Sleep Routine Revised

After such a thorough analysis, a funny thing happened when I started to get the hang of my little angel’s sleeping schedule. She decided to change it so that it now way near resembles what it consistently did for the past couple of months. She now goes down for the night around 7:30 instead of 10. I would now consider myself the luckiest girl in the world if she were waking up only twice a night and though I know she’s tired, she refuses to nap longer than forty minutes and wakes up rubbing her eyes. The worst part is during the night, when she now cries for a half-hour or so every time I put her back in her crib after waking up, which seems to be happening every two hours. I stand by the crib, unable to figure out why she is crying and how I can soothe her.

Determined to help her learn healthy sleeping habits, I have resorted to reading and following ideas I found in the “The No-Cry Sleep Solution.” My doctor recommended letting Caroline cry herself to sleep until she learns how to comfort herself, but it just doesn’t feel like the right thing to do. I find myself constantly worrying that ignoring her in this way will scar her for life and she’ll develop negative feelings towards sleep.

So here I go again, another project, another plan. Today begins day two of the process, and so far it’s been rough on both of us. I know my new method requires patience though, and if it means a few months from now she’ll be a well rested and happy little girl most of the time, it will most certainly be worth it. And I will feel much better knowing that I’m doing all I can to comfort my baby.