8 Week Old Not Sleeping on Her Own

Why shame on you?? Co-sleeping is a very natural practice. One that your baby is telling you she needs. Especially if you are returning to work soon. It could be a great way for you to bond and stay connected. I have three children, 9, 4, 16 months. My babies all slept with me. They decided when they were ready to sleep on their own. Usually it was about 5-6 months. Enjoy this precious time. It goes by very quickly!!

3 moms found this helpful

DO NOT SAY SHAME ON ME for letting your infant daughter sleep with you. I have the experience of 4 children (7, 5, 3, and 7months) and I will tell you every one of them has had different sleep habits/abilities. My oldest did what you are describing, and I remember how desperate I was for sleep, and back then I felt bad about letting my baby sleep with me, BUT NO MORE! Don't let anyone tell you that "you'll be sorry". My new baby has slept with me for the first 4-5 months, and she transitioned to her crib better that my other 3. She's the best little sleeper so far, and just a great little baby. Now I'm not saying that this is THE answer for every parent or every baby, but each child is different and you need to respond to each child's needs. You were entrusted with this child by God and you need to trust your "mommy insticts". Don't let anyone or any book make you feel bad. Good bless and ENJOY this infancy because, believe me, it flies by...M.

3 moms found this helpful

By all means, if you need sleep let her sleep w/ you. There is nothing wrong with co-sleeping. Letting a two month old baby cry it out is cruel. Someone who's only been on this planet for 8 weeks is not spoiled and is not manipulating - they are in the process of forming an attachment. Think about where she was just 8 short weeks ago - she was close to you for nine months so of course she wants and needs you near.

Because I listened to my mil when she said one of my twins was spoiled at 8wks old and that I should let him cry it out, I now have a clingy two year old with trust issues.

Check out The Baby Whisperer Solves all Your Problems by Tracy Hogg or the Dr. Sears book on Attachment Parenting. Tracy Hogg will give you a particular method for getting your infant to sleep in their own bed w/o letting them cry it out and Dr. Sears recommends co-sleeping.
Hope that helps!

2 moms found this helpful

I always said I'd never let my infants sleep with me, and with my son (now 7), I didn't. He would wiggle, wriggle and socialize. Sleep? Not so much.

My daughter (now 3), though, slept with us most of the time for the first year. She was cuddly, happy, very still and slept straight through after the first couple of months. She got kicked out at about a year old when she decided she should own the entire bed and kick her parents in the ribs and head. LOL. So, no shame on you from me. :)

We had minimal problems moving her at that point. Honestly, I don't regret having those snuggly times with her at all. I don't regret not having my son in bed either. Kids are different, and the things you do with each naturally reflect that. The goal is for everyone to get the sleep they need.

If you really feel strongly about moving her to her own bed, you're likely going to have to let her cry some. With my son, he'd cry for about 10 minutes, get a pat on the back. Start crying again and then we'd go 15. The difficult part is that you really can't pick the baby up for comfort or you'll just start the whole thing over. Fairly heartbreaking at times, but my son did figure out how to sleep on his own in a few nights. They were long, exhausting nights, but it worked.

1 mom found this helpful

Please do not be ashamed of letting your baby sleep with you. This has been shown, by medical evidence, to be the best thing for both you and your baby. It is a way for you both to get a good night sleep. And, if you are returning to work soon, it will give you time to be close to your baby at night, when you can't be close during the day.

My children slept with me until they were between 2 and 3. We all sleep better that way.

If you are concerned about safety, please know that it is actually more safe to sleep with your baby, then it is to put the child in a crib in a separate room. Please see Dr. Sear's Website,

http://www.askdrsears.com/html/10/t102200.asp

and Mothering Magazine's article, with lots of useful links to other websites:

http://www.mothering.com/sections/experts/buckley-archive...

Co-sleeping is the norm in most of the rest of the world. My advice is to give up trying to get her to sleep alone. Take her to bed with you. If you both sleep better that way, you won't regret it.

1 mom found this helpful

My son slept with me for the first 11 weeks of his life. Then I started to put him in his pack 'n play which was right next to my bed for naps during the day only. I finally figured out that he LOVED sleeping on his stomach and he started napping in the pack 'n play. When we transitioned him to the crib, it was a little more difficult. But we eventually put a heating pad in his crib to warm up the mattress. Once it was warm, we would remove the pad and put him right on the warm spot. It worked! He did not wake up after laying him down. I hope you will find something that works for your baby soon. Oh, and by the way, if you want to co-sleep, do it. Check out www.askdrsears.com and look up "attachment parenting".

1 mom found this helpful

I'm sorry that you felt the need to say shame on you. If you want to co-sleep, don't let ANYONE make you feel bad about that. We did almost from day one & loved it. We used the boppy pillow until our DS was moving around too much. Then, went to sleeping flat on the bed. Worked great for us. That said, I wasn't sure that I wanted to do that, so in the beginning, I learn that DS liked to be somewhat warm to sleep. She didn't like the full swaddle, just up to her arms. She still doesn't like her arms covered when she sleeps. I used a blanket on my shoulder, then covered her with one on her back. The idea being that when I layed her down, she was laying on a warm blanket. She still didn't sleep all night, but at least a few hours at a time. With our son, we did the pat the bottom thing. That worked great for her. Good luck.

1 mom found this helpful

You're doing a good job, it is a special thing to sleep with your little one. There is no reason to stop at this point, especially if you're wanting safe sleep with very little crying. She will need to know you're close by especially when you go off to work and you need to reconnect with her. Please don't feel shame, it's no body else's business, and you know in your heart you're doing what is right for her. Check out Dr. Jack McKenna's new book, Sleeping with Your Baby. It's been practiced for thousands of years, and it is instinctual. Keep it up!

1 mom found this helpful

I'd like to 'ditto' the advice from Amy L. I think she gave you some very realistic, practical advice. I used the same technique with my 2 daughters. It took some perseverence, but it worked. My girls (ages 8 and 6) still go to bed easily by themselves.

I also feel compelled to caution you about using a heating pad in your daughter's crib, as one of the other moms suggested. Research indicates that making your baby too warm while they sleep significantly increases the risk of SIDS.

Good luck...and sweet dreams!! :)

1 mom found this helpful

First off, there is nothing wrong with having your daughter sleep with you if that's the only way you and your husband can get some sleep. My daughter was born prematurely and when she did finally come home, the only way she would sleep was in someone's arms - nap and at night. So, my husband and I propped up some pillows and took turns each night (we both work) holding her while sleeping. Then, every once in awhile, we'd try to lay her down in the co-sleeper we had next to the bed. Sometimes it was successful and some times it wasn't. If it wasn't, we'd go a few nights without trying and just holding her and then try again. Sure, it was about 1-2 months before she was sleeping on her own, but she's now 18 months old and is a happy little girl who sleeps in her own bed every night.

You can't spoil a 2 month old. Go with your gut on what feels right to do.

1 mom found this helpful