Ah, sleep.
We have loosely been Babywise with the pooper. I actually didn't find the book to be too militant at all. You just take from it what you like. For example, the suggestions I liked from this book are:
1) From the beginning, your main goal is to make sure baby gets a full meal. There are ways in the book to check (with pumping and such) that you are producing enough milk to be a full meal. This has worked out for us. Myla naturally ended up on a 2.5-3 hour schedule, although she started off on more of a 2-3 hour one. I also have found that it hasn't caused any milk supply issues at all, since she is getting a full meal every time she eats.
2) Assess what baby's real problem is when she cries. The most comforting thing to hear was this: babies cry. It usually means they need something, yes, but not always that they're hungry. I don't want to stick her on the boob every time she cries. I want her to use those for eating. Now, if she cries an hour after eating, I know she's not hungry. She's usually gassy, poopy, or tired. It has helped me to figure her out a little bit better.
There are also some things in Babywise that I don't really follow:
1) I use sleep "props." I nurse her to sleep at night. If executed well, she can go down drama-free.
I am not one of those extremists (I hope) with "attachment" parenting or the other side. What is the other side even called? Schedulers? I think we are attached. I meet my kid's needs. I cuddle her and wear her in a sling sometimes. The truth about parenting is that everyone just does what they feel is right. When I confess to people my guilt trips about what I am breaking the rules on (i.e. tummy sleeping) people always come out of the woodwork to tell me all the things they did "wrong." Makes me feel a little bit better.
And for the miracle? My kid kind of sleeps at night! I usually put her down between 9 and 10. She wakes up once sometime between 2 and 3. Then, she wakes up between 5 and 6. She has slept SIX hours in a row before! It really just spontaneously happened, and has been going strong for almost a week.
And, although I had never decided one way or another whether I would be a "cry it out" parent, I accidentally became one on accident. One night, I put her down to sleep and she caught me. She caught me and hollered. I just needed a few minutes to gather myself, so I gave myself a break for a few minutes. Ten minutes, and the kid was silent. SILENT. Now I have become a "cry it out for ten minutes" parent. If I know she's tired, I leave her. It usually only takes her five minutes to be knocked out. I hope that doesn't make me abusive.
This was a pointless blog post! But hey, it's all I've got going on right now.
Katy, you aren't a worrier at all are you? j/k. You are going to do things "wrong" and you are going to do things "right" (according to whatever book you read). However a quick search for that book looks like it was published first around 1993, is that right? So what did parents do before that?
ReplyDeleteIt doesn't matter what books say. What matters is that you and Dave are wonderful people and will be great parents, no matter what. She will be a terrific kid. Regardless of what you read in a book or hear from someone, you should just do what feels right.
And this "knowledge" is from my vast experience as a parent. Oh wait...I don't have any kids. But hopefully you understand what I'm trying to say