The next few days after Elsie first cried herself to sleep were good and bad. She did great at bedtime, and is continuing to go down without too much fuss for the night (yeah!). The first day naps were horrible. Lots of crying, very little sleeping. I was checking and consoling her about every 10 minutes during the screaming sessions, but that seemed to just prolong the crying. She would finally fall asleep and only be out for 30 mins before waking up crying. Her wake periods were terrible. She was fussy, exhausted and would only last 30 mins before it was time to try napping again. Finally in the afternoon, looking at my tired baby and knowing all she needs is sleep, I let her cry and did not do the check and console. She cried 25 mins total and then fell asleep, took a 2 hour nap and woke up RESTED!
On the second night, after feeding Els, she was completely asleep and I decided to put her down in her crib. It seemed to me that the swing was not doing anything to help console her or help her stay asleep (as it did a few weeks ago), but I was hesitant to change too much all at once. I figured out quickly that I was right and she has gone down in her crib ever since. Hooray! I stopped swaddling about 2.5 weeks ago and she did fine. She was never all that soothed by it, therefore not all that attached to it. I wanted to get rid of it soother than later and I am glad she has access to her hands now. So different than are other girls! They both loved the swaddle and had a hard time without it.
Naps continue to be the biggest challenge. I know some babies are just short nappers, but Elsie is clearly not well rested from short naps. She really needs 1.5-2 hours for it to be a good nap. She has started pooping a ton again, and that is one factor messing things up. Taking Katya to and from school has also been an issue. On Monday after a poor first nap, Elsie was finally down and sleeping really well. She was out for an hour and would probably have slept another hour but I had to wake her up to go get Katya. It kills me to wake her! Of course with multiple children, that's the way it is going to go. Today went really well even with taking Katya to and from school; Elsie's morning nap was 2.5 hrs, her afternoon nap 3hr and her third nap 1 hour. She was in bed by 7:15 for the night. She has been sleeping 12hr nights with 1 or 2 feedings.
I am SO happy with her sleep progress! It feels so different to not be attached to her all evening and night, trying with all our might to get her to sleep. Dr. Weisenbluth (Healthy Sleep Habits, Happy Child) used the term "heroic efforts," to describe the work put forth by parents of extreme fussy/colicy infants in order to sooth them. That is certainly what it felt like. Now snuggling with Elsie before bed, looking at her calm and relaxed little face, it seems she is a different kid entirely. We are fortunate and grateful that her colic ended so quickly. Love and prayers to all, and happy sleeping!
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