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I was super happy when I heard that I was pregnant. A few of my friends tried to scare me with the horrors of early motherhood, out of concern, of course. They were giving me a heads up of what was in store for me. They told me extensively about the spit-ups, constant crying, dirty diapers, and lack of any time for rest, without sparing any details. But I was confident I would come out a winner. I had seen my sister raise two kids, and I even helped her sometimes. So I was aware of what comes with having a baby. Among all the things I heard about early motherhood, the only thing that scared me and scared me pretty bad was the inability to sleep.
I love to sleep, and the thought of not being able to get enough sleep terrified me. But I knew my husband would be there all along to help me get my rest. He assured me that he would take care of the baby while I rested, and I was confident that it was all going to work out. Oh, boy, I had no idea how wrong I was!
My first kid, Ella, was born, and she was a fussy sleeper. She didn’t like to be put down in her cradle. As long as she was in one of our arms, she slept like an angel, but the minute we’d put her on a bed, crib, or cradle, she would scream and cry. Many of our friends advised us that we let her cry it out, and she will eventually stop. But my heart did not allow it.
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Every time I heard her cry, I would cry a little, and my stomach would feel like it was tied into a knot. So my husband and I spent close to 10 months sleepless. When I say sleepless, I mean with barely 2 hours of uninterrupted sleep. It was very hard. She eventually was sleep trained and began sleeping. I still remember the night I slept for 7 hours without any disturbance. The next morning, I felt like I was given a new life.
The same thing happened with my son, Eric. You would think your second child would be easier because you have the experience. But no. That wasn’t the case. He was just as fussy and took around the same amount of time before he started sleeping through the night. But it was over. We were glad we were done with the baby years of sleepless nights and loud cries.
My husband and I commended each other for surviving these difficult years of parenthood and were ready to get a good night’s sleep every night. But we were wrong. Again.
Ella was 6 years old when she started having night terrors. It was petrifying. For about 3 months, she’d struggle to fall asleep, and I sat by her side to ensure she felt safe. She always had trouble sleeping, and it did not stop even as she grew up.
On the other hand, Eric went through a phase for about a year, where he climbed into our bed every night when he was 5. My husband and I would spend half of the night walking him back to his bed and putting him to sleep. Because sometimes, it happened more than once in a night.
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The cherry on top was when both my kids refused to sleep. They would have difficulty sleeping at the same time. So now, instead of comforting one kid to sleep, I had to ensure that both of them had a good night’s sleep.
Parenting is hard, no doubt, and while many of my friends warned me about the hardships of being a new mother, I wish they had told me that it doesn’t end there. In my experience, your sleepless nights don’t end when your babies grow up. Every time your kid goes for a sleepover, birthday party, or is up all night studying, it affects your sleep cycle too, and that’s the truth of it.
