5 Month Old Rolling over at Night and Waking Up

When I was dealing with this, I decided I had to teach my daughter to sleep on her tummy or else I'd be getting up a thousand times to roll her back. I got her drowsy but not asleep, put her on her tummy in her crib, and patted and rubbed her back till she fell asleep. She put up a fight for the first couple of times, but once she discovered she could sleep that way and her head didn't have to pop up, she slept fine. It won't be too long until he can roll over the other way and you won't have this problem anymore!

My daughter did this at 3.5 months of age. I used the Baby Sleep Safe system with her for a couple of months and it worked wonderfully. It allows the baby to lay on their back and side, but not completely roll over while in their crib. She had plenty of time during the day to practice her skills and it allowed us to sleep well at night by not worrying about her.

Here is the website: http://www.babysleepssafe.com/ I found ours at Babies R Us.

You are in the thick of a massive wonder week (google it). I just came out of it --alive!-- after many nights of being up 6 times a night --for a good 3 weeks. Now, little man is sleeping like a champ. I, of course, am not sleeping, but that's a different story.

Not much you can do.He will learn to sleep on his tummy, and then go back to sleeping.

Try practicing rolling the other way during the day. (I'm assuming he wakes when he rolls onto his tummy.) Put him on his tummy, then shake/wave a noisy toy where he can see it. Move it so it is slightly above his head, but allow him to follow it with his eyes. He will try to roll over to see the toy. Eventually, he will learn to roll by following the toy.

Another way to help him develop this skill is to put him on a blanket, then gently lift the side of the blanket a little until he slowly rolls over. Good luck! I hope he learns quickly for your sake.

Have you thought of using a couple rolled up blankets on either side so he can't roll over in the first place. Or one of those sleep positioner things (can't remember how big they are, but think they'd work with a 5 month old).

we had same problems...we put a firm, child size pillow with tight fitting pillowcase right next to him and he would put his foot up on it and relax as he fell asleep.He did not roll since it would stop him:)
He now rolls over half way and puts his leg on the pillow and sleeps peacefully at 11 months old. This is great alignement for him too:) hee hee

My son did the same thing about two months ago. I think last week is when he finally figured out that it was ok. Nothing worked with my son except giving him loves. Rolled lankets, sleep positioner, weighted blanket. I gave him a lovey and that seemed to help.

My daughter did the exact same thing at that age and we just had to live with it until she learned to roll all the way back. I agree that you should never put a pillow- no matter how tight fitting, etc, into their bed. There are wedges or sleep positioners but again, in my experience, once they begin rolling and exploring, nothing really helps. We went through about 4 weeks (sorry to say!) of this but one day she just got it. Now we are going through the same thing because at 11 months, she is standing and can't get down. (PS- I swaddled her for the first 10 weeks and she loved it but if they are rolling over, they will bust the swaddle immediately). Good luck with whatever you decide to try. Just know that this is completely normal!

One other thing you can do is wrap him/her up in a blanket like a burritto, it may or may not work, but its a thing you can try.

A sleep positioner may help. But if your son is like my daughter, they can roll over the barrier if they really want to. She did the same thing a month or so ago (shes 6 mos). She had already been rolling over in the day for a bit but hadn't really mastered the rolling back over part yet. We worked on this during the day a lot and it seemed to help. This will also just go away/solve itself in time, probably more quickly than you think. A lot of babies get so excited about their new skills that they can't stop practicing them even in bed. Soon he will be onto the next thing.

This is a developmental based thing.
You baby now, has developed the motor-skills to roll over. It is good, it means he is developing normally and well.
It is a phase.
But yes, they will roll over even at night when they are 'supposed' to be sleeping... they do not have "impulse control" over their motor skills, and this is how they 'practice' their new motor-skills. It is instinct.

But yes, it means they will wake. And they cry because they do not know how... yet... to adjust themselves and roll themselves back into a nice comfy sleep position. So you need to help them. And yes, it it tiring. But they don't know that. And it is developmental based.

Next, this will happen anytime a baby hits major milestones or changes in motor-skills/Cognition. ie: when they start to pull-up and stand, and when they start to roll-over in all directions, and when they start to walk.... so be ready for that when time comes.

Both my kids did that too. Most all babies do. It is normal.

Until a baby has total control over their impulses and appendages, to AT-WILL control it... it will happen... its all a part of "growing-pains" for the baby... they don't know it drives us nuts.
But it is a rite-of-passage for the parent.

Once they start rolling over, sleep positioners won't keep them in place and they may get tangle with it or it may end up on their face. They can't yet pull something away from their face out of safety.

ALSO, feed on-demand. At 6 months, a growth-spurt will arise, and a baby needs more intake and they get hungrier too. Every 3 months is a growth-spurt time.

The book: "What to expect the first year" is good. I recommend it. Then the book: " What To Expect, The Toddler Years" too.

all the best,
Susan

Um....just wanted to tell you to never, ever put a pillow of any kind in a crib with a baby (as someone suggested). A sleep positioner should solve your problem nicely, though.

The baby stores sell a pad that has little "bumpers" on the sides to prevent the baby from rolling over.

This happened with my daughter, too. But it only lasted two or three days and then she would just sleep in her tummy when she rolled over. He may just get used to it soon and the waking will stop. Hang in there mama!

I would try a sleep positioner. I had one when my daughter was little and the side were large enough she could not roll over it
This is a link for the one i had
http://www.amazon.com/First-Years-Airflow-Adjustable-Posi...
good luck