Friday, March 28, 2014

10 Things A Sleepless Mom Doesn't Want To Hear

Rose is a tough sleeper.  Some nights, if I'm super, super lucky, she gives me a five hour stretch of sleep.  Most nights she wakes every two to three hours.  Some nights she just.won't.sleep.

I've tried soothing baths, feeding late, feeding early, changing her foods, letting her cry, not letting her cry, physical exercise, a soothing routine...and pretty much nothing has worked.  I have been without a good night's sleep for about a year and a half (including the last 3 months of pregnancy, which were pretty uncomfortable for sleep.) 

Keeping in mind that I'm short on sleep, exhausted mentally and physically, and frankly, cranky as hell, there are a few things that are JUST not helpful to hear!  Oh, you can say them if you want my steely glare or perhaps the silent treatment, but otherwise, please, friends and relatives, keep them to yourselves!

Here are my top ten things that a sleepless momma doesn't want to hear:

1.  You look tired.
You know, I know I'm tired, and I'm sure I'm looking harsh, but my self esteem is already suffering (why can't I get this baby to sleep? What am I doing wrong??), so pointing out the baggage I'm carrying under my eyes or the drool on the corner of my mouth certainly doesn't help that.

2.  Oh, Was the baby awake last night?
The baby is awake EVERY NIGHT.  If you know me at all, you know my baby is awake every night (as evidenced by the aforementioned bags and drool.)  Pointing out that you slept right through the night is only going to fuel my feelings of jealousy for all you sleep-through-the-nighters.  

3.  You know she'll sleep better if you...(insert random advice.)
Please know that after 15 months of her not sleeping, I have researched the Internet, talked to the doctor, talked to other moms, and tried it all.  Yes, EVEN THAT (insert random weird internet sleep fad here.)

4.  It's a short span of time in your life, and she'll eventually sleep through the night.  
I'm here to tell you, it's not a short span of time.  It's eons, eternity, and the less I sleep the longer it seems.


Salvador Dali, The Persistence Of Memory

5.  Enjoy it while it lasts.  You get to enjoy that time you have alone together.  ðŸ‘€ ??
I get to have alone time all day long with her if I want.  I'd like to have some alone time with my pillow, tyvm.


6.  I read that breastfed babies sleep less.  What if you switch to formula?  
Yeah, because I've endured 15 months of sleeplessness, mastitis, and niplash because formula is an option for me.  Don't get me wrong--I don't have a problem with mom's using formula---I used it with my first two---but Rose is allergic to dairy (and soy formula is very expensive and smells gross.)

7.  Why don't you want to GO somewhere?! (This is from Punkgirl & Happyboy, who want to get up at the crack of dawn on the weekend and GOOOO somewhere.)

8.  I think she sleeps worse when "we" do THIS.  This is obviously Coffeeguy.  I don't wake Coffeeguy in the middle of the night, because he has to get up and go out to work every morning, and at least my baggy eyes and drool are mostly confined to home, so I take on the task of getting up with Rose. While I appreciate that he's only trying to help, most of the time when I get back into bed he's snoring, so this negates any right of his to tell me when she sleeps worse or better.

10.  Yeah.  I know...I skipped 9.  Didn't I just tell you I'm sleep deprived?  

10.  (Again) Why don't you take a nap during the day?
I.  I just.  Are you..?  She takes a two hour nap at 12.  It's just enough time to get a cup of HOT tea, load the dishwasher, MAYBE take a shower, and upload these pithy writings to my blog.  



3 comments:

  1. (Tried to comment on HP, but it would not let me, so posting this here.) Just in case the currently sleeping spree doesn't continue, may I suggest a pediatric sleep doctor? Our daughter had similar issues. We tried all the things you listed and at 3 she was still up more nights then not. When we finally got to a sleep doctor, we discovered her symptoms were classic for sleep apnea (most pediatricians do not know much about it). According to the sleep doctor it is a fairly common condition, but is not often diagnosed until kids are much older (think 7-8). If you are unable to find a pediatric sleep doctor, ENTs are also able to assess for sleep apnea.

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    1. Thank you for your thoughts:) I'm hoping (praying, really!!) that she continues to sleep, but I have to say, I don't think she has sleep apnea--or at least not sleep apnea as I understand it. There is no catch of breath, or anything like that...we thought for awhile it was my son's sleeping noises, but he began sleeping in the living room for awhile rather than be woken by her! He is back in his room, and I cross my fingers that the status quo holds, because it's nice to finally have a television after his bedtime ;)

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    2. I can so relate to this. We still pray for our daughter to sleep every night. She's much better since surgery (she had at 4), but it still can be unpredictable. My daughter did not have any of the symptoms pediatricians look for with sleep apnea (snoring mostly for kids), just the waking. The sleep doctor though said that with just our description of the behavior and a physical exam she could have diagnosed. She did have a sleep study to confirm. I think she was probably mouth breathing, but don't know for sure. We found we could not enter her room once she was sleeping because any noise would wake her. I wish you the best of luck and hope your daughter continues to sleep. It is impossible for anyone who has not been through it to understand.

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