Sleep Association - CIO method

I took AJ to the doctor today for her 4 month checkup(shes actually 5 months now, they couldnt schedule her in earlier than that) anyway he asked if she was sleeping through the night yet and I told him no and so he told me I need to start laying her down and just let her cry  . I DO want her to start sleeping through the night but I feel so bad. He said even if shes "hungry" dont feed her. She usually wakes up like 3 times a night to eat and he said it was more habit than actually being hungry. she drinks 8 ounces at a time now and shes 16 pounds so its not like shes not getting enough to eat. He said that between 4-6 months they start to develop sleep association which means shes associating eating with sleep instead of it being dark, or being swaddled and in her crib with sleep. I dont need bashing or anything because this is what the doctor told me to do. I just want people who actually used this before and tell me if it worked or not.

thanks.

p.s. at 4 month they can actually be "spoiled" right?

btw, I CANT hold her when she cries at night only pat her and sing/talk to her until she figures out she needs to put herself to sleep.

Babies under 6 months of age CAN NOT BE SPOILED they just don't understand that. I don't think I'd let my 5 month old CIO but thats just me. I never used that method on any of my kids. Good luck but remember you have to take a suggestion and see if its going to work for you. Just because thats what her Dr says does not mean you have to follow.

Quoting Mama  :“ I took AJ to the doctor today for her 4 month checkup(shes actually 5 months now, they couldnt schedule ... [snip!] ... who actually used this before and tell me if it worked or not. thanks. p.s. at 4 month they can actually be "spoiled" right?”

Watching!  

You'll get lots of opinions...so here's mine. Do what feels right to you. If you don't think you child is ready to CIO, then don't do it. We have mommy instincts for a reason. Listen to yourself. My daughter is almost 6 months and we still don't CIO...if she's upset then I calm her. And I nurse her to sleep almost every night. Nights that she's still awake, I do put her down awake, but she generally doesn't cry. If she does cry I soothe her until she is calm. IMO they're still too young to be so upset during a time they should be calm and relaxed.

Quoting MizAne:“ Babies under 6 months of age CAN NOT BE SPOILED they just don't understand that. I don't think I'd let ... [snip!] ... take a suggestion and see if its going to work for you. Just because thats what her Dr says does not mean you have to follow.”

Oh..are you a doctor? If not..then re-read the post. She wants people who have let their babies CIO, not your personal opinion whether she should or not.

I found the big thing was setting up a sleep routine and then putting him down awake so that he would go to sleep on his own. It took about 3 days of laying him down and just standing there forfew minutes until he would calm down. Then I would leave the room (he would cry) and I would come back in 30 seconds - calm him down - leave again. This time 1 minute, then 1.5, then 2 - you get the idea. Anyway, after about 15 minutes, he was asleep. Did this for 3 nights, and now he sleep on his own.

Quoting Mommy of a giggler!:“ I found the big thing was setting up a sleep routine and then putting him down awake so that he would ... [snip!] ... then 2 - you get the idea. Anyway, after about 15 minutes, he was asleep. Did this for 3 nights, and now he sleep on his own.”

I like this idea, what routine did you put him in?

bumping this.

Quoting Mama  :“ I like this idea, what routine did you put him in?”

He would have his bath, we would put on his lotion and PJ's and then sit down for about 30 minutes and cuddle and read a book. Then I would give a bottle and then lay him down with his soother (I hate the damn thing - but he only takes it at night so I guess I can't complain  and his blankiebear. We were doing the routine before the CIO part though, so he already kinda had an idea what was about to happen.
As far as the night feedings go -if you use a soother, give baby thatto try to get 'em back to sleep before you try a bottle. During the firstweek or so of doingthe wholeroutinehe would wake up 2-3 times still. I got in the habit of doing a dream sleep at 11pmbefore I went to bed (he wasdown at 7pm) and then when he woke up at 2am, he got the soother, when he woke at 5amor later I would feed him. Took about a week, but after thathe was sleeping 7pm until 5am-8am everynight! Good luck!

Quoting Mommy of a giggler!:“ He would have his bath, we would put on his lotion and PJ's and then sit down for about 30 minutes ... [snip!] ... woke at 5amor later I would feed him. Took about a week, but after thathe was sleeping 7pm until 5am-8am everynight! Good luck!”

What is a "dream sleep"?

Quoting Sweetsaramae:“ What is a "dream sleep"?”

Oops   That should have said "dream feed"! It just means feeding them even if they aren't awake. It works best if you can just sneak them out of bed and do it in the same room so its dark and not much movement. It worked great for him - 90% of the time he wouldn't wake up when I went to do it and then I could just lay him back down.

There are other methods besides CIO that you can use... There was no way in hell I could let my baby cry... BUT I knew I needed to do somethng when my firstborn child would NOT fall asleep at the boob anymore... Something about that age (9 months) they become interested in everything and the "boob trick" was no longer working... I remember spending 4 hours trying to get her to sleep... The very next day, I went to Barnes n-Noble... I looked at their selection of books... I bought two... read one... It was a wonderful alternative to CIO that I could do... I highly recommend this book (as do some other BG members.. ask if you want names...) It is called, "Good Night, Sleep Tight" by Kim West.

I will post a link to her book & information in a second... If anyone tries it and needs support, feel free to PM me... My 6 week old is being sleep trained and she slept from 12:30am to 5:30am last night... I fed her... she went back to sleep until 9:30! Now she is still in training, but we are working on creating a rountine...

http://www.sleeplady.com/

http://www.amazon.com/Good-Night-Sleep-Tight-Helping/dp/1593150253


I paid $14.00 for the book, but you can get for less at Amazon... Because a child's sleep patterns change as they grow, she covers birth to 5 years of age. She goes over routines (bed time and daily...), sleep associations and crutches, problem, solutions, etc.

I wanted to add that your doctor seems quite short-sighted... Did he/she offer any other alternative solutions...? I would be weary because there is never just one answer in this situation...

Yeah, I never did CIO because it never felt right to me. I tried it once but felt so, so awful for doing it.

I suggest the No Cry Sleep Solution. http://www.pantley.com/elizabeth/

I also want to add that my daughter started sleeping through the night all on her own about a month or moreago. No CIO needed.

IMO your baby is too young to CIO. I don't believe doctors know everything, and if you are not comfortable doing it, then don't. On the other hand, if you want to try it and you feel it would be a good method for your baby,then try it out. There are other methods such as the one someone else mentioned about doing a sleep schedule. It is generally not good to just cut off a babies meals at night. I personally think its cruel. I f I were you I would try to feed an extra meal during the day or give a few extra oz with a couple of the bottles to make up for the night time feeding your trying to wean her off of. My son is five months and still gets up at night to eat once or twice, and I feed him. But that is what works for us. Dr. Sears has a no cry sleep solution and if you research I am sure there are many other sleep methods that don't involve cio if you decide you want to try something different. good luck!