I am currently, right at this moment, trying to teach my sweet baby to get to sleep without nursing for hours on end. This is sheer torture and although I have been through this 3 other times in the last 6 years, I am truly convinced that we will not survive it. I have got to get a good night's sleep. I really can't take it anymore. All night long I'm dragging myself back and forth from that crib to my bed, half the time I take her to the couch to nurse her and I fall asleep sitting up with my head flung back at a freakishly unhealthy angle. The other half, I'll turn on a show to keep myself awake long enough to get her back in her crib only to be so into the show that I put her to bed and stay up another 45 minutes to see how the dang episode ends. When you are getting 2ish hours of sleep a night, 45 minutes is not to be wasted on nightline! And we have DVR!! What is my problem?
It's not like my children are hardwired to be terrible sleepers, I just slowly train them over the first 6 months or so. Then I suddenly feel the need to do a 180 and begin to train them in the exact opposite direction. loony. Well, honestly, I just really use nursing as the cure all for baby woes. Hungry? nurse. Tired? nurse. Bored? nurse. Scared? nurse. The Office is on? nurse. Visiting teachers are here? nurse. It's a wonder the poor things aren't shopping in the husky section.
So there you have it. I deserve it! I made my bed and now wish I could lie in it.
I do the same thing with my babies. And then pay for it. Glad I'm not the only one. Happy sleeping....
ReplyDeleteI hear ya. I'm nursing my fourth baby and would probably STILL be up all night if it weren't for my husband. He very gently said to me one day about 2 months ago, "Afton my love, my sweet wife, wonderful mother to our darling baby girl... please can't we get some sleep at night?? Can't we just let her cry?? She will be okay, she will go back to sleep. Please?? I need to sleep. YOU need to sleep. I have forgotten what sleep feels like..."
ReplyDeleteI am horrible at letting my kids just cry. It breaks my heart and I am weak. I go fetch them, bring them back to bed with me to nurse and that is where they stay the rest of the night. (I started to feel like an all-night Wendy's after awhile.)
So, after much resisting and many weak moments I did it. The first night was bad. She cried. A LOT. My husband had to restrain me at times. BUT. She did fall back to sleep! The second night was a whole different story. She cried out only once and for only a minute before she fell back to sleep. The third night... quiet ALL NIGHT LONG. I had to check on her a few times just to make sure she was okay. She occasionally will still cry out, but she always goes right back to sleep. It is AWESOME.
Anywho. I just want you to know I feel your struggle. Good luck girl!
Ha, ha! That brought back so many memories. I was so like that. I started to get smarter with the last ones, but I do miss it sooo much. My baby is 5.
ReplyDeleteYour blog is darling too. Do you mind if I add you to my blog roll?