I’m back on night float with only 7.5 nights left for the rest of my residency! In preparation for night float this time around, Logan and I have been trying to ween Elliot from having me having to sleep with him to get him to go to sleep. Before, I had been lying with him for 30 minutes to an hour to get him to go to sleep, and longer if I fell asleep too. And honestly, it was fine. Yes, my measly adult time was cut short but I got to cuddle with my buddly with whom I already don’t get to spend enough time. And if I fell asleep, well I needed the sleep anyways.
It annoyed Logan, but the bigger problem came in the hours between 12AM and 4AM when Elliot would stir from his sleep cycle and realize that I wasn’t there anymore. He would head to our room and I would walk him back to his bed and lie down with him again. Some nights were worse than others, but a solid night’s sleep was a rare treat. One night I put him in our bed and after a moment he said, “Go to other bed?”
About a month ago, I got Jo Frost’s Supernanny: How to Get the Best From Your Children
and read the sleep chapter. Logan makes fun of me for this since the chapter did not describe any techniques that I had not already heard from our doctor, but somehow having invested money in buying a book and reading the written word helped my resolve.
We started about a month ago. We did the bed time routine and put him to bed. I sat by his bed and plopped him back in bed every time he got out. I started reading my phone so that I would have a reason to be acting like I was ignoring him. Eventually he fell asleep. It was hard.
Over the next weeks, I sat further and further from his bed. Logan and I found that trying to put him to bed early (at 8PM) was not so productive, despite what Supernanny advised. I also found that instead of putting him immediately back in bed the first few times, I would let him pester me a little. “Oh, what reading?” “Mommy’s playing game!” I wouldn’t talk long with him, but I would explain what I was doing. I found that if I just put him straight back in bed he thought we were playing a game, which made it worse.
A couple of funny things: Shortly into the training, Elliot got out of bed a several times one night and as I was putting him in bed he grabbed my hand and would not let go! It was so sweet I could feel my resolve crumbling. Another night I was lying down by the door and Elliot got out of bed and brought me one of his night nights to cover up! In fact, one night I borrowed his favorite big Cars blankie and when he wasn’t going to sleep with his other blankies I gave it back. Then he brought it back to me to cover up! One night he got out of the bed and ran over and tackled me exclaiming, “Oh! Fell out of bed!” It was so funny I had to laugh, giggling, “Stop being so funny and go to sleep!”
The night that Logan’s Godmother passed away, Elliot and I heard him get the phone call while we were sleep training. We came out to check on him and we had a big family hug. Then we went back to sleep training. I thought Elliot was asleep a couple of times and when I went to check on him he was lying still with his eyes wide open and smiling at me. I did lie down with him that night. Life’s too short not to cuddle with your buddy every once in awhile!
I started night float this week, so Logan has been flying solo. They went on a trip to Ohio, where Elliot got a stomach bug. It’s been hard for them but Elliot now seems to be on the upswing. Gam Gam and Aunt Lisa have been helping too. I’m only sorry that I can’t really help. As far as the sleep training, Elliot seems to do even better with Logan. Logan can even get him to take a nap without having to lie with him and hold him down now. I think Elliot must be starting to realize the benefits of sleep. If he is tired, he seems more willing to lie down and try to sleep or at least relax. Now if only he could understand that mommy needs to sleep some during the day…
“He fell asleep watching Aladdin” -Logan
