Night time wake up 😪

How old?

@Natalie apologies meant to put that in the post, he's 17months old

@Georgia there is a massive sleep regression at around 18 months so could be that. What's the routine for waking, naps and bedtime just in case it isn't.

My baby boy is 17 months old as well. He didn't use to self-settle ever, but it was in fact very easy to settle him, lying in bed with him and breastfeeding him and he used to be very calm. For the past week - 10 days (he's also teething and he also had fever about 10 days ago for a couple of days with no otger syptoms whatsoever) it's been a nightmare to put him down, take me between an hour and an hour and a half and also during the nights he's been waking up, screaming and it takes me anywhere between 2 hours to 2 hours and a half to make him fall asleep again. He's also had few episodes in which he tries to escape from me, screaming and not wanting to be picked up. Keeping in mind that I'm his carer 24/7 since he was born and am the only one, as hid daddy isn't home most of the time and at nights he doesn't settle with him at all since birth. I have no idea what has happened, I'm kinda desperate as well and it stresses me out a lot, as I feel like I can't help him ... 🙊😔

@Natalie ah OK thank you. He tends to only have 1 nap during the day now, usually around dinner time, we were just letting him nap and wake as he wanted, but we've started waking him from his nap after 1.5/2 hours, he's really mardy when we wake him 🫣. He tends to wake himself up in a morning before we have to be up and then bedtime, we usually play, bath, read a book/sing a song, he has a bottle of milk then usually falls asleep in our arms or we lay him down and tap his bum until he falls asleep x

@Monika sounds very similar to what where going through at the minute, he started self settling on his own, one night he was really irritated in my arms, so I just laid him down and he went to sleep, for months after he did the same, have his milk and then I just laid him down. But since been poorly and teething, he's been the exact same as what your saying above. He's waking and screaming, and like he doesn't recognise any of us, we cant console him at first, takes us ages to get him back down 🫣😢 maybe it is a regression stage 😪😞

@Georgia if it is ... Oh My Goodness - how hard does it kick our a** 🤯 And am wondering if anything can be done so that it goes easier on him and on us 🤔 I've also tried to just leace him laid down in bed as sometimes he becomes irritated by me just touching him, but when I leave him, there's no sign of him ever falling asleep on how own, he starts getting up and literally jumping on the bed 🫣 So ... no idea whatsoever what we're supposed to do

@Georgia i personally wouldn't wake from the nap cos if he's been awake for a long time in the night he needs to catch up on lost sleep and being overtired by bedtime could be what's causing the long wake ups. I'd personally look at the timings and possibly tweak those so a longer nap doesn't impact bedtime. What time does he wake, nap and go to bed?

Mine for example wakes up around 8:00, has his nap around 13:00, he usually sleeps between 2 and 3 hours, but most of the time around 2 hours, and then I try to get him to bed around 20:00. I'm aiming for 5 hours awake windows and 2-3 hours nap. And about 12 hours night sleep, which is never 12 hours in reality.

@Monika I know its absolutely draining for us and for him 😞.. yeah we've tried the leaving them to "cry" method and he just starts shouting, bouncing up and down in his cot, and he's get really worked up and then I get upset too.. God knows, hopefully it doesn't last too long and I feel better knowing I'm not the only one going out my mind!

@Natalie oh OK thankyou, makes sense... we usually try settle him by 7/7.30, he usually wakes up himself between 5.50 and 6.30, and usually sleeps through, he then usually naps anytime between 11-2, and can be up to 3 hours sometimes hence why I started waking him up 🤔

@Georgia cry it out just teaches them nobody is coming to meet their needs. It's awful. It feels unnatural and upsetting cos it is. They are only little and need comfort. It's also a need to be met same as hunger, thirst etc.

@Georgia you are most definitely not the only ones going out of mind on what can it be done in order to help the little ones ... I truly hope as well this phase will be soon over and they'll be able to sleep blissfully without a worry on their minds! Keep strong! 💪

@Natalie I only tried it a couple of times as its discussed alot on this app but I hate seeing my LO upset and unsettled so it didn't last long.

@Monika thankyou, I hope you feel better too knowing it isn't just you!! I truly hope so too, not just for his benefit but for mine and my wife's too as where both exhausted, not sure how your doing it on your own! Keep going, your doing amazing 👏 x

@Georgia id be consistent with nap start times. If waking that early I'd be trying to start nap between 10.30-11 so the shorter wake window is in the morning then bedtime approx 5.5-6 hours after nap ends.

@Georgia I definitely feel better hearing I'm not the only one, because I have a couple of friends here who have babies the same age as mine and they're not having a problem like this at all. So I was thinking, what the heck ... what am I doing wrong for this to be happening 😬

@Natalie ok I will bare that in mind thank you, it's hard to keep to routine as I work 4 days a week so he's in nursery then at my mums... but thank you

@Monika aww no way 😞 your definitely not alone in it, all babies are different and some don't even go through the regression stages, luckily we didn't go through the 4 month one but looks like where going through the 18 month one real bad 😞 keep strong 👏 only a message away if you want a chat!

@Georgia it is tricky. My daughter did 3 days at nursery or my mum's when I was at work at that age but I found it helped so much when nap time was within 30 mins either side of her usual time.