Sleeping Positions / Sleeping Through the Night

I put my daughter on her stomach since week 2 and she was sleeping at least 6hrs now she sleeps anywhere from 8-12. I too was nervous but im a light sleeper and she was in a cradle next to my bed so i was more comfortable. she is now 6 months and there is no problems. Just do what you feel comfortable with.

I have heard that when they are able to lift their heads on their own, you can let them sleep on their tummies. I haven't tried it, but if your son has gas, tummy sleeping may help. Maybe you can let him nap on his tummy when you are close as a "trial" to see how he does. I also cary my son (who aslo has terrible gas and reflux) around in a sling. He absolutely loves it and it really helps!

A wonderful book that will help you help your child sleep through the night is The No Cry Sleep Solution by Elizabeth Pantly. My son was getting up every hour and after trying just a few things in that book, he's gone to being up every three or four in just a month... huge difference!!! When he does wake up, it is only to eat, then he goes right back to bed (I co-sleep, so I just lay him next to me). The whole process only take about 10 minutes. I strongly recommend not trying the cry-it-out method. There are just much more gentle ways to accomplish the same thing.

If you want to buy a sling, I bought one from Momma Trends, which is a momasource buisness. They are really affordable and well made!

My brother's little girl ended up needing a wedge thing that holds the baby softly in place while angling them about 20 degrees. It was a life saver. They got it at Banies r Us. Maybe your little one would like it too. I don't know how much it costs, but for him to buy it, it couldn't have been ridiculously priced.
Also, I did put both of my girls on their tummies, and they're 8 and 3 now. So, do what you feel is best for your baby. Go with your gut, maybe you can try the wedge thing too and see if it helps.
Good luck and happy sleeping to you both!! :)

My two slept on their backs. I was too nervous to put them to sleep on their tummies. Studies have shown that since more babies have started sleeping on their backs, cases of SIDS have dropped dramatically. I let my little ones sleep in our bed with my husband and me. Everyone slept better. Don't worry you'll find times and places for intimacy with your husband...

Jen

S., my son did not sleep well at all on his back to begin with so I started putting him on his belly at nap time when I was awake to check on him often. Once I got more comfortable with that and he could hold his head up and push himself up a bit on his arms, around 4 or 5 months, I started sleeping him on his belly at night and it has been smooth sailing ever since. Clearly there are warning about sleeping them on their belly's for a reason. If you decide to do so, make sure there is NOTHING else in the crib with him. I even removed my bumpers at first so that he didn't get stuck in a corner and suffocate. It's really nerve wracking! Good Luck!

My son is about the same age and sleeps great through the night (sometimes 7-8 hours although most nights he wakes up once to nurse). We just make sure to swaddle him really good and that works like a charm.

I do agree that babies are all different and not every solution is the right solution for your baby. However, I do NOT recommend tummy sleeping. If your baby is big enough to roll over on his own, then you can't really control whether or not he wants to be on his back or not. But if he's not big enough, I DO recommend putting him on his back. We do not know the cause of SIDS but we do know there is a correlation between sleeping prone (belly sleeping) and SIDS. In the NICU, we utilize prone sleeping only because we have monitors on babies 24 hours a day, so we know when and if they stop breathing. Before they go home though, for at least a week, we work on transitioning them to back sleeping. The newborn nursery (place where term kids without any problems after birth go) doesn't utilize prone positioning at all. In cases where reflux is an issue, pediatricians and neonatologists have considered the use of a wedge (goes under the mattress to elevate the head of the bed). Before you try prone positioning though I recommend that you read 2 responses I have made in the past to moms. One is dated 8/26/07 by Kaiya P "Baby spitting up a lot". This I feel has to do with your son needing gas drops. I personally, feel Mylicon or simethicone or gas relief drops do a whole lot of good. I DO feel that good burping has everything to do with preventing gas. And very few, if any, parents are taught how to burp. Yes there is a technique. I learned these techniques as a nurse and noticed they have helped not only with my son but the babies I care for as well. We teach them to parents before their babies go home. Read this response and you should find some good advice. I also responded to a mom that was trying to get her son to sleep through the night. See Leslie R's "Seeking advise for sleep issues" on 12/5/06. At 12 weeks, every normal newborn is capable of sleeping through the night. There are different philosophies on getting babies to sleep but this one focuses on Ferber's method (read before you judge). This method worked wonders for my family. Good luck S.!

I didn't have much trouble with a fussy baby at night, but we did have a huge problem with Plagiocephaly (flattening of the back of the head) due to me having him sleep on his back. He had to wear a helmet that helped reshape his head from 5-8 months. I was also afraid to have him tummy sleep until he could roll over. Have you tried the sleep positioners? I had my son in a sleep positioner on his side (after we discovered the plagiocephaly) which worked well. Also, make sure he is not too hot or cold, and maybe even try putting the shirt you wore that day in his crib (not too close though :0)). I just wanted to warn you that you should be constantly changing his position when you put him down for nap or sleep to prevent the flattening. You can get more info on that at www.cranialtech.com

I wish you the best in getting your little man to sleep and not fuss! You are blessed ;0)

K.

Hi S., i just asked this very same question about two months ago when my son was three months. He is now five months old and we still do not make it through the night. He does sleep for 4-6 hours and based on my research that is a full sleep cycle for a baby. My little guy sleeps on his back. He hated his stomach from day one. My oldest son only slept on his stomach. Since he is already three months old i bet he has pretty much established how he likes to sleep. Also, if he wakes up two or three times at night that is totally normal. My son wakes up to nurse and then i put him back in the bed next to ours. they say a nursing baby digest the mothers breast milk after two hours and that is why they wake up to eat. I have a great nursery and still have yet to use the crib at night time due to frequent night time feedings. My body has adjusted and i just try to take a nap during the day for 30 or and hour. I thought that feeding him baby cereal would help, but it didn't. Don't stress about it. They will grow up so fast you'll wish that they were small again soon, I have a 11 yr old boy who doesn't like hugs and kisses any more and i am cherishing the cuddle time with my little one while I still have him small. Good luck, it will get better. Time. J.

I have to say that I believe each baby is different. My first son was a HORRIBLE sleeper. Me second son was a decent sleeper, and my son now is the best sleeper (he sleeps on his back)! He will be 3 mos old on the 16th and pretty much since we brought him home from the hospital, he has slept thru the night (6 hours or more). His sleep schedule now is from 8p-6a, wakes up to nurse, then goes back to sleep until 10a. Honestly, I don't think it's anything I'm doing, I think it's just him, so be prepared for that too. The one thing I would tell you is to make sure he's warm enough at night. I know it sounds silly since it's summer and HOT, but when he DID wake up in the middle of the night a few nights, it was b/c he was cold.

My second son slept on his tummy for naps. I was too afraid to let him sleep on his tummy at night. Maybe if he's getting good naps during the day, he will sleep longer at night.

Feel free to message me if you want to talk more since it sounds like our boys are pretty close in age!

My little one was the same way...wanted to sleep on her tummy only! Babies are really gassy and if you think about it...wouldn't you be uncomfortable sleeping on your back with a belly ache? My pedi wasn't to keen on the idea of my little one sleeping on her tummy and I think the main reason is because of the risk factor of suffication. I would say if your sheets are tight on the bed/crib that he'll be fine. Also make sure he's strong enough to roll from tummy to back and lift his head. You could also try putting him on his one of his sides to sleep (this worked well for us). I found that it did help my daughter sleep better (and longer).
As far as getting the baby to sleep through the night...not much you can do there. If he's hungry he'll wake up. Personally, I have found that co sleeping helps alot. I think we all slept better that way. I was there to feed her when she was hungry and I could keep a close eye on her if she was on her belly. But its all in what you're comfortable with and what you think is best for your little one.
Good luck to you and your precious babe! :)

I don't know if your problem is the same as mine My son just turned 6wks old & would only fall a sleep if I was holding him & patting his back or on his tummy. I am extremely worried about SIDS so I let him fall asleep & then flip him over gently. He stays asleep & I don't have to hear him scream for hours if he is in his crib. This has helped me sleep more. It takes longer for him to fall asleep & co-sleeping I worry I will roll on him so I don't like to do that. Plus I don't want to have to break the co-sleeping when he gets older.

My little guy didn't like sleeping on his back so he was on his side for the first couple of months then on his stomach and he has been a great sleeper. He was in our room until months so I was right there but when he went to his crib at 4 months he was on his stomach.