If you have been following me for some time, you know that we are deep in a sleep struggle with Austin. DEEP.
On July 5th, we had a pretty big earthquake in the Los Angeles area. A 7.1 to be exact. The most powerful earthquake to occur in the state in 20 years.
I have shared very openly on my Instagram page about how this has affected Austin. I really feel like he is struggling with PTSD from that night. You see, he was in his bed, awake and happy. Until the earthquake. He stayed in his bed silent for probably the first 20 seconds and then started screaming. By the time I got him, he was uncontrollably shaking. My poor dude hasn't been the same since.
Austin is now terrified to sleep at night. None of us has had a good night of sleep since. Austin now wakes in the middle of the night because of his fear.
I reached out on Instagram and shared my story because I was looking for suggestions about this, ahem, lack of sleep. We are all really tired. Sleep deprivation is no joke! I find that we are having to go to bed earlier to try and feel rested from the broken sleep, the house is a mess because I have a lot less time to clean up before I am beat by the end of the day, and my patience is so thin. I hate saying that out loud because of course, I feel like a terrible mom every time I loose it on my kids. This stress always plays heavy in our marriage too. We're both so tired all the time..we start turning against each other rather than towards each other which sucks.
I have read every single DM on Instagram and I seriously have tried almost every single suggestion for Austin. I'm at the end of my rope here. I don't know what else to do. Many of you messaged me and are walking through the same life stage so, I have compiled a list below of suggestions that people found worked for them:
-Leave a light on in his room
-buy a little lantern night light
-use a noise machine
-essential oils in a diffuser
-make a "pallet" at the end of our bed
-sit in his room for a few days and slowly work my way out little by little over the course of a week or so
-let him cry it out
-give him a "safety" stone
-make a "monster" spray with glitter and water
-sit in the hallway so he feels safe
-get a weighted blanket
-move his bed
-upgrade to a bigger bed
-let him sleep with his sister
-stop his naps
-roll lavender oil on his feet
-give him stuffed animals to feel safe
-suck it up and let him sleep with me (poor baby)
Recently, I had the chance to attend the Big City Moms event here in LA a couple weeks ago. I had the pleasure of meeting the folks at The California Beach Co. You may remember this photo:
Anyway, the folks at The California Beach Co sent us a Pop 'N Go to try out with Austin. He loves having a "tent" in his room. We paired this up by telling him, "Your are protected here! This is your force-field of safeness!" {Stephen is much better at imagination than me}
So here's were we are: the naps have gotten better. He will at least get a solid hour of rest which I am thankful for. Bedtime though, is still a massive struggle. I have to sit in the hallway until he falls asleep which has taken up to 2 hours in the past weeks. Talk about frustrating. He still wakes in the middle of the night. We are so exhausted that we finally just made a little bed for him at the end of our bed and told him if he wakes up and is scared, to just come in quietly and get in the bed we made for him. Which is great for him....not great for us. For any of you out there who have slept with your kids, you know they don't sleep quietly.
I also made an appointment with our pediatrician. I'm hoping he has a solution for our sleepless household or at least gives me a referral to someone who does.
Will keep you posted. But, for now, I need a nap.
XoXo,
DeAnna