . But really if you don’t do sleep training slowly but surly you drive ur self crazy . But usually not recommended till 4-6 months . On top of that my 3 week old sometimes will sleep fine in his own bassinet others he wants to sleep sitting up partially in the breast feeding pillow beside me . Also only way I feel comfortable co sleeping . But I also only have me in bed so if u have a partner I’d be more concerned with co- sleeping . Not everyone feels this way but recently a mother was charged for co-sleeping and smothering child so be very careful . Maby try out the breast feeding pillow idea and place somthing under legs so they don’t wiggle down .

He is 46 now and no longer sleeps with me.

3 Likes

Your not alone I am in the same boat with my 7th month old son

We cosleep and breastfeed. He just turn a year old and we put his crib against our bed with the front railing removed and I feed him and he falls asleep and I can just scoot him to his space still wakes 2-3 times a night to feed but only for a min or two. We are gradually trying to get him to sleep on his own with the pantley method. I personally cannot just let him cry. I feel for you. I hope it gets better soon

All 4 of my daughter’s slept by themselves unless they were sick and never gave much problem with this

My babe is three now, she goes to sleep by herself after a story and a cuddle… This is at 7 & she’ll wake up at 12-1 for another cuddle, but 9/10 she’ll go back off without a fuss til 6… it gets easier and once your dedicated to them not being in your bed it wont take long to get your own space back! Hang in there xx

My son was 2 and a half years old when he finally slept through an entire night lol it was glorious!! Of course at that point I was pregnant with his brother! His brother is 4 months almost and sleeps through the night already! Every kid is different but it will end!! It may be a long time away but it will end!:slightly_smiling_face:

Raised 5 none had sleeping issues but never put any of them in bed with me. They slept in their own bed beside my bed from day one. They weren’t allowed to sleep in bed with me in the hospital so there was no reason to start a bad and I might add very dangerous habit at home

Hoping my baby sleeps thru the night soon as well, she’s 13months :black_heart: but I get it and I did it before my oldest started sleeping all night at 13months so I’m being hopeful, it’s hard
Also dad can’t console :cold_sweat:
#momlife

My little guy co-slept until over a year. Not our plan and not without many attempts to stop. We found it worked to start a night time routine and stay consistent (supper, bath, lavender lotion!!!, books, snuggles, sleep). It wasn’t without hard nights but we tried to stick it out. Starting with rocking to sleep and then laying down with. Now its 5-mins of cuddling and I duck out. He started slowly sleeping longer and longer. When he wakes I crawl in his bed not bring him to mine. Wasn’t easy but worth it! Good luck!!!

Both of mine 2 & 5 have slept through the night since about 6 months. My youngest a little closer to 8/ 9 months… she had reflux, colic… nobody else worked for her but mommy syndrome so we co-slept. It does get better especially if a routine is in place. When they get older and don’t want to sleep or cuddle with you, you’ll miss the nights when all they wanted was you. As a momma it’s a lose lose situation, sometimes you want them to have independence so you can have two minutes to breath and other times you want them to just need you endlessly.

1 Like

My first slept through the night at 2wks scared me to death.the second one did the same but he had to be rocked for every nap and nite time,but I didnt mind I love rocking babies

Two out of three were that way. It does get easier. At around a 9 months or so I introduced the crib to them in their room. I started to let them cry it out for their afternoon naps. Starting during the day made it much easier at night. With my son, I would give him a bottle with a little rice cereal. (at 6 months) before bed time then swaddle him in a blanket to feel more comfortable. Sometimes it would give me a few extra hours of sleep. After I stopped repeatedly checking on him because of my anxiety

I’ve nursed my last two boys and they got up every 45 min-2hrs until they were 2.5 3yrs old. The youngest just started sleeping threw the night and he’s 2.5 and I’m due with another boy in December. :joy: I know I’m not going to sleep and my husband can’t really help since the boys are exclusively breast fed but I do get unlimited guilt free naps. That’s the deal lol

Good luck and it WILL get better

I slept holding baby #2 in my arms for like 4-5 months for this exact reason. When I went back to work I just cold turkey had to do the bassinet. She screamed bloody murder. I would pick her up every time she worked herself up to where I thought she would get sick, calm her, then put her back down. I didn’t sleep for like 2 nights. By night 3 it was better and after a week we had no issues. It gets better I promise! One day you’ll sleep again and your little one will be a great sleeper! You can do this! You’re built for this mama and you are stronger than you realize!

1 Like

My kids started sleeping through the night at 3 months.

It might not sound comforting to hear that my almost two year old mostly still just wants me - but she sleeps 11-12 hours a night now and almost never wakes up (except when she’s sick) and after about a week of morning tantrums she’s now happy to hang out with Daddy for a few hours in the morning while I try and get a bit of extra sleep (we also have a 1.5 month old). Things will get better :heart:

I have had to CO-sleep with both my kids. They were in the womb with my for 9 months. When they get out they still want to be with me. So I let them sleep with me. There are safe positions to do so. Honestly with breastfeeding it helps a lot anyways. But once I stop trying to force my babies to sleep alone, we all rested much better and everyone’s anxiety went down. My daughter is 2 years old and sleeps through the night with little to no issues. The only time she wakes up is if she has a bad dream or something actually wakes her. But she is easy usually to get back to sleep.

My son was up 8 times a night was 3 1/2 when he started sleeping through, my middle daughter would only go to me for everything she now gose to her dad more she is 4 in 8 days and my youngest is still on boob but sleeps through when she isn’t sick or teething and she is 21 months.

Sounds like hes scared.

I feel you, my little girl just turned ten months and refuses to sleep by herself now and only wants to sleep on me! She wont even let her daddy calm her down! Been like this for a little over a month now and I’m losing my mind from lack of sleep :sob: