thank you all. all comments have helpes me be more patient and look at things in a positive view. Really ... it's great you guys respond out of good will. I feel like it's all genuine advice and i really really do appreciate them. Thank you very very much.
I am going to start a new thread/question about gym ball weaning. Hope anyone with ideas can help me out. I'm willing to give it a go. I haven't yet posted the question but will get to it soon if I have time god willing.
I only just found this thread, and I'm wondering how the gym ball weaning is going? My baby is the same, he's almost 5 months old now and the best thing to get him to sleep since he was a newborn is bouncing on the fit ball. I still do it, but I recently got a bouncing hammock as a day sleeping bed for him. It has a similar bouncing motion to a fitball. It hangs in the lounge room just near the kitchen so I can be doing anything while he is asleep, as soon as I see it moving I just bounce it again and resettle him. I also wear him a lot and co-sleep too so I don't think he's going to have a problem adjusting to a bed later (apparently he can use the hammock until he's about 3 years old).
Hi all. It's been awhile since I've been on. My daughter turned 4 months yesterday and this is our update with regards to the gym ball weaning.
1)WHen did we wean? i weaned us both off the ball about 1 month ago. I now bounce on the matress. the difference? well if i were to go to someones house... a matress is more likely available. Most houses have rooms and most rooms have matresses
2) how did we wean? it took us a good week or so before she 'forgot' about the ball and got used to a gentler bounce from the matress. i just stopped cold turkey. She wasn't very happy about it in the beginning and neither was I. I think I was the bigger baby because there were one or 2 occasions when i just wanted to go back to the gym ball because it was convenient for me. But i stuck to it and now we lightly bounce on the matress of our bed and i hold her in my arms till she falls asleep. most days it takes 10minutes. occasionally... 20 minutes. on very rare occasions... 30-45 minutes. but it doesnt matter.
3) WHy did we wean? I coulnd't put her to sleep if we were not at home. she just wanted to be bounced on the gym ball all the time and that would be impossible if we were out. That is the only way she knew how to sleep and she would get soooo upset and cranky if we tried any other way. I would get huffy and puffy and stressed out because i knew she was tired but I .. the mother of this screaming baby could not put her own daughter to sleep. sometimes we both end up in tears. She hated the carseat and the pram and eventhough i wear her alot... she use to still be unhappy because none of the above bounces the same as the gym ball.
4) now? she is better in her carseat... and when i wear her she is happier, she only expects to be bounced when she wants to sleep (before.... it was every waking second... it came to a point where i even had to breastfeed while bouncing on the ball otherwise she would cry)
i waited till she was over 3 months and i waited till i was sure she had got over her "colic" days ( if there is such a thing). We still have rough nights and we both end up crying (she-overtired me-frustrated) BUT......... THAT MASSIVE PINK ROUND THING NO LONGER RULE OUR LIVES.
My little boy sounds JUST like what some of you describe!!! He only goes to sleep by being bounced in his hammock, he likes the motion of being carried around all the time, won't sit still for longer than 5 minutes at a time... and now he has decided he only wants to feed when I'm walking around!!! It drives me crazy!!!!! But I must say the non stop crying days slowed down after 3 months old (he is almost 4 months) thankfully. Good on you "ohnoauntflo" for weaning your little one off the gym ball! I am so scared for the day my baby grows out of the hammock, and I totally understand how you felt with not being able to put them to sleep any other way anywhere else besides home (I'm still going through that now). It's also the feeding walking around only that is killing me! Any advice would be great from anyone... but I just want to say congratz for working your issues out!
And it's really comforting knowing that there's other Mummies out there going through what I am going through, that I am not alone with a baby that has such high needs and demands so much attention. I too do the best I can and I am always responding to his needs straight away. My baby still feeds every 1.5 - 2 hours - yes a very hungry healthy boy, and as demanding as that is (fully breastfeeding) I wouldn't question feeding him on demand and do it for him. They say breastfed babies only have what they need, that they can't overfeed. Besides his high needs, my boy is very very happy, healthy and thriving, thank god
Last edited by *Danni*; March 4th, 2011 at 09:16 PM.
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