Sleepless Nights

Posted on September 10, 2009 
Filed Under Fathering, Parenting, Personal, Physical Health

Today, a parenting thought that many can probably relate to, although I hope not!

Bleary eyed after a rather exhausting night, this morning I grabbed my Bible and took a puzzled look at Psalm 3, verse 5 this morning. “I lie down and sleep; I wake again, for the Lord sustains me.” Hmm. I need to meditate on this verse a bit. See what is in here, as I feel like I am missing a point, maybe THE point.

OK, Lord, I understand the “wake again” part well enough. Last night ranked in the bottom third of my “restful evenings” rankings. Every two hours, nearly to the minute, we were awakened by our youngest. Usually he would cry out, and by the sounds he emitted we knew he was not merely stirring, he was awake. One of us would slide out of bed, go into his room and, sure enough, find him sitting up crying at the walls, disturbed by a dream or physical discomfort.

Throughout the night we found ourselves drifting off, only to be roused from any semblance of slumber by this poor boy’s tossing and turning.

Although we’re experienced parents, “ignore him we cannot,” as Yoda might put it. “Demands attention he does.”

We’ve struggled with sleep issues from the start with this boy. We’ve tried variations in his food intake prior to bedtime. This or that medication, or none at all. We’ve made him take walks and jump on the tramp, trying to wear him out. We’ve tried to make sure he is calm before bedtime. All of the routines have been considered, scrutinized, changed, noted. We’ve tried it all, hoping for a difference, only to be awakened throughout the night. Every night, it seems, for two months now. We are feeling old…and yikes, we are tired!

And the questions keep coming up.

It is apparent that there are no answers right now. Our son is not the enemy, he needs sleep as desperately as we do, and we’ve got to shepherd him through this season. We’ll learn the key, sometime soon, I hope.

Until then, sustain me, Oh Lord. Thinking back to that psalm, I am not sure You and I agree about what “sustain” means. Help me, though,accept YOUR definition. And for now, please sustain me during the season.

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