Ruby update

We are still dealing with lice. I think. I haven't actually seen bugs in a while, however, I'm pretty sure I've seen nits. But then also the information says that there will be lots of dead nits and how does one tell the difference between live and dead nits??? So, I keep treating.

Ruby still has diarrhea but no other symptoms. It's definitely better. She's mostly sleeping through the nights. Ugh! No more!!! Can't we be healthy!

I wanted to write about Ruby's sleep because a lot has happened. Around Christmas 2018, I was exhausted from her lack of sleep and desperate. I decided I needed to talk to the pediatrician. I always told the pediatrician about her sleep issues but I really don't think they understood the extent of it. I don't think anyone really understood how bad her sleep was. But at this appointment, I laid it out. I asked for a recommendation to a sleep specialist, which she provided.

However, I never actually heard from anyone and, again, I kind of let it go. I just wanted it to get better on its own. And I was so scared of what they would want me to do. I knew the only option was to put her in her own room and put a childproof lock so she couldn't get out. And it felt so extreme. But then, like they always do, things got bad again. I had never heard from anyone but during a bad week, I got a letter saying the sleep place had tried contacting me and if I didn't respond they would close the referral. So obviously they had the wrong contact information but I was ready.

I called and set up the appointment. We went in and saw a guy who was a PhD in something and the sleep specialist. He asked a bunch of questions and looked in her throat. He said that when they do the sleep study, they usually have a pretty good idea of what they will find. There are indications of sleep apnea and other sleep stuff. But he didn't see any of that in Ruby. He said he was 99% sure her issues were behavioral and could only be fixed with behavioral changes.

I talked to him about how I would set her up (in her own room with a lock on her door to keep her in), how I would talk to her about everything (you can't come out until Mommy gets you), and how I would reward her (let her play on my phone). I got home and set everything up. It was awful at first. She would cry and scream but pretty quickly it got much better. She does scream and cry and throw stuff at the door occasionally still and it's awful. I have found that I HAVE to ignore her. If I go in, even for a minute, she will almost certainly wake up at the same time the next night. It just sucks but truly I spent 3.5 years trying everything else and nothing else worked.

Things are so much better now. Her room is set up so that if she wakes up early she's okay. She has a little potty in her room. I always give her water. She has a night light. She has her books and toys. And it's mostly better. This week she's needed to poop in the middle of the night or early in the morning and I've had to get her. She will not poop in her little potty. Which, fair enough.