Has anyone had success with implementing a fairly rigid schedule to improve sleep? My lo is just about 7 months and sleep has become a mess-and I'm so exhausted I'm making it worse (like right now she's on my lap because I'm cozy and don't want to do the crib transfer dance.) I'm starting to think though that if I put her down at the same time each day and nurse at specific times it might help her regulate a bit? CIO isn't an option right now, she is dealing with separation anxiety and becomes hysterical to the point of gagging when I leave the room. I have been reading the no cry sleep solution and I gathered a few tips but it's not really coming together into a concrete plan.
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Umm yes set a schedule and you’ll be so happy you did. It really helps everything fall into place and after I did with my first (like 10mo) I wish I had done it WAY sooner
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I'd say a schedule and nap/bedtime routine can only help at this point. I think we were transitioning to 2 naps around 7-8 months, so our typical day was:
7AM: wake-up for the day, bottle
9AM-11AM: first nap
11AM: second bottle
12PM: lunch of solids
1:50PM: third bottle
2PM-4PM: second nap
5PM: fourth bottle
6PM: dinner of solids
7:50: fifth bottle
8PM: bedtime -
Thanks! I downloaded the moms on call app and we're pretty close to the sleep schedule other than the whole not sleeping through the night thing so it looks like a good place to start. The nursing schedule looks questionable though... It has a 7 month old only nursing 4 times a day which seems ludicrous to me.
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10000% it will help. It might seem like a lot of work and stress at first but you’ll be surprised how much more free you actually end up feeling with a rigid schedule.
There’s tons of reading on why babies thrive on a schedule. It’s comforting for them to know what’s next and to have cues (like a solid sleep routine).
https://www.parents.com/baby/care/newborn/why-is-routine-important-for-babies/
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yes, schedule, yes yes. Things will fall into place after 4-5 days I think. And the crying-gagging during CIO is the worse and it made us quit a couple times. I hear you, it sucks
FWIW, during the months where we stuck to the schedule better, LO slept better, even STTN for a few months here and there. After 12m, the STTN became permanent until 17/18m when there was a regression due to a perfect storm of factors.7 months is when we moved to 2 naps, and we even had 3 small meals each day (we did one meal at 5m, 2 meals at 6m, then 3 meals at 7m.)
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yes yes yes to a schedule.
i followed this around that age
6:30/7am WU
8:45-10am nap 1 (nap no earlier than 8:45/9am when starting 3-2)
1-2:15pm nap 2
Offer catnap around 3-4pm if first two naps are short (this can be a stroller/carseat nap)
~7pm BT if catnap happens (TWT ~10)
~6pm BT if catnap doesnâ€t happen (TWT ~9), depending on the length of naps.
it was loosely the EASY scheme. Eat Activity, Sleep (You time, whatever that means, for me it meant doing laundry, and watching bravo). So she'd eat upon wakeup. If you are doing solids I'd do them about an hour after eating at wake-up time.
Theres nothing that says you can't nurse to sleep if thats what you do, but at that time I was putting her down drowsy but awake and she was putting herself to sleep
Note: I'm a really big proponent of an early bedtime. Like really early. At that age it was around 5:45 or 6 pm. I get that a lot of people can't do that due to work schedules or the partner not being home in time. But thats what worked for us. -
Well, both my kids have been fairly rigidly scheduled since infancy, so I am all for it. By that age both my kids were on a 4 hour schedule. They got up at 730am, had milk 4x a day every 4 hours from 730am to 730pm (so milk at 730am, 1130am, 330pm, and 730pm), plus baby food at breakfast (830am) and lunch (12pm), plus a light snack in the afternoon (430pm). They would sit with us at dinner in the high chair and they could eat if they wanted. They went to bed at 730pm. Naps happened from 930-1130am and 1:30-330pm, give or take 30 minutes. That was around when they dropped their third cat nap, so I usually put them to bed around 7pm instead of 730pm.
But I will say that the 6-7 month separation anxiety thing is a beast and there's not a whole lot you can do about it with regards to sleep and CIO. We had a lot of early waking, 45 minute naps, and was not willing to be put down during the day. But after a few weeks it passed (DS2 had it for a whole month, ugh), and we were back to our normal schedule.
So whether you want to do it in the MIDST of this regression or if you want to do it in a few weeks when it passes is up to you. But I personally couldn't live without a schedule - it makes the regressions easier to deal with because I know exactly when they're in it, roll with the punches, and then go right back to plan when its over.
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Perfect age to start the 2-3-4 schedule, it’s a lifesaver!
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@Cole: I read that too and I liked it. I refused to do CIO (no judgement just was not for me) and I feel like the book really held my hand when we transitioned DS our of our room. That said our schedule was loose. It was more about the same routine each night more than the same exact time each night. You know what I mean?
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@Mrs.Someone: I second 2-3-4 schedule! And it allows some flexibility.
FWIW, during the months where we stuck to the schedule better, LO slept better, even STTN for a few months here and there. After 12m, the STTN became permanent until 17/18m when there was a regression due to a perfect storm of factors.Reply
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