872：Why won’t he sleep? A parent’s lament

Why won’t he sleep? A parent’s lament By Breann Kirincich In junior high, I was a serious night owl. I proudly taped the mantra “You Can Sleep When You’re 30” to my bedroom wall. Fast forward and, contrary to my adolescent foreboding, I am getting less sleep than ever before. When I was pregnant, people warned me I would never sleep again, but I brushed these harbingers aside. As it turns out, sleep deprivation is something no one can prepare you for until you experience it yourself. My beautiful, angelic son would transform into a tiny, bald, 14-pound dictator at the first sign of nightfall. He flatly refused to sleep anywhere but on me or my husband, so for the first few weeks we slept in shifts. I logged many a night with a baby on my chest, catching up on all 10 seasons of RuPaul’s Drag Race. As for naps, our petit prince would only doze in his stroller, so I pounded the pavement for hours each day; rain, shine, even once during a full-fledged ice storm. I couldn’t even rest at crosswalks, lest the slightest pause in motion rouse him from his precious slumber. I once woke up with my arm extended, pushing a phantom stroller in my dreams. A friend took one look at the bags under my eyes and suggested I hire a night nurse. I initially balked at the astronomical expense; who was I, Angelina Jolie? But after searching high and low for the TV remote one day only to find it in the refrigerator, I dipped into my savings and gave it a shot. Annette was with us for three nights, and during that time, she not only got my son to sleep in his bassinet, she also taught us a lot about baby care and routine. I was able to get seven hours of uninterrupted sleep a night and I felt like I could conquer the world. … https://www.theglobeandmail.com/life/first-person/article-why-wont-he-sleep-a-parents-lament/