How to Get a Baby to Sleep in Her Crib?

M.,
There's nothing wrong with keeping her in the bassinet! She will fit in there longer than you may think...if she gets too long--buy a bigger one! Go with what works. I liked the idea about the moses basket too. I think when they are that young, a crib seems like a HUGE expansive area. Maybe you could start (when the time comes) to section off the crib in half to make it a smaller cozier space. Good luck. I would NEVER let my baby Cry It Out at 8 weeks.

Hi, have you tired a sling? My son simply would not sleep alone, so I put him in a sling and got all the stuff I needed to do done and he was a happy, happy baby who is the sunniest, most cheerful 3 yr old imaginable, and i do believe it is because of the security he had early on.

Check out http://www.pittsburghbabywearers.com/ They even have meetings that you can go to if you are afraid to try on your own.

I recommend wearing your baby if that is what it takes to keep them calm and asleep. I could clean, do laundry, work on the computer etc and my son was snuggled up against me. it was a really lovely time in my life.

good luck.

Hi M.,

Try getting a moses basket and putting that in her crib. She might just like the closeness of the bassinet and finds the crib a little too big.

Another thought that you might want to ask your doctor about is reflux. My little one was very similar and it turned out that she had really bad reflux and hated laying flat because it hurt her. The day we figured that out and gave her the appropriate treatment, she took 3 naps in her crib and slept through the night in it and we haven't had a problem since. Of course, she might just hate her crib and this has nothing to do with reflux but just wanted to run it by you :)

And finally, when all else fails, the baby bjorn did the trick. That or the sling will at least let you get some stuff done around the house during the day.

Good luck!

Hi M.,

Here are some web sites:

www.storknet.com/guests/babymassage.htm

http://www.askdrsears.com/html/7/T070200.asp

Hope this helps. D.

Now is NOT the time to let her cry it out. She is only 8 weeks old.

Indulge her need for security. Have you considered co-sleeping? We did it with our daughter until she was 4 months old and it worked well for us.

There were even nights when she would sleep on my chest the entire night (i.e. three hours at a time).

Try relaxing a bit with the need to get her in a crib. Maybe she can feel your tension and is reacting to it.

We had the same problem with our little one. What really helped us to get her to relax and sleep in the crib was white noise. We have an air cleaner running in her room which sounds exactly like white noise. In desperation one night, my husband turned it on, and she immediately closed her eyes and went to sleep. Now we keep it on when she's sleeping. And on a side note, she's also swaddled and HATES her pacifier too!! Good luck!!

My daughter has slept in a twin size bed since she was 6 weeks old. I would lay with her untill she fell asleep and then leave (still do). It was the only way I could do it. She had a beautiful crib that I sold last year because she never used it. She just hated the thing, have no idea why.

I have a different opinion than the other moms who have posted. My son was THE SAME. I indulged his need to be held, put him in a sling, wrap, or other carrier and did what I needed to do while he slept. Periodically, I would try putting him down for a change. After about 3-4 months, he went down with no problems. I feel that they are confused with everything and just need to feel secure. Once they are secure, they will be happy to sleep by themselves. I did however make sure that I would put him down with a t-shirt that I wore the night before or something that smelled like me and white noise like an air conditioner or fan helped in the early stages of putting him down. You have a three year old, so you know, this will not last forever. It is a passing phase. My son is a great sleeper (except for the nightmares once in a while) at 2.5 and my little girl (6 mo) is completely opposite and does not want to be held, so every baby is different! Good luck and my best advice is to do what feels right for you and your family. They grow up so fast, later you will look back and wonder why you were so worried!

Dear M.,
Now is definitely the time to work on this ~ sooner rather than later, b/c as you mentioned, she'll soon be too big for the bassinet. First, there's nothing unusual about a 2-month old wanting to be held. However, for obvious reasons, you can't hold her all the time. Nor would you want to accustom her to always being held. She needs to get used to the crib, and it will almost certainly be a difficult transition initially. However, pick a method (cry it out, Ferber, etc.) and stick with it. Nothing confuses babies (and bigger kids) more than a parent who can't figure out what they're doing & therefore, isn't consistent.
Personally, I've been VERY blessed. Both of my kids are very good sleepers. My daughter (17 mos) gets her nuk when I change her just before bedtime. (The nuk is for the crib, and when she gets up, I make her leave it in the crib.) When I'm finished changing her, I turn out the light (while I'm holding her) & walk over towards her crib. I tell her "night-night, Mommy loves you" then put her in her crib & cover her with her blanket. Depending on her needs, I may turn on a fan or the vaporizer, etc., and then leave the room & turn out the hall light (it's very bright & right outside her doorway). Typically, she's asleep within a few minutes. Although sometimes she'll lay there & talk to herself a bit before actually going to sleep. Good luck with your decision. I'll be praying for both you & your daughter.

How does she do in her car seat? My son slept in his car seat (the carrier style) for months. I think he just felt cozier in there. He also had a stuffy nose at one point and it helped to have his head raised. By the time he was nearing 6 months, and wanting to wiggle more, he was happy to sleep without it. We just put him in the car seat and put it in the crib so he got used to the environment. Once he was able to wiggle and move a little more on his own, he was happy to lose the car seat and just sleep in the crib.

I know people who have used a Baby Bjorn or a sling the first few months when they had children who were partial to being held all the time. My daughter used her bassinet for naps and night sleep until she was 3 months old then I transitioned her to her crib for naps. At 4 months old we switched her into her crib full time and had to sleep train her (we used the Sleepeasy Solution by Jennifer Waldburger- it was excellent and easy).
At 8 weeks its ok to give her what she needs. Good luck!

I am stunned that mother's really believe they should cry it out at 8 weeks! Please don't do that so young. I had them in their cradle until 3 months. I also had a friend whose baby did not weigh as much and got away with it longer. I don't think you have to rush the crib. I started slowly introducing them to it during naps at 3 months and they were fine.

I loved the moses basket post...it may help to feel secure in such an open space...

Have you ever heard of a "High Needs" baby? It sounds like you have one! My son is the same way!

Co-sleeping may actually be a sanity saver. It took a while to get our son to sleep in his own bed. We had to have a very structured night time reutine & that still doesn't always work.

I know one thing that totally saved/saves me every single day is my THING-A-MA-SLING baby sling! I would never get anything done w/o it & we'd both be absolutely miserable!!!

Have you ever looked on www.AskDrSears.com ? If not, I highly suggest it & look up "high needs baby". Attachment Parenting & The Fussy Baby Book, both by Dr. Sears would be great reads for you too.

Hang in there! As they say, this too, shall pass!