Sleep Training - Day 1

Awhile back, I was talking to someone who said that the thing that she doesn't like about blogs is that everyone always tries to make their lives look perfect - only talking and posting about the good things. Well, I do agree that most of what I post about are the good/fun things, because really - who wants to listen to me complain - but I'm the first to admit that my life is not perfect. And here is one example of that...

I've said before that I have a very dependent daughter. It has been much better as she has gotten older, but she is still very high maintenance. In the early days, I definitely spent more time holding her than anything - most nights she wouldn't even let me put her down.

In the last month and a half, she has learned to sleep nights in the pack and play next to my bed. I still would have to rock her to sleep - and most naps were spent in my arms. I love holding my little girl, but started feeling like I could never get anything done, and most importantly, I didn't want to set any habits that I would regret later on. She has also started becoming quite fussy around people - only letting me or Josh hold her. And quite frankly, it has been a little wearing.

Let me preface this next part by saying that I am not a doctor - and I can't tell you what is best for your baby. I know that every baby is different, and what works for you might be different than what works for me. Only you and your doctor can figure out the answer for you and your baby.

So my sister loaned me her copy of Babywise. I had read several books up to this point, but this book really stood out to me and really made a lot of sense for me and my baby. I read the whole book in one day, and was determined to start a new "system" for our family.

I started out the week before, stretching Abbi's eating schedule from 2 hours to 3 hours. I was really afraid to do this, because I didn't know how she would react (she LOVES to eat!!) but it went so much better than I expected. In fact, she is so much better on the 3 hour schedule! She seems happier and a bit less fussy, which completely surprised me.

Basically what I took from Babywise is that I need a predictable routine for Abbi. I want to teach her how to put herself to sleep, how to sleep in her crib instead of in the pack and play, and how to sleep without the swaddle blanket. I decided to go full on starting yesterday - Monday the 18th. I've decided to keep a record of how this is working out for us each day until I feel like she has started sleeping better. It may take 3 days, it may take weeks.

One thing I have decided to do - that I know some people won't agree with - is that I'm going to let her cry it out. This is the hardest part for me, but I also think that one of the reasons she has become so needy is that up to this point, we have come running every time she fusses. So many things that I read have said that a baby needs to know that he/she is part of a family - not the center of the family. Otherwise, you just can't operate effectively as a family unit. I thougth about doing the Ferber method, but it seems like if I go into the room when she is crying and I don't take her out rock her, she only gets more upset, so I'll be letting her cry it out. And I have to say - this first day, I shed a lot of tears. It's so hard for me to hear my little girl cry, but I know it's all for her good and for things to be better in the long run.

So here is a snapshot of day 1:

5:00am - woke up. She actually slept through the night from 9pm to 5am!!
5:00am - 5:20am - Fed her and put her back in bed (still swaddled), fell right back to sleep
7:00am - woke up. Fed her and played
8:00am - kind of ruined the schedule already, because I went on a walk.
8:30am - 9:00am - fell asleep in stroller on walk
10:25am - put in crib for nap
10:28am - 11:00am - cried the whole time
11:00am - picked up and fed
12:30pm - put down for nap - cried for 10 mintues before falling asleep
1:00pm - 2:00pm - woke up and cried
2:00pm - picked up and fed
3:30pm - put down for nap, cried for 22 minutes before falling asleep
4:32pm - woke up crying, cried until next feeding
5:00pm - picked up and fed
6:30pm - put down for nap - cried for 55 minutes
7:25pm - woke up crying - cried until next feeding
8:00pm - picked up and fed
8:50pm - put down to bed for the night - fussed, but fell right asleep

What a long day. She definitley cried more than she slept, and it broke my heart. But I know that it is going to be better in the long run.

I'll try to post the day-to-day until we get this down. But I will be posting about other things as well!! Who knows - maybe someone is going through the same thing right now and are looking for support. Maybe I'll be able to help someone!