4-month Old - Sleep?

[tjdaggett]

Please pray for sleep. Little Bean needs it, but she just cries. She's dealing with the 4-month sleep change and a cold simultaneously. My wife and I are pretty ragged and could use some of that grace reserved for the parents of small children. Though to be honest, I think we've received quite a bit.

[swedefiddle]

Good Morning,

The good news, it won't last too long. Our son had colic, I found he would go to sleep if I put a towel in the cloths dryer and sit the car seat on top of the dryer. I was so tired, I could sleep beside a running cloths dryer. Yes, everyone survived!!

Neil

[CrazyGoatLady]

Prayers being sent your way. I remember those days very well. It will get better before you know it, although it seems like it will never end. Catch naps as often as you can

[SLAG]

TJD,

Swedefiddle's   idea is a good one.

Another potential remedy to try  is to put a radio in the child's bedroom, and adjust the volume to audible. 

Some infants were bombarded with ambient noise while still in the, uterus (womb),  and got used to it. Some of those children are not comfortable with relative silence, while resting, and that noise brings them comfort.

Colic still baffles doctors and research scientists.

One day the crying just disappears.

Hang in there, it will end, given some time.

Best wishes to you and your spouse,

SLAG. & Marg, 

(the marvelous). 

[Glenn]

When in doubt, always consult the owners manual.  You did pick one up before you left the hospital didn't you ? (grin)

Hang in there, it is a 20 year journey and even then they sometimes do not leave the nest.

Your on the list.

[Charles R. Stevens]

My mother describes pregnancy as “a disease that women catch from men, that lasts 9 months and the complications go on for ever.”

Anvil rung, knee bent. 

Another bit of my mother’s wisdom, “insanity is inherited, you get it from your children” 

Mom may be crazy as a sprayed roach, but she isn’t wrong. 

[pnut]

I feel for you brother. For the little sprout too. It's rough being sick when you can't tell anyone what's wrong with you. 

Like SLAG said some little ones aren't used to all that quiet. I play percussion instruments and after the boy was born I tried being quiet so he could sleep. I figured out he'd drop right off to sleep if I went a room or two away and played my congas. 

Car rides, washer/dryers, radios, like mentioned above all have been known to work. Usually some noise is soothing to a baby. It's sharp or abrubt noises that can startle them that you have to eliminate. 

If my son would go to sleep while it was quiet any noise would wake him up. If he fell asleep in a room with people talking or music playing he would sleep through anything. 

If you're too sleep deprived car rides are not a good idea. 

Good luck I hope you,the wife, and little one get some shut eye.

Pnut

[greenskpr]

Colic survivor here..they eventually stop or grow into a new less noisy phase.  Ours took weeks. Only thing that calmed him was taking him for a walk outside in a chest carrier...at 3am etc.  This too shall pass.  Welcome to child rearing, it gets better!

[JHCC]

Many hours spent walking up and down the living room floor, cradling my daughter and reciting the opening passage of Homer's "Illiad" as a lullaby. Maybe it's not surprising that she grew up to take her degree in Classics.

[ThomasPowers]

I sang Tom Lehrer's MLF lullaby to my kids.  Also having a GOOD rocking chair can really help.   The carseat on a dryer sounds like a MASSIVE improvement over driving while dead on your feet!   Perhaps we will get a chance to try it with the great grand kids...

[Frosty]

White noise and vibration seems to be about as universal sleep aid as there is. Mother would vacuum when my sister or I wouldn't sleep and I've heard: tuning the radio to static works better than a channel, a fan with one card taped to the back side to make it a little noisy, traffic noise ad such. Of course a ride in the car does it every time, Mother used to put me on the floorboards. . . without a car seat!! Like I'm young enough to have any experience with a car seat other than maybe tripping over one. 

The drier and car seat is brilliant. Does your drier have seat belts? It might be a marketable option you know.

And that's about all this parent of none has to offer. I may never have spawned get but I pay attention and offer advice from my lofty pinnacle of vast ignorance.

I joke about it but not having kids of my own is one of my few regrets.

Frosty The Lucky.

[Irondragon Forge ClayWorks]

Our first born suffered from colic/insomnia/crying. We were in New England at the time and our pharmacist Ms. James, was the first Native American woman to be licensed in Connecticut. She recommended a glass of red wine for each of us and a small amount (teaspoon) in two ounces of warm water for him. Also to put a small fan pointing away from him for the white noise. The doctor we were using gave his blessing on that at the time 1965 and it worked as a charm. Best to check with your doctor before taking advice from the internet though. The logic was infants pick up on parents nervousness and the wine calms those nonverbal vibes down.

[Daswulf]

There are good nights and rough nights. Get sleep when you can and do what you have to to get through it. It's worth it. Praying for you all. Don't stress too much. When baby sleeps, get some yourself when you can. We did the car rides for a bit. But they change up routine. Always. Stay on your toes. Surely hope you get a break. 

Ours is just over a year and a half and has kept us evolving. Another one due in March and I'm feeling it already.

What sleep?

[Charles R. Stevens]

Greens keeper lies! They go from no sleep, to sticking anything they get their hands on in some bodily orrifice , then toddlers, then “why”. During all these phases they are to cute to eat, then after you have to much time invested in them to eat them they become teenagers. 

[ThomasPowers]

Do you have any older friends who might be willing to spend a little time helping?  My wife would always try to spend  a month with any of our kids when they had a baby to help get them on a schedule and allow the mother to recover a bit.

I had it easy; my wife is the oldest of 12 kids and she had had 2 previous kids before ours and had worked as a midwives assistant; so where I am running around like my hair is on fire---she would be telling me to relax all baby's do that and it will wash out/off of both your clothes and you....

Now here is my SECRET!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!Good comfortable hearing protectors.  There will be times when babies will cry---teething, colic, illness, etc and all you can do is to hold them and rock them while those cries hot rasp your soul.  Good hearing protectors take the high notes that are so soul destroying off and allow you to remain much calmer and more comfortable even as you are rocking them into the early morning hours.