Thanks everyone for replying - glad i am not the only one who is absolutely horrified by all this.

Dansta - yes I think DD is probably teething which might explain why her sleep is so bad at the moment. Have tried teething gel and panadol but that hasn't made any difference. Did you find anything that helped with your DSs sleep at that stage? Oh and good on you for telling off that silly nurse (i had a chuckle about the patting the cat thing - so true (i might use that one next time I get that advise from the CAFS nurses!)