4 month old sleep PLEASE HELP 🩷🩷🩷
My 4 month old is exclusively breast fed. He won’t take a dummy or bottle. We have been contact napping (he will nap for 1 hour on me mostly and then has one 2 hour nap) and co-sleeping but I now want to stop co-sleeping and reduce the contact naps.
Around 1-3 times a week for the past 2-3 weeks he will have his first nap of the day in the bassinet or next to me crib (I will breastfeed him, transfer while drowsy but awake, rock him and shhhh him to sleep). This worked - he would moan a little for around 10 mins but not cry and would sleep for around 30 mins.
This week all independent naps have been unsuccessful - I have not changed anything but he won’t sleep and then becomes overtired. So I give in and nurse him to sleep as I just want him to sleep.
Night time he wakes 6-11 times and it’s exhausting, he wants to feed to sleep each time. If I don’t nurse him and try rock him / shhh him / tap him he will cry and then it takes 1 hour plus+ to sleep. I am exhausted, I have no other support apart from my partner. He leaves for work at 5 am and gets home at 6.30pm. I am the only one who can get my baby to sleep and it’s exhausting. I feel like a shell of my former self and just want some time to be able to do normal things!
He will fall asleep on a walk in the pram or carrier too.
Also, last week his day time sleep was a lot less as we were out a lot of the day but he only woke at 1am!!!!! There was no change other than reduced nap time during the day but all the guidance online stayed less daytime sleep leads to worse night time sleep.
Any help is GREATLY appreciated please! I am at my wits end. I’m considering hiring a sleep coach as I don’t know what else to do but money is tight and I DO NOT want to do any cry it out at all!!
Thank you! Xxx
Feeling depressed about our situation
Heya, I’m feeling so low and really struggling…. Our son will be turning 1 soon. He’s never naps in his cot, but does sleep in it at night (however in our room).
He used to do contact nap, then pram nap as he got older and that went ok for months up until now. He’s too aware and stimulated by the noise and especially the light.
We’re STRUGGLING to keep our room pitch black at night (using cardboard on window, double roller blinds and roman blinds….) but it’s literally impossible during the day…. Streaks of light everywhere….
We’re now also struggling with night sleep as he wakes up crying and something settles on his own, most of the time, doesn’t.
We know we need to get him to sleep in his cot during the day, it just feels impossible (we have tried on many occasions before). He knows what’s coming and goes hysterical, then it’s too bright, then the neighbours make noise. Pick up-Put down method only stimulates him more, same his patting, shushing, etc.
We are so tired and need help. Any advice?