Sleep

Dear Dr. Markel,
My baby is 22 months now and is still breastfeeding. I thought he would stop on his own but he refuses to stop and doesn't really like milk and worst with soy. He also still feeds at night. He sleeps in our bed so when he wakes he wants to feed. I've tried not giving it to him but he cries and cries and I'm already sleep-deprived to I give up. Any advice?

Dear Dr. Markel,
My 16-month-old son is still not sleeping through the night.  I've established a bedtime routine, which we follow each night even  if it's off by a minute or two, and it's helped with bedtime, but not with his sleeping. He gets up 2-6 times each night, and while he doesn't night-nurse anymore, he still wants to be held and/or
rocked.  And if that doesn't work, he wants to sleep with me. He's such a restless sleeper that I don't get any more sleep than I do when he sleeps in his crib.

I feel like I'm losing my mind because I'm so sleep-deprived, but nothing has worked. I'm dead set against the Let-them-cry method, not only because we have a common wall with our neighbors, but because that's just not the kind of parent I aspire to be. On the flip side, I'M EXHAUSTED and don't know what else to do, especially since he consistently naps for a couple hours each day.

I even tried a homeopath when my son was around 9 months old, but his remedies didn't make a difference.

Is there a such thing as a pediatric sleep specialist? Would we benefit from seeking and consulting one? I live in the San Francisco area and am open to new ideas.

Dear Dr. Markel,
Our 2-month old baby boy sleeps wonderfully in the ERGO for naps, and for that we are grateful! He also sleeps well at night all swaddled in the co-sleeper next to our bed (or sometimes in our bed). However, if we try to put him down for a nap during the day in the co-sleeper, his crib (which we haven't really transitioned him to yet) in his room or in our bed, he won't have it. It happens on rare occasions, but usually involves an hour or more of soothing before he'll nap there. How do we get him to nap in these other places when we can't carry him all day?
-Ali

Dear Dr. Markel,

We adopted a wonderful 9 month baby girl from China in June and our adjustment period was very stressful. After a couple of months she was able to sleep through the night in her crib. For some reason there was a setback that started a few weeks ago. She now refuses to go to bed (both for a nap and at night)and she wakes up several times in the middle of the night crying. She did have an ear infection which was immediately treated but this behavior has not changed. As a result, she is cranky and whiny during the day. I would appreciate any feedback.

Thank you,
Sue
San Diego

Dear Dr. Markel,
I love being a mother, even when I was sick during my pregnancy.  We were in and out of the hospital at least once per month for the whole nine months. I love that she sleeps close to me in her bassinet,  but she will be six month old on September 10th. She wakes from her sleep a couple times in the middle of the night and I feed her. Then I put her back in the bed until at least 5 am. The problem is that we would like to have her start sleeping in  her crib in her room.  I don't want to go backwards were she is sleeping in our bed every night.  How do you suggest we move forward with this transition, so it is smooth for me and her.Thank you and look forward to her from you.

Dear Dr. Markel,
My daughter, age 9 months sleeps in her swing in our bedroom. My son, age 3 sleeps in the king bed with me. We chose to set it up that way after my second child came so my son would not feel left out. It has worked out very well for us. I will allow it to remain this way until he feels he is ready to move back in his room(within reason...No teenagers in me bed, thanks:)). I love having that closeness to my kids, and clearly they enjoy being near me. A fact that warms my heart. The problem is that my daughter won't sleep anywhere but in my Ergo, which I'm smitten with, and her swing. The swing doesn't even need to be rocking. She just loves being enclosed(we have a car seat cover over the swing). However, she is getting to large for her swing. I'm afraid she may fall out or otherwise hurt herself. I thought about more blankets in her crib, but I'm afraid that this may pose a suffication risk. My doctor said just let her scream in the crib. I'm not okay with that. My daughter has a right to feel safe and loved and while I can help her feel that way I will. I was hoping you had some advice to help keep her happy and feeling safe and allow to be removed from a swing she is clearly outgrowing.

Thank you for your kind attention and being an advocate for attachment parenting.

Dear Dr. Markel,
My 9 month old boy is relentless and stubborn (clearly attributes inherited from his father :-) when it comes to sleeping on his own in his crib.  Currently he sleeps in our king size bed, which has been fine, but I am ready to reclaim by marital bed.  He is the happiest baby on the block when he is being held (thank you Ergo Baby for making this task relatively hands free) but when we try to put him in his crib, he will cry for hours!  I am torn: I hate that he is in distress and cries; but I think 9 months of sleeping near the boob is long enough! Please let me know whether I should put my foot down and give him the eviction, or whether we should nurture him until he is a little older.  Many thanks for your response and for Ergo to address attachment parenting in such a positive forum.

Dear Dr. Markel,
I have a 3 and a half year old little boy and a 6month old little boy. The 3.5 year old was breastfed until he was 2.5 and slept in our bed until he was 2. Since then, he sleeps in his own bed until somewhere between 2 am and 6am and then stumbles into our bed. Until we had the new baby, this was fine. now however, I would like him to stay in his own bed and not wake up in the night. For the past month he has been waking up several times a night and coming into our room. We either walk him back into his room and wait for him to go back to sleep or my husband or i get in bed with him and go to sleep, or he sleeps in our bed. For me, as i am already awake many times in the night to feed the baby, this is too much. We have tried rewards, threats and all sorts of thing to try and let us all get more sleep. What would you suggest to help the situation? Why do you think he's getting up so often? Thanks for your help!