Back Is Best But....

Hi J.,
My daughter had a hard time falling, and staying, asleep when she was an infant. I ended up taking her socks off and cutting off the feet to her sleepers. The first time I pulled off her socks she settled down and went to sleep. She just sleeps warm. As a child she slept with her PJ bottoms off. I used a blanket that she often kicked off. Now, she has made me a grandmother and her daughter is the same way. She said as soon as she took off the foot covings she went to sleep. When I think of it, I don't like to sleep with socks on either.

For some children the large space of a crib is too big. I used a sponge pillow to block off 1/2 of the crib and used cotton blanks to tuck all around the baby. If you are comfortable, I had some of my children sleep up next to me. Both of these tactics worked for me. I did not have any problems with my children sleeping in their own beds when the time came. Good luck!

Hi J.,

I say let him sleep on his belly if he wants to... this has been a back and forth issue for many years and the info I gathered points to SIDS being attributed to soft bedding and soft mattresses. Besides... when they are able to flip on their own you don't have control over it anyway. Get some sleep!

J.,
if you want to allay your fears of tummy sleeping invest in an organic crib mattress. Some of the research out there points to SIDS being connected with a baby's face being up against the mattress and inhaling the toxic chemicals that are in a standard crib mattress with flame retardants (boric acid and antimony). Especially babies with immature respiratory systems (preemies). If your baby can get on to his stomach, make sure he can roll both ways. If he can, than I would let him tummy sleep (with no stuffed animals or other blankets) and with an organic crib mattress. You might want to find an attachment object though (a little blankie) that he can go to sleep with. My son has a little monkey blanket. It helps him to get to sleep.
Congrats on your baby boy!

I am a first time mom as well and my son at 3 months was sleeping at lest 7 - 9 hours at night. then it changed. I think this is somewhat normal.

also most moms suffer with the every two hours waking so i considered myself lucky even if it was a short time. i think for my son he was starting to stimulate his brain more and had way more things to think about and it woke him up also he chooses to sleep with a blanket but he doesnt get covers on him even in the winter time if i put a blsnket on him he flet it when he moved and woke him up so maybe just laying him down would work

Jaime,
Both of my girls have had blankets and stuffed animals in their cribs since birth with no problems. Let your little man sleep on his tummy if that's where he wants to be. Both of my girls (22 months and 9 months)have slept on their tummies since they could roll over.
I hope you find something that works for you! Good luck with the sleep!!
J.

Hi J.,

If this just started, your son could be going through a growth spurt. My daughter is 5 and sure enough, after a week or two of bad sleep, I notice she's shot up an inch or two. A current theory says that children grow while they are sleeping.

Since the "Back to Sleep" campaign, fewer babies die from SIDS. My doc said that once they can roll over, put them to sleep on their backs and if they roll to their tummies, don't worry about it.

As far as blankets go, I used afghans. I figured that since they were crocheted, there were holes for breathing if my kids became entangled in them during the night. Plus they were handmade for my children and it was nice to be able to use such special gifts. Actually, one was made for me when I was a baby too.

It's hot where I live so my kids would have been overdressed if they were wearing pjs, sleep sack and a blanket. My son wore a sleep sack for much too long, I'm sure. But he liked them. He would have worn them longer if they came in larger sizes!

Good luck.

One more mom who put her kids to bed on their stomach after they showed preference for it. I also used a blanket by ages 6 months (my kids were babies when we lived in Chicago/Milwaukee/Boston, so they needed a blanket in the winter).

My son HATED being swaddled and from birth he would "houdini" his way out of it no matter what I did... and tried just about everything. He also HATED sleeping on his back so I put him on his tummy. Yes, I was very nervous at first, but I know he sleeps better that way. My son is also in the rolling over stage of his life and when he rolls to his side he is fine sleeping like that, but when he rolls to his back all hell breaks lose! He wakes up screaming and so I have to get him back asleep on his belly only to have him wake up again. Babies do this... they are so proud of their accomplishments and they want to "practice" their new skill. Don't worry it will pass, but just know they will do it again when they learn to sit up, crawl, stand, and walk. The only time you need to worry about SIDS is after you vaccinate (if you are). They drugs and chemicals throw the baby's system for a loop.

I wouldn't worry about your baby if he rolls over onto his tummy on his own, don't wake him flipping him back over. My daughter screams and does not sleep well if she is too warm. Is your house cool enough for him to be comfortable in the pj's and the sleep sack? My daughter just sleeps in her feetsy pj's and that's it. Being scared to death of SIDS, I wouldn't put my baby on her tummy, a blanket in the crib and took the bumpers out after a couple weeks. I'd rather be safe then sorry =o) I would try just one of the pj's/sleep sack and see if that works. Also, is he teething? My daughter was sleeping 10 hours a night at 3 months and then started to teeth and went back to every 2 hours. She is getting more teeth right now and was up 4 times last night.
Try to get some sleep where you can,
C.

My baby is 6 months also and JUST learned how to roll over. I asked the doctor how I could keep my baby on his back and she said that once they learn to roll over there is nothing you can do and not to worry about it. She said that by the time they can roll over they are strong enough to roll over to get themselves out of a problem if needed. Having said that....my baby still loves being swaddled so that is how I put him down, swaddled and on his back. I was also told by his doctor that if I use a blanket to tuck it into the sides and bottom of the crib or bassinett so hat it doesn't have the ability to go over his head.
good luck.

i also had that problem with my 2nd daughter..she's now 20 months but about the same time as yours she was having a hard time staying asleep..in all honesty i would lay her on her stomach because as soon as i did that she would calm down and go right to sleep and stay asleep for longer periods of time until it was through the night again! granted, i waited until i knew she was strong enough to move and hold her head up really well because i know its been said that you shouldnt really lay them on their stomach, but you know what..you'll try just about anything with lack of sleep!..before that though i did the side sleep with a pillow behind her to kind of prop her up.i would put a blanket over her up until she started to move around more and then nothing because i was afraid she would get tangled up in it and its not like they know to cover themselves up when its cold anyway! so i would just put on warm pjs. hope this helped a little! good luck!

I was trying to break the swaddle habit with my 5 month old but he loves being tucked in... I have a boppy wrap that has velcro on all the right spots so even if his arms come out, his torso is still wrapped and there's no concern for smothering him. I am like you, very scared of SIDS and this seems to help him stay on his back and be tucked in tight. I figure he will break that habbit whever he's ready. Heck, it's just like us being tucked in tight at night, it's a sense of security. I even still breastfeed my baby to sleep but he stays down until 8am! Some people say not to do that, but it works for us. Do what works for you mama!

Here's the site for the wrap that I have. I love it!

http://www.target.com/gp/search/601-###-###-####-###-###-...

I would say, don't worry about it. Get him to sleep however he will sleep. I used to sleep face in the pillow, butt in the air when I was an infant. :-) I'm glad I grew out of that.

I have several friends who put their kids to sleep on their tummies, some with a blanket. I also have a couple of friends who put a blanket directly on their baby's face so they will sleep. The child won't sleep any other way. I personally swaddled all of my boys until they didn't like it anymore. Sounds like your son may still want some swaddling.
Pray over him every time you put him to bed, and don't let fear creep in.
God bless you and your son.

If he can get onto his stomach all on his own he can sleep that way. I have always used a blanket in the crib. it was the only way my son would sleep. i feel your pain about the every two hours. James from teh time he was born until he about 8 months woke up every two hours to eat. it was only once he was eating solid foods 3 times a day that he started to sleep better. do what ever you have to do to get some sleep.
A.

Hi J.,

I had the same problem at 6 mos with my now 8 mo old, and the doc told me it's very normal for a previously great sleeper to start waking up around that time. At 6 mos things start happening fast--rolling over, sitting up, crawling, pulling up to standing, etc. It's also a time of great cognitive development and physical growth, not to mention teething, all of which seem to interrupt sleep. Our little girl was hungry when she would wake up at 6 mos, so the doc suggested feeding her more solid food during the day, which helped a lot. I put crocheted blankets in with her because she needs a blanket to snuggle to go to sleep. But, we basically had to start sleep training all over again, and we're still working at it! It's getting easier and she's waking up less as she's learning to put herself to sleep again, but be prepared--babies often go through periods of sleeping through the night, only to be thrown completely off by something a month or two later, and take another month or two to get back into good sleeping habits. Just keep at it!

Good luck,
J.

Hi J.!

Yes, I know BACK is best, due to SIDS. But I must confess, BOTH of my boys slept better and longer when they were on their stomachs. I didn't sleep very well because I was always getting up to check on them because of all the negative hype, but they were fine, and are now 5 and 11. No, I never put a blanket or anything in their crib, because I was letting them sleep on their stomachs and that was enough "fear" for me.

I just wanted you to hear from a mom who "broke the rules" and allowed her babies to sleep on their stomaches AND survived :o)

:o) N.

I say that if he is turning himself over let him stay that way. I don't to much of the recomended stuff. Yes, I use blankets, but I try to stick to cotton because it breaths well.

I put blankets in the crib when my son was a baby, and he also preferred to sleep on his stomach and he turned out fine.

M. *~

I know it's advocated against, but if he sleeps best on his stomach then let him. My youngest daughter would only sleep on her stomach and it freaked me out. Since you are able to stay home with him, you can keep an eye on him. I would always put my hand on my daughters back to make sure she was still breathing (to alleviate my own fears).

Today, she is a healthy, happy, and crazy active 7yo who loves to jump rope - even without a rope.

The concern with SIDS is that children on their stomachs cluster blankets and other bedding materials around their faces and that is how they suffocate. Keep the crib empty and just use one blanket and you'll be fine.

My daughter liked (and still likes) to sleep on her belly, so I let her. I would just let your son sleep however he is most comfortable, especially since he can roll over. I have always put a blanket on my babies. You might check to see if your baby is too hot being in PJ's and a blanket sleeper.

I know they say back is best but...you need sleep. There comes a point where you need to do what is best in your family. My sister's second daughter only wanted to sleep on her stomach and she would sleep through the night. My personal feeling is no one knows what causes SIDS, they just have recommendations and those have changed through the generations. If you are comfortable with her on her tummy, then do it! Good luck.

J. W.

Once they can roll over on their own you don't really have to worry about the stomach sleeping issue. I have a 4 year old boy and 1 year old girl and both would immediately flip to their stomachs when I'd put them on their backs once they could roll over. You should ask your pediatrician, but ours says once they can roll over there's not much to do about it. As for blankets, I use a sleep sack (though not now in the summer because it's too warm) for my 1 year old and don't put blankets in with her, mainly because they never stay on. I've done it a few times at naptime but the blanket ends up in the corner of her crib so I just take it out.

He is old enough to sleep how he wants-it is good he is rolling over! You do not say if he is crying when he wakes up, I assume so, but soon he will wake up and play in there. He is getting a personality now, right? If he can go to sleep on his own: GOOD JOB MOM! You may need to just let him fuss if he wakes up and you know it is not feeding time.
This is torture to mom&dad, but talk to your doc about it first. btw, not all babies tolerate swaddling AT ALL! If your baby likes it , do it, even if he unwinds. Remember, moving around takes lotsa effort! Dress lightly if you swaddle, and dont have crib right under heat/air vent.

I just broke my swaddle habbit about 4 days ago. My daughter will be 8 months in a few days - she was not even a premie she just liked it. Well I'll admit I liked it because she slept so well swaddled. She also started sleeping through the night early (7 weeks) so I was scared to change our routine because I like to sleep too.

Anyhow, I just started putting her in a sleeper and then in a sleep sack. We did the Ferber Method - which totally worked for us in two days. She would roll over right away when we put her down on her back. So we just started putting her on her stomach - the frist night was brutal -up every hour and a half. The second night was not so bad I only went in once and realized that she was a little icicle - I kept her in the sleep sack and put a blanket over her bottom half. Last night she slept for 12 hours like this - not even one peep. I actually woke up before her.

Some more info we keep our house at 69 degrees at night and I use the middle weighted sleep sack and long sleeve sleeper. We tried a long sleeve onsie and a short sleeve onsie - both nights we did that she woke up several times and her back felt very cold.

I know that when her first teeth were coming through her sleep was interupted.

It will get better though!!! Hope this helps.

Hi J.,

Since my son started rolling over, we often find him sleeping on his side or tummy despite putting him on his back. I've also been told that once they can roll, not to worry about it. I also have an AngelCare monitor that senses movement (breathing) and an alarm will sound if it doesn't detect movement. Having this has made me more comfortable with him sleeping on his stomach. (The downside to this monitor is that the alarm will go off when he's sleeping in the corner of his crib, so I'm often still getting up a couple times a night. Fortunately, it doesn't wake him up. We probably don't need to use the motion sensor anymore...)
My son sleeps in a onesie and a sleepsack. Could your baby be waking because he's too warm?
He may also be waking up more because he's hungry and going through a growth spurt. Are you feeding him when he wakes up?
Is he breaking out of the swaddle? When my son started breaking out (about 4 1/2 or 5 months) we transitioned him out of it by leaving one arm out for a week or so, then swaddling him below his arms for a week or so before switching to the sleepsack.

Good luck! I know how frustrating it is going from sleeping all night to these sudden awakenings!

Jen