1 Month Old Will Not Sleep in Cradle

Looks like you have a ton of good suggestions. I would only like to say my daughther could not sleep in a crib or craddle til she was 3 mo old, swaddled or not. The only place she would sleep was her carseat. She just needed to be at a 45 degree angle. Good Luck.

You should definitely get a swaddler. It keeps him wrapped up pretty tight. My kids used it till they were about 5 months. I wouldn't get in the habit of letting him sleep with you. It's extremely hard to break.

My daughter couldn't stand her bassinet. At 2 weeks we moved her to her crib and it was heaven for the both of us!

I agree with the posts - he's feeling lost and flung out on an ocean of space. He wants to hear your heartbeat, smell your skin and be in touch with those familiar sounds of mom. I snuggled my kids in my bed. They slept longer, and though I was sleep deprived, that kid grows every time you blink your eyes. He'll have his whole life to sleep in his own bed - enjoy him. And take naps. ;D

Have you tried to swaddle him in a light blanket? Newborns like to feel comforted and as if they are still in your womb. Wrapping his whole body from the top of the shoulders down, gives him that feeling and may make him feel more secure so that he sleeps better. You could also try playing some soothing classical music. Hope this helps.

Hi M. - unfortunately it's going to be trial and error. You might try swaddling him. A "trick" we used with our first was to rest a hand on top of his head as he was laying down and a hand gently on his back and then keep them there until he settles down. Somehow it helped him to feel warmer and more secure. You might also consider if the cradle is uncomfortable, noisy or in a draft. My second slept better on a firm but soft surface - he liked having a fleece baby blanket underneath him.

2 great resources for newborns are "Happiest Baby on the Block" and the "Baby Whisperer"

Congratulations on your new son!

We found swaddling to be essential. We read and followed the Happiest Baby on the Block book (stupid title, great book) and had a lot of success with those methods. Swaddle as tight as you can!

my oldest wouldn't sleep in the cradle when she could touch the sides, and my youngest wouldn't sleep in it at all because it rocked, maybe its time to move him to a crib?

Have you tried a swaddle? I'm a new grandma, so not familiar with the current brand names of products, but my daughter had a swaddle that they used with their newborn. She said the baby always woke herself up unless she was swaddled tightly. If the baby got her arm out of the swaddle, she would wake herself up. As long as she was tightly swaddled, the baby slept really well. I think the brand name is something like "Swaddle Me", but the swaddle you buy is much better than trying to swaddle the baby in a blanket. We got a real laugh the first time my daughter put it on the baby because she looked like she was strapped into a straight jacket. But the pediatrician recommended it and it sure worked. If you want to check it out, go to the Babies R Us web site and enter "swaddle". You'll be able to see what is available.

swaddling, watch the baby whisperer, ok everyone said this. One thing my husband would do is wrap the baby in a blanket and leave an end loose so he could rock the baby but the baby stays in the crib/cradle. That way it gets slower and slower and you don't have to set him down - he's already there. My kids just slept with me. I think they are used to being right with you at that age, so it's a pretty natural thing to do.

I wasn't comfortable with the idea of having our little one sleep in our bed, so we had a cradle. I suggest that you wrap him up like a burrito before you try to put him down. They have great, slightly stretchy thermal cotton blankets at Babys R Us that we LOVED for this purpose. They are about 3 feet square, leaving enough room to wrap up your little guy. Have you seen Happiest Baby on the Block? It is really helpful about calming your child, and one of the principals is swaddling (or burrito!). Just a side-note, my son's pediatrician supports the theory that so much is
happening in an infant's brain that they cannot process or block out, which is why they seem to cry for no reason.

Good luck!

Usually at that age they really like to be swaddled. Try wrapping him up and then laying him down. We have also had a blanket with my scent on it for the baby to sleep on so they feel like mom is closer to them. The easiest way to do that is for you to either sleep with one of his blankets for a couple of days, or put your pj shirt in the bassinet with him, and rotate have a clean one on hand. Something else that we tried was to roll blankets and put on either side so that the bassinet wasn't so big. The little ones just like the closeness and we found that that worked too. Good luck.
J.--SAHM of 6

You have plenty of advice but here's my two cents; I swaddle our 7 week old every night. One night I let hubby convince me that it was too restrictive and got only a few hours of sleep at a time versus 5-7 hours, so I went right back to wrapping her up. Since they don't even know that their arms are theirs yet they start to get really upset by the chaos and flail them even more.

The other things that wake her up right after being put down are bubbles in her tummy or a wet diaper, which even if you JUST changed it, they often pee right after falling alseep. If she has stubborn gas I put her in the fisher-price glider, which is more stable then a bouncy chair, but elevates her head so that air can get out. We also got her a pacifier at 3.5 weeks (the number one thing my mom didn't want me to do- but that I'm happy to have, because she can use it to sooth herself). Good Luck! I'm right there with you figuring all this stuff out! :)

Sleep positioners worked wonders for my kids. It helped with the head shape thing too. She was on her back, or just slightly to one side. My youngest (9 mo) still has an extra blanket rolled up on one side of her bed, just in case she wants it.
Swaddling helps some kids, mine didn't like it. They needed their hands free.
The other thing is that you should really try to not put him down in the crib completely asleep if you can help it. If he's used to going to sleep while you are feeding him/rocking him, the no motion or no bottle feel will wake him up and then the cycle begins again. I made this mistake with my first and paid the price for it, no sleep! teehee. With my second, I had learned my lesson. I still got to rock her, or nurse, or give a bottle and cuddle with her, I just put her into her bed very drowsy, but not asleep so that she could do the rest herself. Worked wonders for her and for me. Good luck and hope this helps!

Try swaddling him. It may help him feel more secure if he is in a Swaddle Me or something similar.

Hopefully, you already know about the burrito wrap. On colder nights, I would warm the blanket in the dryer. Works like a charm.
Good luck.
S.

I had the same problem and it turns out he just liked to be on his tummy. I did it with my second baby too and instantly they become great sleepers.

A couple of suggestions.... first, swaddle him tight with his arms straight down to his sides, this way he wont start waving them around and wake himself up. He will also feel more secure like this.
Second, I am a BIG FAN of babies sleeping in their carseats. I have 4 children and all of them slept in their carseats until they were about 6 months. I lay a comfy blanket inside their carseat, then swaddle the baby as I described above, at put them in the carseat (you can then just put the carseat next to your bed, or in the basinet, or whatever). All of my babies have slept through the night early (my last one started sleeping through the night at 2 weeks, my others were at about 6 weeks). I think that babies feel more secure like this and don't stir, kick, flail, etc, waking themselves up. My pediatritian also pointed out to me that this is a great way to keep babies from getting "flat head" syndrom. Since their head is the heaviest part of their bodies, this takes a lot of the weight and pressure off their heads. Not one of my babies has ever had even the slightest bit of a flat spot.
Anyway, that is my opinion and what has worked for me. Hope it helps.

I'd also recommend swaddling... and/or a sleep positioner.... I think it helps them feel more snug and secure.

might I also recommend the secrets of the baby whisperer... it has great tips for recognizing signs your baby is sleepy, etc. so you can put them down awake, but drowsy.

good luck!

Get a back positioner that snuggles him on both sides and swaddle him. Keeps him on his back as well. He is feeling insecure and babies that young love to be swaddled and all snug when sleeping.

Hi M.-
Oh it's tough those first few weeks-bless both of your hearts! I swaddled the heck outta our dd for months and it worked like a charm! And my other idea is to put him down awake, droopy and exhausted, but awake. He'll fuss a bit, I'm sure but then he learns from this early of an age to do it himself and he will :)

best of luck to you..hope this helps. I'll be with ya in a few weeks with #2.

As a newborn my daughter would fall asleep in my arms and sleep for hours great, but when I would put her down she would flail and kick and wake herself up. We tried swaddling her and sleeping her on her back,; it didn't work. WE also thought she was having a bit of reflux (which she was) and she had it way more on her back so we tilted her bassinet at an angle and slept her on her tummy. She just sleeps way better that way. She can't flail and wake herself up. She started sleeping four to five hours at a time in the night and then by a few weeks she slept six to seven. Now she is three months old and she sleeps eight to nine hours a night. Sometimes ten. I also very loosely use the guidelines found in book On Becoming Babywise. I found it very useful. Good luck.

Hi M.,

Congratulations on your baby! My daughter was the same way until we used the information we learned in the DVD Happiest Baby on The Block!!! It is amazing and it saved our lives, allowed us sleep, and she slept in her bed without us!! He talks about the importance of swaddling you baby and how that keeps them from waking up. Good luck

Hi M.,
I agree with the other posts that swaddling works wonders. We had our daughter in her crib from the first night, so I don't know about the space worries. I would heat up a "bed buddy" (you know - the pillows that have corn or beans in them) in the microwave and lay that in the crib for just a few minutes to warm up the sheets and then lay her down in the warm spot. :-) I do this for myself too, because I just can't sleep if my feet are the least bit cold!

I would try swaddling and get him what is called a womb bear (bear that makes sounds like what a baby hears inutero) my sis attached one to her babies cradle and it was very helpful

I'm no expert, but neither of my children seemed to like the cradle. At 4 & 5 weeks, I put them in the crib and they seemed happier. I suspect that the cradle was either uncomfortable or unsettling because of the movement.
Just a suggestion,
S.

Congratulations on your new baby. I had the dickens of a time getting my little girl to sleep in her crib, but I eventually found that swaddling worked wonders. At a month, your wakeful guy may need both his arms and legs swaddled, but if he won't take to that, then just try wrapping his legs. I used the swaddling blankets with Velcro tabs to hold them in place because they stayed on a lot better. Also, you might try playing the same music for your baby every time he sleeps, night and naps. I found that the same music cued my baby that it was time to sleep. She's fourteen months old now, and a great sleeper. Good luck!

All my kids (3) have a heartbeat bear - it has a thing inside it that you turn on and it sounds like your heart while the baby is inutero. I got the ones from Dex - they are $20. Sound shuts off after 40 or 45 minutes. But the sound "box" can be removed later for the kids to use him just as a teddy bear.

And, now I'll be controversial. I have an 8 year old, a 3 year old and one that is just under a month. All my kids were pretty good sleepers - but I swaddled them and put them on their tummies.

Now, I realize that you're not "supposed" to do that. But when I was a kid, babies were only supposed to be on their tummies. I'm not saying SIDS isn't a real thing - but if your baby has no health problems and the bed isn't full of "stuff" there shouldn't be a problem.

For my first, I tried to put her on her back. But she NEVER slept. And I do not do well with no sleep! So, I started putting her on her tummy for naps. Then I could check on her and make sure things were ok. After that, I moved to putting her on her tummy all the time. (First night she was on her tummy, Hubby stood over her crib watching her all night!)

And, #2 and #3 have all been put on tummies as soon as we got home. And both are great sleepers. My son (#3) slept from 11 o'clock last night until just before 7 this morning.

You might consider trying this for naps and see how he does. Then if/when you feel more comfortable with it, add nights also.

Whatever you do, I hope you figure it out - it sucks to be exhausted with a new baby!

He is probably getting cold and feeling insecure because there is a bigger space. What we did with our babies is wrap them up. We took a blanket and put it on point. Then put their arms to their sides and wrapped one corner around and tucked it in underneath them and then pulled the bottom corner up and then took the last corner around and tucked it underneath. They are warm and feel secure. Try this and he should start sleeping for you.

Congratulations on your baby :)

Julie had great advice. Swaddling worked well for our kids. We watched the video "The Happiest Baby on the Block" with our second and used the ideas with our second and third. Our first did not sleep swaddled and was ready for his crib by 1 month. Also, if you put him down when he's drowsy, but not asleep, then he'll get used to going to sleep in the cradle and sleep better. Congratulations! Enjoy your new bundle of joy!

Hi M.,

Our son is 11 months now and we have always had a humidifier in his room. I think the sound is very soothing to him and helps him sleep. Also, swaddling was AWESOME!! We also began putting him in his crib when he was 6 weeks old. I know a lot of people want their babies in the same room with them but we found that Mommy, Daddy AND Baby all got much better rest this wey. We also have a video monitor so we didn't feel like we had to run into his room with every little noise. We are first time parents as well at 40 & 45 :) Congrats and Good luck!

My oldest didn't like swaddling much. He always wiggled his arms free. My second loved it, but it was summer in Phoenix and he was always overheating.

So what worked for us, even though it was a bit of a pain, was that I would have to keep my hand on their tummy for a minute or two until they were really asleep. I think it's a different fix for the same sort of problem. Swaddling keeps them wrapped up smaller, which is what they are used to in the womb. A hand on their tummy provides physical contact and security, which is the other thing they were used to.

I had the same problem with my first baby, so at 3 weeks, we put her in a crib. Turns out she wanted more space (she also hated being swaddled) and a less confined view. I also think that sleeping on just the crib mattress made it nice and flat, which is something she liked. She has slept great in that crib for 22 months now.