Throw out the books, don’t hit that search button on Google. If your question is “how long does teething last?” I will save you the trouble: it’s FOREVER. The ‘experts’ will say it’s only 3-5 days when the tooth is actually breaking through but exhausted Mama’s everywhere will say differently. I know who I believe!
To be honest with you I don’t know if our recent twilight (and midnight, dawn, early morning…) escapades are from teeth or just because my child is the devil incarnate but recently he has been waking up more times than I can count on my fingers and toes combined. After many painful nights it seems to be followed by a slightly better one and the sighting of a pair of molars (or whatever those big ones are called!) poking through.
The truth is, as you know, little M is NOT a good sleeper at the best of times. The breakthrough we had in the Summer, whereby he was atleast going off to sleep on his own and staying that way until around 11pm, thus giving us something of a decent evening, suddenly disappeared one sad winter’s eve and despite my best efforts has not occurred again since**. In fact he’s been worse than ever. Turning into the biggest Mama’s boy I have ever known and needing me to be with him until he is well and truly out cold. The slow step backwards shush-shush shuffle to the door sometimes being the only way I can leave his room without his pin-drop hearing making his head pop up so fast that it roots me to the spot in a second so as not to make him scream blue murder at me for daring to try and leave the room – 1 hour after I entered it!!!! (Ok that might be a slight exaggeration but it feels like an hour). It is a real wonder these days that I have any hair left at all what from 1) all the pregnancy and post pregnancy hormones and 2) all the frustrated hair pulling that is going on right now.
I would like to say it gives me solace that others are sharing my pain; even having a worse time of it with waking up every half an hour and only being comforted by Mum but honestly it doesn’t. Because I understand completely how tough it is and I feel for them as much as I feel for myself.
I see friends who have little or no troubles with their babes sleeping and whilst I am happy for them I am jealous as hell and it just frustrates me because honestly coping with a child that doesn’t sleep for a long period of time just can not be comprehended until you have been there. Like child birth. No matter how many people tell you how much it is going to hurt you truly have no idea until you have done it (survived through a pain that it feels impossible you should).
For me the only way to get through the lack of sleep during these particularly horrendous times is to have a reason. A scapegoat if you like. And for little M it’s teeth (LJ was always having a growth spurt!) Whether he is or isn’t I don’t really know or care but for every night that he is extra awful I will blame it on those pesky, pearly whites. For as long as I can. Even when he has a full set of ’em probably!
And all I can say to my fellow sleep deprived, at the end of your rope Mamas and Papas, is that there is a light at the end of the tunnel. LJ’s “growth spurts” did stop and he sleeps like an angel now. Sure it took a while (for some it will be less, for some it will be longer) but your time will come and in the meantime – whilst it’s hard not to be jealous of those friends already sleeping – remember that you are a superstar! Because it’s tough being a Mum. It’s tougher being a Mum that doesn’t sleep.
It’s tough being a working Mum. It’s even tougher being a working Mum that doesn’t sleep.
It’s tough being a working Mum who also does all her own shopping, cleaning, washing, cooking etc. It’s near impossible being a working Mum that does all the housework AND DOES NOT SLEEP!!!!
You get my point anyway.
Trust me, you’re a superstar even on days you feel like you really can’t do it anymore. Like childbirth. You will do it. You will make it through, no matter how much it hurts, because you have to. Because your baby needs you to and you would do anything for your baby.
And if none of that helps, remember this – babies that sleep less grow up to be more intelligent*. One day all that lack of sleep means your baby is going to change the world!
Sweet (albeit short) dreams –
Mama Atzi x
*Based on an article I am pretty sure I read once but could also have been made up by another sleep deprived Mother so don’t take it as gospel. Like I said: Having a reason=Good. Not sleeping=Bad. #copingmechanism
**Since writing the above post I have managed to achieve 3 nights in a row of putting M down to sleep, leaving the room fairly quickly and not be beckoned to return until atleast 11pm. Wooh hooh!! Progress!! (hmmmm For now!)
