Gifted Issues Discussion homepage Forums GT Research Sleep! A favorite topic!

My mother says that I was very suspicious of any attempt get me to go to sleep when I was little. Quiet games and lullabies sent me into screeming fits. But if she sang a loud playful song (Pop goes the weasel--my fav.) especially if it included swats on the bottom and bounces, then I'd fall right to sleep.

DS was similar. Skin to skin was not enough and he thought nursing was play time. But a walk around and around the house while we chatted with him about our day, that would do the trick.

Hey Questions! Good to see you!
Glad to hear you have a protester on your hands as well:
Mind trip:
I'm visualizing all the 'I just won't give in to sleep no matter what the cost' kids picketing as they walk in ACS's circles:
Heck No We Won't Go!Heck No We Won't Go! Heck No We Won't Go!

It took me a long, long time to recognise the difference between functioning pretty well tired, and needing sleep. What kid has the gumption to fight nature? - Our kids!

Smiles,
Grinity

I can't even talk about it any more. I went six and a half years without sleeping through the night between kid 2 and kid 3. Currently, I am on day 1084 without sleeping through the night due to my youngest. I mention this in the company of people with typical kids, and they act as if I am some sort of alien.

On a good night, I am woken three times. A bad night, six.

Ugh! I don't look at you as if you are an alien, Lorel, but as if you are a saint in desperate need of pity...and a nap!

I'm SOOOO sorry!

Grinity,
You're probably right about my DS not having an off switch. He sleeps great when he's with me, and he is very high needs. He's so different from my girls, who are both really verbal. DS will play with cars and trains for hours, just rolling them around, arranging them by color, etc. I'm having to get used to this boy thing.

oooo Lorel, that is a nightmere! The reason my kids are almost 4 years apart is because I swear I needed enough sleep before I could get pregnant with #2. DS is not a sleeper. To his credit, now at age 7, once he's asleep he's generally good for 9 hours. But he'd read all night if you let him. He was always a terrible napper. He stopped napping very young.

DD3 was actually an ok sleeper as an infant. But now is requiring a lot of maintenance to get her to sleep and is still crawling into bed with us in the middle of the night (which a lot of times, means sleeping on top of me).

I put off commenting on this thread because sleep is NOT my favorite topic!!!!!

Where to begin...........DD7 never wanted to sleep, EVER, when she was a baby. I read that Ferber book too. And since I was a new mom I decided to try the thing with letting them scream themselves to sleep. I think that was the Ferber book, maybe another one.

I got a bottle of wine. Not the regular size, the real big one. DH and I settled in with a movie to let her scream.
This child screamed at the top of her lungs for three hours! I am not exaggerating.

After she was asleep I checked on her only to find she had gotten herself so upset she had vomited split pea baby food all over and was sleeping in it. Lovely, I know mom of the year right?

She was so stubborn, we have this awesome video of her sitting in her crib, refusing to lay down. She would start to drift off and fall forward slightly and then jerk awake right before she fell asleep. If I remember correctly, this went on for at least an hour.

Not so funny, both girls report that quite often they wake up in the middle of the night. DD7 especially doesn't like it and asked me if she can start taking Ambien.

Incog

And what is "the trick?" I still haven't learned to manage my own nightmares. I'd love advice. DS doesn't have them, but I do.

I never found out how long my kids could cry. I know we went over an hour, but not sure if we ever let them go all the way CIO. (Crying it out) I read Ferber, but it didn't resonate with me. Dr. Sears' Nighttime Parenting was much more helpful to me. My kids just don't seem to sleep the same way other kids do. My 7 yo still wakes up about once a week and wants me to walk her to the bathroom in the middle of the night.

Ha! DD3 has an incredible upchuck talent with heavy sobbing and has since infancy. She still does it sometimes. We never tried cry it out with that one!