I have a nearly 4 year old, I am toying with the idea of getting him a yoto player for his birthday, but I keep flip flopping.
I'd be interested in hearing other parents views and experiences, good and bad. What are the pros and cons you have experienced?
Just wondering how Mams here manage to not compare themselves to influencers online who happen to be Mams? Not mentioning any in particular but a particular person had a baby around the same time as myself (7 weeks today) and she has 3 kids in total and I have one. But she seems to get so much done in a day! Like scrubbing her house from top to toe etc while managing to mind 3 kids. meanwhile I find it a chore some days to get dressed or eat 🤔😂😂
11.5 month old baby girl, healthy, active, social, crawling/pulling to stand/climbing, currently teething. Sleep has become extremely difficult over the last few weeks and we are completely exhausted and looking for advice.
History:
- She used to be able to fall asleep independently at times throughout infancy.
- Day naps are usually much easier than bedtime.
- Recently bedtime became a 2–3 hour battle every night.
- Main issue is once placed in the cot she immediately:
- rolls
- crawls
- pulls to stand
- hangs off the cot
- treats the cot like a play gym
- If we try to soothe in the cot she gets more stimulated/wired.
- If we repeatedly lie her back down it becomes a game.
- If we leave the room she cries/escalates.
- We are NOT willing to do cry-it-out.
What we’ve tried:
- Putting down awake
- “Drowsy but awake”
- Sitting beside cot singing
- Patting/shushing in cot
- Letting her roll around and settle herself
- Repeatedly lying her back down
- Rocking/walking/singing until sleepy
- Short consistent bedtime routine (bath, bottle, books)
- Earlier bedtime
- Adjusting naps
- Capping naps
- Leaving room
Current schedule:
- Wake: usually 6–6:30am (we stopped resettling after early morning wakes because it pushed naps too late)
- Nap 1: around 9:30am
- Nap 2: early afternoon
- We were previously letting first nap go 2 hours but now cap it around 1h15–1h30
- Second nap usually capped around 45 mins–1 hour
- Wake windows generally around 3–4 hours
Current situation:
- She often seems exhausted (eyes closing, rubbing eyes) but still physically fights sleep.
- She now often resists rocking/holding too.
- Sometimes she will fall asleep in 15 mins, other times naps/bedtime take 40 mins–3 hours.
- We are spending huge amounts of time bent over the cot singing/shushing and our backs are wrecked.
- She has also started waking more frequently at night.
- Early evening “false starts” happen sometimes (waking shortly after bedtime).
Important context:
- She is very active developmentally right now (climbing/standing constantly).
- She is teething (top teeth recently erupting).
- Feeding is a bit picky at the moment too.
- She is otherwise healthy, happy, attached, playful and developing well.
Main questions:
Is this level of sleep resistance normal at 11–12 months?
Does this sound overtired, undertired, separation anxiety, developmental, schedule-related, or something else?
Should we persist with cot settling or fully assist to sleep for now?
Has anyone else had a baby who physically could not switch off despite being exhausted?
Any realistic advice that does not involve cry-it-out?