you guys and my mom have been my support beam through my pregnancy and postpartum... well now I need you guys more than ever- I think I'm falling into depression. Trey has stopped sleeping through the night which could be my fault because we share a room (there is no other option) I am tired all the time even when I do get a fair amount of sleep yet I generally cant fall asleep or its very hard which makes napping with him almost impossible. I cry several times a week usually because I feel like I'm failing my son. If not then something plain stupid can just send me to tears. I get frustrated and very upset when I can't get Trey back to bed in the middle of the night which therefore makes the cycle impossible because he picks up on it. I love my son more than anything in this world and don't know what to do. I finally broke down to mom this morning when she got home and told her- I need help. so now what b/c we arent sure where to go from here??
talk to your doctor about how you are feeling. You may very well be experiencing post-partum depression. It doesn't always require medication, sometimes all that is needed is a good night's sleep or someone to talk with. But even if you do decide on medication, there are some that are perfectly safe to take while breastfeeding. Most babies do not sleep all night, no matter what people might tell you about their babies. Best thing you can do is learn how to nurse laying down in bed, so you can snooze after latching baby on. When he takes a nap, get yourself some sleep, too. He doesn't have to sleep alone, if he is happy sleeping in bed with you, do it. Most humans need the comfort of another human at night. That is normal and there is nothing wrong with that! Do what works, no matter what anyone has said about it. If you have to hold your baby, hold him! If he wants to nurse all night, nurse him. If you weaned him already, that could be contributing to the ppd. Relactation is always a possibility. ((((HUGS)))))
I tried the breastfeeding but it ended after a week it just didn't work and that is something I agonize over often too because I hate that I couldn't do that for him. So he is forumula fed. He had been sleeping very well and now he won't even nap well. He has been up since approximatly 730 (he woke up actually about 5 and only slept while I rocked him when I tried to lay him down he would get right back up) and has since had only 2 half hour naps.
I think maybe you are just tired,ask any mother it is not easy,you say that you think that you might be feeling depressed,Mmmmmmmmm i think maybe if you think a bit more positively you might not succumb to that,you are one in million of mothers who feel that maybe when you are tired that you are failing your child,that is not so,i feel everybody has there breaking point,and motherhood is one way to find out what that point is,it is one of lifes trials i guess.Positively,you need some time on your own,everbody needs a break sometime,could your Mother watch your son for a while or maybe friends who you can trust,even if it is for two or three hours so you can have a little own time,a little time alone can make a big difference.
Oh, don't be so hard on yourself! You're not failing your son. You're tired and stressed. I don't know how old you baby is, but I'll tell you what happened to me. My daughter would not sleep at all unless I held her. For 2 weeks I got no sleep at all. (My in-laws were there for a week and don't believe in sleeping with the baby.) I thought I would lose my mind. Then, after the in-laws left and I was alone with her one day, I accidentally fell asleep with her lying in my bed. We woke up a couple of hours later and that was the first 2 solid hours of sleep that we had gotten! From then on, we slept together, and we were both happier. Do what you have to do. If people tell you that their baby always slept all night and changed its own diapers and learned to walk at 3 months and read at 6 months, they are LYING! Take care of yourself.
how old is your baby? If I had to guess, I'd say either three or six months, those were the hardest. Three months because of a major, I'm talking humongously huge, growth spurt. or six months because everyone has sleep "issues" with their babies at six months for whatever reason. If it's a growth spurt, try giving him more in his bottles. If it's the normal six month sleep thing, keep telling yourself over and over and over again that it will pass and it will get better!! So sleep in the rocker, with baby in your arms. You gotta do whatever it takes to get some rest! Do you have a babysling? That would be helpful, too, keep baby close to you so he sleeps better and you can get things done when he just doesn't want to be put down.
geesh your good - he is almost 7 months. I have this fear of hurting him which is why its hard for me to sleep in the rocker with him and cosleep (afraid of rolling over on him) I know its highly unlikely but I wouldn't sleep fearing these. I did however sleep on the couch with him on my chest leaning towards the back when he was young though. I think I may have to do that when he starts the morning fussing. Mom and I have been racking our brains into what may have changed to make him stop sleeping well. The only difference we can think of is we took down his playpen in the living room so he would learn to sleep in his bed all the time and we moved his dinner time. I just feel so inept. I keep telling myself this is all just because I am worn and tired but then I think if it is depression it will only get worse and I'm scared.
Don't be so hard on yourself. My son still doesn't sleep thru the night and he's almost 3 years old. He has always gone thru phases where he will sleep thru the night, but it never lasts very long and now it hasn't happened since August. I was always paranoid about co-sleeping too, but I spent many nights asleep with him in my arms in the rocker. Now, when he sleeps with us, he takes up the whole bed and I can't sleep at all. I think some children are just a bit harder than others. Don't worry, you're doing great!!!
Do you put him on his back or his belly for naps? When Skye goes to bed at night he always sleeps on his back, but if we put him on his back for naps, he will wake up within 15 min. When we put him on his belly for naps he will sleep nicely for anywhere from 2 - 4 hours. For the co-sleeping part, he will nap without someone there, but I can't just lay him down, I usually have to sing him to sleep(maybe my singing voice is so bad he sleeps to escape the agony). Babies are so against change, if you move a picture on the wall it is a whole new world, they will stop sleeping and eating...... Give it a little time for him to adjust. As far as the depression thing goes, this might sound mean so don't it the wrong way, but you have to just get over it. My whole family is a bunch of manic depressants, they all take medicines or do drugs, and they all stay manic depressants. The human mind is capable of so much more than people allow. Some people I know smoke weed to help them with the depression, and I want to smack them, not because I am against weed, but it is a deppresant, you don't fight depression by doing downers. As far as the medictions are concerned, I think the F.D.A. put stuff into the pills so that you will feel happy when you are taking them and you feel worse when you stop, the only prolong the depression to make more money because thats all they care about. Pharmacuticals run this country. You just have to battle it. I was depressed for a while, always tired, never hungry, then I realized that I was depressed and it made me more depressed. Then I decided to stop being that way. You just gotta stay busy enough to forget about it, which shouldn't be hard with a 6 almost 7 month old baby. (sings)Keep on the sunny side, always on the sunny side, keep on the sunny side of life. It will help us every day, it will brighten up the way, if we keep on the sunny side of life!! I hope everyone didn't go to sleep to escape the agony of my singing voice Either way if you need anyone to talk to, I'm game. I don't have as much useful info as other here have, but I have a good ear to listen with. Everything will work out, just keep positive.
Sweetie believe me, when you're lacking sleep, those feelings that you're having right now, everything will seem magnified. Trust me. Not too long ago, I went through a really rough spot with my twins (they will be 3 years old in May) when they had gotten Strep and they were both up almost all night for nearly a week. I'd get one back to sleep and then the other one would get up, or they would both get up at the same time. All night long. I was at my wit's end, I was a hysterical mess and I felt like I just couldn't handle any more, I was ready to crack! Not to mention having to care for my 6 year old's needs as well. It's really tough when your kids pull all-nighters. It really messes with you. Honey, you are a fantastic mama. You love Trey so much, and it shows. You're just going through a rough spot right now, and I think that once you can catch some zzz's you will feel 10 times better. Also, I think you need to have a little "mommy" time. Do something just for you. See if your mom or somebody else that you trust can keep an eye on Trey so that you can relax, rejuveniate yourself so that you can come back refreshed and more confident. Even if you can just take a nice long soak in a bubble bath while someone keeps an eye on Trey doing his awake times. Treat yourself to some nice chocolates and a good book and just kick back and care for yourself, even if it's only for 20 minutes! Every little bit helps. Much love, you're going to be just fine mama... Oh and while right now you're feeling overwhelmed, remember this a just a phase with Trey. He'll be back to his regular sleeping routine soon. I'm sure of it. All of my kids went through these phases during growth spurts, teething, all of that jazz and I remember feeling like I would never get a decent night's sleep again, but, they always slipped back into their routines, and wow, do you learn to appreciate a good night's sleep after that!
I agree with the other mama's, it's probably the sleep really getting to you, or lack of rather. Leane used to wake up really easy, and one thing that I was reading about one night was swalding them so that the can't get their arms out. A lot of time, that's what wakes her up. So I swaddle her tight enough that she can't get out of it and she sleeps for about 2 hours. But since your son is already 7 months old, I don't know if that's what would help, or even what you'd want to do. I've been trying to get Leane to sleep without being swadled and she just won't do it. If I put her on her belly, she instantly wakes up. Babies and sleep are a hard thing to figure out...
