Same boat...

My DS was the same. By the time I had figured out a way to put him to sleep (walking, singing, etc...), he changed the program. It was around 4 months, which was when he was turning over, teething, and such. I had to figure out a new way to put him to sleep, and it seemed like when he was doing something new, I had to adjust my nighttime routine because what I was doing before didn't work anymore. I have to say that after his teeth came out, he settled down a bit and it's been easier.

I have always been concerned about him not falling asleep on his own because that's the "norm." I have tried to put him down on his own while sleepy and he cried, not sleep. I refuse to let my baby cry just so I can claim "normalcy." I was really paranoid about other people and what they thought in the beginning, but I have come to realize that my son is different, and those people don't live in my house and aren't raising my son. So, if it works for me, why change it? I think to myself, they can come here and listen to him scream and cry trying to "put himself to sleep." If I were you, I would thank people for their advice and just love and parent your child the best way you know how. I'm sure you're doing a great job. Don't let the hard times hold you back or get you down. You aren't the only one dealing with this!

My DS is 9 mos old, and I still parent him to sleep, but so what? That's my duty to him as his mother. I know I won't be doing this when he's 16 so might as well enjoy it now before he doesn't want to spend any time with me, right?

That's my duty to him as his mother. I know I won't be doing this when he's 16 so might as well enjoy it now before he doesn't want to spend any time with me, right?

That rings so true to me! I sympathize with how hard it is when you are tired and your baby will not relax to sleep but so far my 7wk old has only ever fallen asleep on my chest, his dad's or in the car. Sometimes I wonder if there will be conflict with my husband's family if they find out how we handle things but I couldn't care less that they think I'm wrong or crazy or stupid. Would it be easier not to hold him, talk to him, pat him, walk him, nurse him to sleep every night? Of course (if you are the type who can listen to cries. I last 30 seconds before I'm almost in tears myself) but it would not be responsible or empathetic parenting. You are doing everything just right. Hang in there through the tough stuff and ignore everyone discouraging you.

While I do not have a ton of time to answer your questions thoroughly I just wanted to chime in in agreement in what NUm5mom has said. $ months is a big age of change developmentally. Rolling over, sitting, up, cooing, teething, all the fun interesting things to see and hear. It really is an explosive time of growth. It really helped me to have a few books I could refer to about infant/toddler/child development. I could read a bit about the stage my child was in and it really changed the way I viewed the stage. It changed the way I responded and I no longer saw it as a challenge- I saw it as a normal, natural occurance, not something to be concerned with.

Another important simple change in my thinking was its my role to parent, why suddenly because it gets dark outside does it mean my role changes? Its still my responsibility to parent my child with consistent, loving guidance. I know I sometimes have a difficult time sleeping at night for any number of reasons; headache, over-stimulated throughout the day, worry, anxiety, ate to late, to hot, to cold, etc. If I take a break from "trying so hard" to sleep for a bit of time (heading outside on front porch swing, t

So the nighttime troubles continue. We are on night 6 of this. She is still terribly difficult to settle. Now throughout the day. She struggles in both the sling and in my arms. If she's not crying in frustration (at being tired and not wanting to go to sleep) she's humming loudly to keep herself awake. It's cute sometimes. but terrible frustrating other times. I'm trying everything i can think of to help her settle including nursing. but she just latches and releases. I often use a dark room and singing to her. I have a feeling she's teething. She's drooling like crazy, has a rash on her chin, & every thing is going in her mouth. I so one night about an hour before bed, after 2 hrs of trying to settle her and a challenging day, I finally broke down and gave her some tempra. What a difference! She settled with no problems that night!

what's tempra?

Tempra is just a brand name for Acetaminophen (spelling?) ie. Tylenol