We had a bedtime routine from the day we came out of hospital, bath story etc and I kept the night feeds, when she had, them very very boring . It also sounds like she needs reassurance and has become more self-aware, invest in quality time with your daughter and create a calm bedtime routine so she is not rushed but has a relaxing peaceful start to the night ahead.

With 26 years' experience working in childcare, Charmian Mead is a highly successful newborn sleep, routine and breast-feeding consultant and has been teaching her method for 20 years. My poor DSis, a wonderful baby who slept well and never caused anyone a second's trouble has 2 terrible sleepers and is exhausted from years of broken sleep. I dropped the dream feed and she'd sleep from 7 until about 1, and that just got later and later over a few weeks until she slept through. This routine will signal to your baby that it's time to sleep and make the transition to bedtime more comfortable.

A consistent feeding schedule and offering a final feeding before bed can ensure your baby has the nourishment they need to sleep through the night. Consistency with your baby’s routine with regards to length and quantities of feeding, naps and bath times helps your baby recognise the difference between night and day and naturally sleep longer through the night.

Since getting a cream that really works (Epaderm) we slather it on him at night, and he's pretty much guaranteed 12 hours. Try calming over the shoulder, ten minutes before bed in the room he is sleeping in and pop him down to settle himself.Theearlymonthswithanewbabyareexcitingandmagical​,​buttheycanalsobeemotionalandexhaustingifsleepisdisturbednightafternight. As your little ones are 18 months and have been waking in the night for a long time you will have to tackle habitual waking, so your new approach may take some time and may need to be tweak to suit both children. To help your baby sleep through the night, consider adding the most recommended blackout curtain by sleep specialists in North America!

Baby sleep guru Charmian Mead's flexible plan, developed from work with hundreds of families, is designed to encourage baby to sleep a full twelve hours a night, naturally, by as early as six weeks old without any tears. Im hoping with time night wakenings will reduce and one day he just wont wake up between 7pm and 7am. Additionally, avoid stimulating activities before bedtime, keeping the environment calm and quiet, and limit exposure to screens or bright lights. Allow time to relax and calm your babies before bed and naps and start a settling ritual which should last no longer than a few minutes.I currently cradle my 2 year old to sleep (always have done) but she is really starting to fight me. But I think for a bf baby 4 months is a bit early; even at 6 months bf babies may wake several times in the night genuinely hungry. By this, I mean time to wind down before bed, bath and stories in her bedroom but no TV or technology. If you are rocking and pacing around, trying to get your baby off to sleep before putting him down then he is likely to wake once you have put him down.

In fact I sometimes wish my DS had a clear sleep association problem as the solution, no matter how hard, is clear cut and seems to work 90% of the time. Make a little goodnight ritual which doesn’t involve handholding until she is asleep, maybe introduce a new comforting toy to help settle, say you will check on her in 5 minutes and always keep your word. But as I said, you really need to have hit rock bottom as that is the only way you can get through the crying. RMD usually begins in the first year to the age or three or four so although distressing for you all, you have at least broken the back of it!To be honest we never followed a plan - a lot of it was desparation - we only started putting him down awake because we got too tired trying to get him to sleep!