Cathartic Venting

When your kid is screaming their head off going on 12 hours of no sleep, it's easy to slip into the no one understands and I'm the only one who has ever gone through this attitude.

And when I say your kid, I actually mean mine, ya know.

I wouldn't trade my sweet boy for anything in the world, but he really is very difficult. Maybe that's my fault- I don't know. I just know that nothing makes him happy. In the last 5.5 months I remember one week that I looked back on and thought 'he had a good week'. One. The rest? Not so much. He cries most of the day unless I'm holding him constantly, but sometimes that doesn't work either. He rarely naps. Baby K getting shut-eye is about as likely as the stars aligning.

This "It's colic" explanation isn't acceptable to me. Colic is supposed to be gone by now. He's unhappy. And it's probably because he's overly tired or has reflux or gas. Who in the world knows?

But nothing seems to work. I spend most of my day attempting to get him to sleep. Then, he sleeps for ten minutes, wakes up, and I have to start the process all over again. I'm going crazy here. I have no life outside of desperately wishing and praying that he'll sleep for just thirty minutes. The books say he should be sleeping for hour stretches at a time, multiple times a day. Sure, all kids are different, but I doubt there's a five month old around that doesn't need a nap. I can see it in his droopy, exhausted eyes. He needs his sleep.

How can I help him get it? I have no idea.

I've tried relaxed schedules, swaddling, noise machines, rocking him, crying it out. You name it, I've probably done it. Nothing seems to work and it only succeeds in making me mad. Mad that I have a bachelor's of science degree in psychology, much of which is focused on childhood development, and I can't teach a five month old how to sleep. Mad that I have hours and hours of credit toward a counseling degree and a tiny, screaming child defeats me. It's ridiculous.

Cathartic vent end.

Silent Night

I was reading this new mom's post and it inspired me to write about the past couple of days.

Like she said, I also am afraid to utter these words:

Baby K finally seems happy.

No doubt there are still some issues with reflux, gas, and the like, but over the last few days I have seen an amazing change in him. He has been hanging out with his YaYa, Papa Joe, and Uncle Jake a lot more so I hope it continues and it's not just that my mom is a much better mother than I am. Ha!

I've spaced out his feedings a bit more, added gas drops to his daily routine, and have been working harder at getting him to nap. The latter has completely changed my world the last couple of days. Typically, if he gets a short nap in the morning and a long one in the afternoon then he is in a much better mood during the evening before bed. When we were in Louisiana, he was napping for three hours in the afternoon and we experienced a marked difference in his mood. Sometimes it's less here in Tennessee because there's a lot going on around here at Christmas time. Still, he's happier. I can tell.

I'm so thankful for my mom and her suggestions in helping Baby K to feel better.

I'm thankful for other bloggers who write about what works for them.

I'm glad to read or hear other moms talk about how they struggled and overcame, too.

The point is- each person has to find what works for them. Babies, even at four months, have little personality quirks developing. It's a task to find out what these are and how to handle them. One of Baby K's is a fierce resistance to sleep. Perhaps he wants to be in the middle of all the action. If so, he's not like his Mama in that regard! But it's one of my jobs to help him try to get some rest.

Our schedule is a bit more structured during the day and it seems to be helping. I hope it continues.

Last night, Captain J and I were able to have a date night with another couple. It was the longest we had ever left our little man. We were gone from 2:30-10:30pm and Mom said Baby K only cried for about 10 minutes! This is a huge change. Usually when we have to leave him, he screams the entire time. We just thought it was part of his nighttime/evening routine because we were told he was colicky. I'm so relieved that he's starting to feel a little better with all the new sleep he is getting. It makes a night out on the town with my hubby not so full of guilt and worry.

This is what has been working for us lately and I truly hope it continues. Since we've been in Tennessee, Baby K has slept through the night the whole time, too!

What about you? How do you get your child to sleep?