A while back I had posted about my son, and how he was still going to sleep every night by being bounced in his bouncer. (You can catch up at Operation No Bouncer) Well, it has been over 3 months since I posted that! (Wow, where does the time go??) And as of 2 days ago, Squishy was still going to sleep in his bouncer.
He loves that chair, he wants his bottle in it, he likes to sit in it, when he is tired he gets into it and lays down… But regardless of whether or not he loves it, my son is now 16.5 months old. He does not fit into a bouncer, and I know he is ready to be going to bed on his own.
So three nights ago, we started going to bed in his crib. The first night he cried for a total of 28 minutes. (On and off, never more than 5 minutes without stopping.) I went into see him after 5 minutes, even though he had started to calm down because he was still crying. I told him I loved him, Mommy was still here, and it was night night time. That made things worse. Awful 28 minutes. Pure torture.
The second night he went to sleep in less than 5 minutes. He cried a bit, laid down and went to sleep. Still hard, but not as awful as the night before. There was hope this was working. I didn’t even have to go back in. He slept for 11 hours, and woke up happy.
Tonight, he cried for a bit, then was quite for 10 minutes, then cried for 5. I went in at 5 minutes and told him I loved him, Mommy was still here, and it was night night time. He did not like me going in. He cried, but before another 5 minutes was up, he was quiet. For 10 minutes he was quiet, then he cried for 3, then he was quiet for 8 minutes, then cried for 4, and finally quiet for the night.
I am pretty sure it is harder on me, because this goes against the way I have been parenting for 16.5 months. I am a mother who always responds to my child when he cries, I have never let him ‘cry it out’. I wondered for 16.5 months if I was teaching him it was okay to go to sleep, or letting him cry was teaching him I was not going to respond to him when he was upset…
I know plenty of parents that have done sleep training. I would not judge them for doing it, so why do I judge myself? This whole Mommy Guilt thing is really getting kind of old. I wish I could figure out a way to release myself from some of it. (Not all, because I am a realist.)
So Day 3 is done, Squishy seems no worse for the wear. I am getting a bit more sleep, but I still can’t shake this nagging voice in my head that says teaching him to sleep this way, is really just teaching him that I am not going to respond to his needs.
Clearly, I know that isn’t the case… but it is still there. Anyone else feel like this?
Latest posts by Emily (Posts)
- Don’t Call It A Comeback - February 7, 2019
- The Little Prince at The Smith Center Las Vegas – Ticket Giveaway - January 31, 2017
- 3 Simple Ways To Add Color To Your Diet @SUBWAY @OfficialSubway - January 13, 2017
- Disney’s Moana in Dolby Cinema at AMC Movie Review - November 27, 2016
I'm going through pretty much the same thing right now. While our daughter adored her bouncy chair as well we did manage to break that habit…but she had to have both her wedge and her Woombie to go to sleep. I finally eliminated the wedge about a month ago without her really taking notice since she was rolling up on her side. Since then she has really started to roll around and I worried about the Woombie. The new one does allow more movement so when she rolls over she can still prop herself up but I'm ready to get rid of it. Problem is…she won't sleep without it. Plus she's still waking up numerous times during the night always wanting a bottle. *sigh* we're not getting any sleep and hubby would rather just give her a bottle than listen to her cry…did I mention she's already 7 months old. I definitely need to figure something out. 🙁 I'm like you though…I hate the whole "cry it out" She gets so upset and it makes me feel like she feels like I'm just not going to come back, that I'm ignoring her and I hate that feeling.
I hear you mama! We have major sleep issues due to Wyatt's crib being recalled then the company promising and lying about when I would receive it. So Wyatt got used to sleeping with me. Once the crib was here and up we began sleep training and he would cry for HOURS. I couldn't handle it…after a week of screaming I threw in the towel. It is tough, but I think you are doing great!
It's hard but I promise the guilt will fade as all of you adjust and getting him to sleep is no longer an issue. It's something he has to learn and it's probably best to deal with it now than later when he'll be more stubborn and set in his ways 🙂
Good luck! Hopefully it will keep getting better at a rapid pace!
I think every mom can definitely understand the emotions behind your questions about sleep training. Back when Devon was about 5 months old he would take 1 1/2 hours to get to sleep then maybe stay asleep for 20 minutes and wake up. We thought it was teeth at the time, but looking back on it I think it was him needing to teach himself to sleep. It was hard for a long time, but soon he started falling asleep faster and faster. Now I rock him for a few minutes before bedtime or naptime and he generally tends to fall asleep within 5-10 minutes. The majority of time he doesn't cry anymore. Most the time he "sings" himself to sleep now. So there's going to be tons of times where you doubt if you're doing the right thing….I know I did at the time….but just remember it'll get better. I'm definitely glad we made the decision to do it. Good luck!!
He's so cute! I am a new follower from the Tuesday to the top bloghop. Come and visit at http://www.thriftymommastips.blogspot.com/ or http://www.thriftymommasbrainfood.blogspot.com/