Hi

So sorry to hear that things are tough at the moment.

My little boy went through something very similar around 4 months. He had been sleeping fantastically and then hit 4 months and everything deteriorated.

He was sleeping for 2 hours at a time, waking up for a feed and struggling to get back to sleep without lots of help from me.

It is really tough...and like you we had always used gentle techniques.

I guess, after a while, what I realised, that it was just a phase that he was going through. He was so much more aware now and therefore didn't just 'fall asleep' like he had been. I ended up doing alot more feeds at night (this seemed to be the only thing that helped) and he would settle quicker and get back to sleep (for 2 hours!), until next time.

But after awhile, this got really exhausting too. I ended up ringing a sleep school for advice. They were actually really good. They suggested that I put a mattress in his room for 3 nights and sleep there. At any slight awakening, to go to him and try and settle him before he awakes fully.

We did that...and it did work. His sleep is still not as good as it was when he was 2-4 months (he's now 7.5 months), but certainly we are at the stage that we can all function during the day.

Also...during the day, we used a cradle swing for him to sleep in. That seemed to help hugely!

So...not any miraculous suggestions from me, sorry...but hang in there...it's only a stage...(that's what I kept saying to myself to keep myself sane!)

Take care!