Well, DH is taking the second chunk of his bonding leave so we've started the dreaded sleep training. We've been putting it off for a couple of months in preparation for having us both at home - for moral support and sleep support. For quite some time TerraDactyl has been waking up every 90 minutes and the only way I can get her back to sleep is by feeding her. The only way I can get any sleep is if she can eat while I'm sleeping (obviously not ideal, and really rough on my back).
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| Riley and TerraDactyl are still vying for the same toys... |
After discussing what approach we wanted to take, we went with a modified
Ferber Method. Basically, set up a bedtime routine and lay the baby down when she's sleepy, but still awake. If she cries for 5 minutes, we go in and comfort her by rubbing her belly and giving her a phrase meant to indicate it's time to sleep. Sort of like a command for a dog. But no cuddling or picking her up. We're in and out of there in less than a minute. And then if she's still crying 5 minutes later, we go back in for more comforting. For as long as it takes for her to fall asleep. The first night, that would be 90 minutes or so.
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| TerraDactyl self-comforting by playing with her ears |
Unfortunately, we broke one of the rules: don't feed to sleep. That's how we've been getting TerraDactyl to sleep, BUT, this is a problem if you're letting your kid cry for a while. They've got a sensitive gag reflex, so when they get really worked up... they puke if they've eaten recently. So. There was some puking excitement. We got to do a fast change of the bassinet sheets before going back to the crying. (Aside: I'm SO glad the pediatrician warned us that babies will cry until they puke. I would have thrown in the towel right here without advanced warning). BUT, once TerraDactyl fell asleep, she slept through the night. Sort of. She'd wake up and cry for less than a minute and then go back to sleep all on her own.
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| TerraDactyl after she finally fell asleep - it was rough on all of us |
I am SO glad we had a video monitor for this process. Every time TerraDactyl stopped crying I freaked out and had to check the video and make sure she was still breathing. Not that I wanted TerraDactyl to cry, but at least I knew she was alive. Fortunately our camera was placed well (it took some trial and error to find the right spot) so I could watch her little rib cage rise and fall. It was rough.
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| DH and TerraDactyl are still on speaking terms after sleep training |
Naps were also a bit of a problem, but after just two nights and two days the improvement is amazing. We're all sleeping SO much better. I can't believe we put this off for two months! Although, if I weren't so desperate for sleep, maybe I wouldn't have been able to listen to TerraDactyl cry that first night. All this to say, I'm glad we're doing it now. And now, the result of all this drama... a happy baby! TerraDactyl's been pretty chipper, I think she's needed the better sleep as well. Check out the adorable video of her very first raspberry!
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