Tricks and remedies for overtired baby

We are in overtired grizzle land.

We have a bedtime routine. She wears a wrap me up. Sometimes she does a 4-hr stretch in the cot before coming to bed with me and waking 2-hourly (or more). The past few nights 2 hours is the longest she's managed. She doesn't always feed back to sleep, but most of the time.

During the day she will not sleep more than 40 minutes (often I'lm lucky to get 20).
I've tried going in at 35 minutes to resettle. WRapped, unwrapped. Carrying her all day. I got a hammock - hasn't helped.

Nothing seems to help - any other suggestions to get her to sleep a bit longer? She won't even sleep in my arms. I'd do it if it meant she was better rested.

wow :hug: that sounds utterly exhausting.
Do you ever do baby massage?
How long is her bath? Sometimes if I ran a deep bath and got in they would settle better. It's hard when you have 2 though because the older always wants attention.

Ummm Gin? For you.

Oh MadB :hug: you must be exhausted!!! DD was exactly like that at around that age, its just awful. I cant offer you enough :hug: I dont have any answers cause I never found any myself but I was advised of a cd/ techniques of 'Happiest Baby on the Block', honestly I dont think it helped a lot, if at all but something like that is worth a go. Just remember that it will pass, you poor darlin :comfort:

:hug: It's soo hard. DS was the same. I have NO idea what we did to change it but it did end.

Hi, I feel for you, my son was the same, but I had only one so it was okay for me. I used to lay in our bed with him and pretend to be asleep when he woke and he slowly started just latching onto the breast and going back to sleep, but not always. Up until about 8 months (or possibly older, he's 3.5 now so it's been a long time!) he would only sleep for 40 minutes in the day and he stirred for a breastfeed every two hours or so. I would sometimes get him off to sleep 5 times in a day...my friends thought I was crazy I think:D

No practical suggestions really, just wanted to say I know how you feel and this too shall pass.

xx c

Well we've done this before as DS was even worse. BUT at this age we put him the HAB all day and once he was better rested things improved (well for a few weeks till the next 'thing'). I just can't find anything that actually works with DD.... I don't care what it is. If she'd sleep well in teh car I'd drive around all day. I'd carry her all day. I'd feed her all day. Whatever...

lol at gin. I'm not sure that would help....

What about the pram? Any luck with that?

I found a deep warm bath always helped....

You must be exhausted. The first few months are so hard. :hug:

She was really good in the first month or so. She now hates the pram.

I'm going to go run a nice deep bath :)

Does she like the bath - or shower? That sometimes helped settle my little one.

Walk in the sunshine with bub in the carrier or pram?

Not really sure cos i'm still excited if i get a 3 or 4 hour stint to myself.

Brandy?? (Kidding)
Is bub still sleeping wrapped? Both my DD's had to sleep on their sides and out of the wrap to sleep for any length of time after the very newborn stage and I also introduced one of those best and less sleepy time Teddys at around 3 months that when I put then down on their side with I put in their arms as a comforter for all their sleeps(after wearing it down my shirt for a few hours), I don't know if it will help, you sound exhausted, but if bub still sleeping on back it might make a difference - though both still had a tendency to catnap through the day until about 8 monthish when the long daysleeps started happening of their own accord.

Patting on the bum? DD3's just worked out how to fight sleep & its wearing me down!
Sometimes she'll feed, sometimes just rocking, other times I lay her on her belly in her cot & pat her bottom. Almost every time is different!

She's in a "wrap me up". I've tried with no wrap. And also with arms out (I cut the flippers off one of mine as she'd punched a hole in it). I was thinking about trying to wrap her again...? Bit of a hassle as I'd have to do it for a while for her to get used to again.
Tried her on her tummy a couple of times. She slept, but only very briefly - not sure if it's worth trying that again.
I know I"m overthinking it and should just go with it, but I"d really like to get a few hours sleep

She's in her cot now adn I keep thinking I hear her crying.... I'm going mad :rofl:

DD was a ratbag with day sleeps until about your DD's age when suddenly, one day, I popped her in the cot and she slept for 2.5 hours straight :o She had most of her day sleeps in my sling, a Bubba Moe, which was in a cradle/heart position - so not upright like a lot of slings. The other times shes napped in a hammock. I gave up on wrapping her at 10 weeks and moved her into sleeping bags (GroBags / Living Textile bags, etc) and she slept beautifully all night in her cot from 10 weeks. Day sleeps worked in the bags and cot from about 6 months. We did two day stays at Ngala so I learnt a few things from them but TBH, I think DD just found her groove - and I kept persisting although I didn't push it IYKWIM. I BF DD to sleep at that age too.

I saw some awesome new wraps the other day (well, they were new to me) which I think were Ergo wraps and can be worn in several different ways - swaddled, one arm out, both arms out, sleeping bag, etc. They looked great, I'll be trying them next time round.

Not sure if any of that will help!!

Hun, big hugs to you lovely and I think you should have that drink ;)

DS was and still is to some degree a ratbag of a sleeper during the day. I have tried EVERYTHING. The only thing I drew a line at was to drive him to sleep in the car! lol. At your DD's age, I was lucky to get a 20 -40 minute nap usually once a day. So extremely over tired bub in the afternoons. I pretty much fed him to sleep till about 8 months or so and then I somehow managed (I still don't know how) to switch him to feed/play/sleep. He now sleeps anywhere from 1-2 hours still once a day but I'm guessing it's because he's more mobile now.

Hope it gets better for you soon hun xx

Oh MadB, I've just seen this - it does sound like we're both living a pretty miserable experience right now.

:hug: :hug:

Let's hope it improves for both of us soon.

When you wrap her and put her to bed do you have any music playing in the room? When my DS was about the same age as your DD the only time I could get him to sleep for longer periods during the day was to put on a cd of a beating heart. I tried everything you are trying and seriously it was the only thing that worked. He didnt need it at night, but thats because he wasnt overtired. the cd manly worked for his afternoon nap.

She has a COLD!
Ok, that explains the last couple of days at least

Ah no, poor DD. :( Do you have a steam vaporiser? I find it works well in conjunction with lots of bfing to help recovery. How are you feeling?