Saturday, July 12, 2008

I'm a believer!

So our night time routine started at 6pm last night. Bath, stories, nursing and then asleep by 7:20... or so we thought. It started with whimpering (so pathetically sad ;~) and escalated into full out screaming. I kid you now when I say you could hear the anger at us in his cries. According to Doc Weissbluth, once we put him down for the night, that was it. He cries until he falls asleep. Uhhh, torture much? However, since we (hubby and I) had a plan this time it was easier to stick to it and wait out the screaming. It took 1 hour and 40 minutes but eventually he calmed down and fell asleep. Now I didn't enjoy listening to that sound for as long as I did but I DID enjoy the silence once he was done.

As we were laying down we were preparing for what we would do if and what time Chase woke up during the night... before 3 - don't even go in, let him fall back asleep on his own. after 3 - diaper change and nurse back to sleep. The next thing I know, it's 5 and I am awake for no other reason then I am hard wired right now to be up then... Chase however, is still sound asleep. I am almost so giddy I wake Adam up... I said almost, I am not stupid enough to wake him up before I have to! I fall back asleep and wake up again at 6. Again, I am not waking up because of Chase, just because I have been getting up at that time for the past few weeks! I quietly read for the next 45 minutes all the while being completely amazed that Chase is still asleep. At 6:45 he did wake up crying which isn't the goal but for the first night, pretty darn amazing.

So I think there are a few key factors here...

1. I thought all things baby would come naturally to me. Not so much. I know that only Adam and I know how to raise Chase but there are some good opinions out there that should be listened to as well! I am starting to realize I am not the baby guru I thought I was! I am learning that I do need to read up on these type of things so I know all the options. My next goal is to read up on feeding babies!

2. Just because I don't like the process doesn't mean it isn't necessary. We tried other methods to get Chase to sleep well... including begging and pleading... all of which availed us nothing. It hurt to listen to him and I almost caved because of my frustration, saddness and headache but Adam helped me stay strong and we made it. Not only did we get a great pay off that very night, we just laid him down for his morning nap and he cried/whimpered for no more than 8 minutes before complete quiet. Talk about immediate gratification.

3. Adam and I are on the same page. This could perhaps be the absolute most important key of all. Before we were both filled with uncertainty about how we were handling things and with that uncertainty came our own ideas about how to handle specific situations. Complete lack of communication really. This time I read the book and picked out the key parts that related to our current situation... I highlighted them for Adam and he read up on it (he pretended it was a really long internet article!). Now we both have a game plan... the same game plan. This in turn makes it easier for me to let Adam be a daddy and put him down for naps..

4. For so long we were concerned about Chase's reflux and gas that we just assumed that they just persisted past the usual timing... what had actually happened was Chase's issues morphed into sleeping problems and we just didn't recognize the change. For all this time we have been trying to treat a problem that didn't exist while missing the problem that was there. YAY for parental mistakes! It's not the first and I am positive it won't be the last.

Now for the saddest image ever... poor thing is SO sleepy!

We really are still in the training part of this process so I don't want to think that we have licked this problem yet but we are definitely on the right path! Thanks to Kare Kare for her Dateline watching!

7 comments:

chocolate hug said...

Wonderful job! It's not easy but you guys have taken one of the biggest and hardest steps. If you stick to your plan in the long run it will be so much easier for the whole family. Not every day will be smooth sailing but it will get better!!!

Jess, you're a wonderful mother, we're all just learning and growing as we go, it's totally normal and to be expected! Nick and I have had to back track on a few things as well. It's good to be able to figure things out isn't it?

:)
God's blessings as you work through another day with Chase!

diana

Anonymous said...

This is awesome news!! I will continue to pray for your lil guy! =o)

Carrie and Scott said...

you are the coolest mom ever...i LOVE reading your ever so honest blogs. it's so good that you and Adam are on the same page because we went through some tough times/arguements through this sleep training process because we were not on the same page. way to go...soon Chase will get it too. it's an awesome feeling for both parents and baby when they go down without a fuss. keep it up...you have full out support from lots of new mommy's out there!!! And I'm sure you're helping mommy's you don't know as well!

kathi said...

First, awwww, no smile in that picture. :(

Second, I've said countless times that this has to be done. It's the healthiest thing for both child and parent. A spoiled child isn't good for the child or parent.
As long as the child isn't hungry, wet or sick, don't go in that room at night! Now, if they're older and have nightmares...that's different, I'm talking about infants. They're so smart and it takes no time to learn by repetition. They either learn manipulation or obedience...
Congrat's hon!

Unknown said...

Sounds like you guys are really making some progress. Good job!

LoveLladro said...

diana - i am already feeling better about our plan and sticking to it... this trial by error thing is HARD! i am really blessed to have so many friends (old and new) that are either right along side me nodding their head or behind me taking notes (Christine and Jaime!). it's a hard but very rewarding experience ;~)

jess - thanks! we still need all the prayers we can get... we are hoping the napping situation will continue to improve!

carrie - thanks for saying that... i hesitated to post because i thought it might be boring... but then i thought what the hell. if you find it boring, don't read!!! i hope i am helping other mommies (actually my friend Christine said all this turmoil was not in vain, she is picking my brain about some sleep issues her 3.5 month has!) that makes me very happy!

kathi - isn't that just the most pathetic baby! i was trying to capture how absolutely exhausted he was... Friday was a very rough day for both of us... we were counting the hours until daddy got home!

dad - i am learning persistence from adam! we all know what persistence that guy has! if not, we wouldn't be married!

everyday musings of a stay-at-home mom said...

Jess~
I am so proud of you. You are truly an inspiration to all of us, not just as mothers, but as women. Keep up the good work hon!