When you become a new parent, there is one thing you become obsessed with: sleep. You see, newborns come with their own ideas of what is day and night. As they get older, these patterns change umpteen times. There is really no predicting whether your child will sleep on a particular day or night at all.
I have heard of babies who are good sleepers. They seem to be as rare as unicorns. My son is a horrible sleeper. The longest stretch he has ever slept in his life isn’t longer than 4 hours. Usually he gets up every 2-3 hours throughout the night. He’s not tiny either; he’s nearly 15 months old now.
I tried for a long time to find solutions. Everything failed. Finally, I just accepted that he won’t sleep. I’m calmer now and a lot less frustrated.
However, I am perpetually exhausted. I haven’t slept a full stretch in 14 months. Truth is, your body adapts. I don’t need a lot of sleep to function any more. But all said and done, I do miss it deeply. My heart aches for the comfort of being able to sleep without interruption. It becomes such a luxury once you become a parent.
I love my son, but I wish desperately that he would sleep longer stretches. I hold onto the hope that someday this will pass. Till then, I am jealous of all of you who have kids that sleep well. You’re all so lucky!
Until next time