Middle of the night
by Barbara Dehn - 13th March 2008
What do you do when you hear the cry in the middle of the night? You’re exhausted, too exhausted to think clearly, and you crave one thing, and that is more sleep. You would consider trading almost anything for a full nights sleep. You’re reduced to basic needs. Who cares about 3 star restaurants or the latest movie, you’d just like an extra hour of sleep each night. Whose turn is it to get up with the baby? Maybe if I lie here with the pillow over my head and feign sleep, my husband will get up. Not likely.
Maybe the baby knows somewhere deep in their tiny little heart that Mommy just needs a little more sleep and take pity on us and go back to sleep. Wait, no, I heard another wail. What you do, is you drag yourself out of bed to check on your little one. What do they need, you wonder to yourself. Do they need to be changed, rocked, picked up? Are they hungry, teething, or are they cold or sick or, or, or, the list goes on and on in your mind as you feel your way along the house, tiptoeing and avoiding the creaking floor boards in the dark. Parenting and mothering encompasses so much loving and selfless giving of ourselves. And it doesn’t end at 6 pm or even at 2 am. Moms need a few things to be happy and sleep is high on the list.
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21:43 14/05/2008This is why I sleep with my baby beside me, and why it is nice to be able to breastfeed. If my little one wakes, I just tuck her in beside me and let her nurse while both of us fall back to sleep. It is a lot more work to have to get up and mix up a bottle and warm it. I can easily check on my baby when the baby is close by, and I can comfort her without going far. I definitely agree with the notion that parenting doesn't end at bedtime, it is 24/7. It can be difficult to sleep when baby sleeps, but that seems to be the best solution, even if it means taking a nap in the daytime when baby sleeps instead of getting the dishes done. There are sacrifices in mothering however you handle it, but they are worth it.