EX-Ferber hater

[TigerLily]

I hope I don't jinx it, but...

Ferber method=miracle for us. A is 7 1/2 months old now and was waking up ever 2-3 hours at night. 3 night ago we decided to give it a try and started sending DH in there to pat her and tell her it's ok. Then leave and go back in 5 and then 10 minute intervals. He did this ONCE the first night. It took maybe 20 minutes.
And she has slept through the night since then.

I sure hope this continues tonight while DH is on call.

Staying bed all night is incredible.

[ladymoreta]

Great job!!!

[Momo]

Yea for baby!! I'm glad you have found something that seems promising... however, time will tell!!

[niener]

Great job!! I'm a firm believer that there's no one right way, only the right way for your individual child/family. If something isn't working, move on.

[fluffhead]

Once we figured out how to make Ferber work for us, it was great. That said, it was hell on earth with our first - it got to where the "intervals" were so long, they lasted until dawn.

[GrayMatterWife]

What's a Ferber?

[Pollyanna]

What's a Ferber?

He wrote this book: http://www.amazon.com/Solve-Your-Chi.../dp/0671620991

Ferber was great for us although we modified it a bit with each child.

[ladymoreta]

What's a Ferber?

It's the sleep training method where you do cry it out for progressively longer intervals - cry 5 minutes, then go check on them, then cry 10 minutes and check, etc. The intervals vary by what you're comfortable starting with.

[TigerLily]

It worked great for us because she wasn't even really CRYING. She was just being an a hole sitting in her crib whining and waiting for me to wake up and come nurse her back to sleep. I don't think I would have been comfortable with it (for her) when she was much younger than this.
So yeah, when she started fussing, DH would go in, say it's okay. shhhhh whatever for a few seconds. Then leave, and go back in 5 minutes, then 10. She never made it beyond 10 without falling back to sleep. He was gone last night and she only woke up at 2:30. Big improvement, and she is the happiest baby ever today!

[Bittersweet]

Yay, for more sleep!

[GrayMatterWife]

It's the sleep training method where you do cry it out for progressively longer intervals - cry 5 minutes, then go check on them, then cry 10 minutes and check, etc. The intervals vary by what you're comfortable starting with.

This is a formal method? That's so funny. I thought it was just parenting. It never occurred to me to do anything else. Crying infant? Check: hungry? dirty? pinched in diaper? No, no, no? Then pat'em on the back and let 'em cry. If they don't cry themselves to sleep in 15 minutes, come back and pat them again. But, whatever you do, DON'T PICK THEM UP. If you pick them up, you're screwed. They would much rather be held than sleep by themselves.

And learn to sleep through crying. Once you've got that mastered, it becomes a LOT easier.

[ladymoreta]

This is a formal method? That's so funny. I thought it was just parenting. It never occurred to me to do anything else. Crying infant? Check: hungry? dirty? pinched in diaper? No, no, no? Then pat'em on the back and let 'em cry. If they don't cry themselves to sleep in 15 minutes, come back and pat them again. But, whatever you do, DON'T PICK THEM UP. If you pick them up, you're screwed. They would much rather be held than sleep by themselves.

And learn to sleep through crying. Once you've got that mastered, it becomes a LOT easier.

Heh, didn't work for my kid, but when it comes to sleep, he was pretty "special"... We eventually got it sorted out though, and DD is figuring it out on her own. I got 7 hours last night!

[alison]

That is great, Laurie! Probably the most sleep you've gotten since before A was born, no?

Great to hear TL!!! I was comfortable with CIO around your daughter's age. The thing that sort of confused me is that dd cried for about 30 minutes the first night, then an hour the second night. I'd heard the amount of crying was supposed to decrease! The third night it was 5 minutes and then nothing for the next 2 years. . It's great to be able to put your baby down for bed while they're awake, and then pick em up 12 hours later without hearing a sound out of them!

[ladymoreta]

That is great, Laurie! Probably the most sleep you've gotten since before A was born, no?

Pretty much! He started sleeping well about 2 months before she was born, so the pregnancy kept me waking up by that point. Of course, getting that much sleep made me more sleepy today...

[TigerLily]

Before she was just fussing and fussing for LONG periods of time. Like 45 minutes+. Sometimes she would fall asleep for 5 minutes or so but always would wake right back up. I think the key here was for DH to be the one handling it. Because then she knew that being fed was not an option. Giving him a schedule worked perfectly with his personality. Hoping it keeps working tonight. fingers crossed!

Maybe letting a baby cry doesn't come as naturally to everyone. I always felt the thing that came naturally was picking up my baby when she cried. funny!