6 Month Old Roling over at Night and Waking Up

Personally, I would just leave him be when he rolls. My son has been rolling in bed for the last couple of months and I just let him be and he gets himself comfy and goes back to sleep.

My rule of thumb about sleep positioning is this...if they are comfy, let it be. I had a back sleeper and a belly sleeper. My belly sleeper sleeps much better than my back sleeper did. I was very concerned with my first child and the sleep positioning so I made her stay on her back all the time...which I believe led to her not being a good sleeper. My second child I let sleep how he was comfortable...and he is a much better sleeper!

That's my 2 cents...do with it what you will.

Hi. My experience is similar to Jill L. Our son did this same thing rolling from back to belly and crying. We started out going in and rolling him but realized he needed to learn to sleep on his belly and to roll back over. It took a few weeks but he figured both out. We went through weeks of not sleeping very much before he figured things out and we also decided to let him fuss and cry a bit. He is our first so I'm not sure I could have let him cry a lot, that's just me. Luckily he calmed down after only a couple minutes of crying and after only a couple days he was back to sleeping through the night. From that point on he has slept great and has learned to soothe himself back to sleep if he wakes in the night.

My ped. always said that if they roll over on their own then you can leave them sleep that way. I read that he cried because he doesn't like to be on his back, so you can leave him on his belly. If he doesn't like to sleep on his belly then I'm not sure. My son always slept better on his belly. I started with nap time. As long as your awake, even as new borns, they can be on their belly all they can last. Best of luck!

Hi S.,

I have had 5 belly sleepers! As soon as they figure out they can roll and get comfy on their own they have done it. (between 4 and 6 months) My youngest are 18 month old twins, my oldest 8yr old. I have never worried about it, but I am very diligent in checking on them. Our monitor is very sound sensitive and can pick up their breath tones.
We all want what is best for our children. I know the recommendations are that babies sleep on their backs.......I also know the risk of SIDS....
I do believe that ONE STEP AHEAD sells a baby crib bumper with side panel vents to allow carbon dioxide to escape the crib area better than regular bumpers...(it's been awhile since I've looked, but it was there) Maybe that would give you better piece of mind?? Good luck, enjoy the milestones!

Hate to say this, but unfortunately there's not a whole lot you can do. Until the baby learns how to roll itself back over, you're the one who has to do it. So, gear yourself up for not getting much sleep for awhile. Goodluck

My son also did this somewhere around the same age. We also went in and flipped him over, until it became a very fun game for him. So we stopped. He would flip himself over, cry for a bit, and then fall back to sleep. It took about 3 nights, if that, and then he would not even wake up.

I know people are going to say I am cruel for letting him cry, but I am guessing that they have kids that they still have to get up with in the middle of the night.

I got confused, is he rolling over on to his back and waking up or rolling over onto his belly and waking up? Either way, work with him on rolling back over. I would try getting up, checking on him, talking to him, then just going back to bed and not rolling him back over and feeding him. I guess being a lot older I didn't worry as much as you younger women do. I laid them on their back for one sleep period, their stomach for the next sleep period, propped them on their sides for a sleep period with a blanket and their other side for the next sleep period. If they rolled over fine, then they got to sleep in the position they rolled into and I never had to go through this.

Have you checked into a sleep positioner, something he can lie on his back and would prevent him from being able to roll over? I would check online and check reviews too since I don't know what "age" you should or shouldn't use these. We used them for our daugther for the longest time, it was helpful because I knew she wouldn't be able to roll over and suffocate...just a thought...good luck.

Dear Shellie:
I understand your concern and probably panic. I've been there. I was 24 when I had my
first child and the whole thing kinda made me nervous. I will tell you now what I finally
learned about then. I know the medical field says do this don't do that. They know
i guess. But try to get into a pattern of feeding him just before bedtime, and make sure
that it is a peaceful time...no loud TV to "rev" him up. Have a comfy chair in there
where you can sit for a bit [out of his sight and sound] When he wakes, make sure he
has no issues..rash, dirty diaper, pain, or frightened. Pat him for a minute and make
sure he knows you are leaving. If he cries....Keep the tone of "I'll come back if you don't go to sleep" in your voice. Shut door and let him cry for a time.
Those little stinkers know almost from day one of manipulating Mom and Dad.
You might have to put up with it a couple of nights...But we all need our sleep.
My children slept on their stomachs. They both managed to wiggle all over the crib.
As long as they are WARM NOT HOT. Don't cover them. and don't have them lying on
any thing loose. My son has a 17 year old girl, a 14 year old boy and a 10 year old girl.
We've all survived. So has my wonderful daughter.
You might think of what you are doing and do the opposite. You'll find what works

I haven't read through the other responses, but my baby (8 months now) did the same thing. Finally I stopped flipping him back over, and just let him cry for a while and it didn't take long for him to fall asleep again. The beauty of it is, too, that while he formerly hated tummy time, sleeping on his tummy seems to cured him of that! Now he plays on his tummy all the time.

Our pediatrician said that once they roll over there isn't much we can do about it. She, also, said not to use sleep positioners and to make sure there is nothing else in the bed- pillows, stuffed animals, etc. I think once they roll over, you'll save yourself alot of angst to just let them be. Now, is he crying when he is on his back or on his belly? I keep rereading your question and I'm still not sure. If he rolls over and gets stuck then cries, I'm afraid you'll just have to wait it out and, aybe, give him lots of floor time to practice during the day.

S.,
He should be sleeping on his back. Is that how you lay him down? There are wedges that you can lay him down on and prevent rolling.

Ok...I know that the advice I am about to give is not "popular" but oh well. It's what worked for me and my son who is now 1 and happy and healthy! Nothing you do is going to stop that kid from rolling over! LOL No amounts of things you prop him up with are going to change that. I even had one of those infant positioner things for my son and he would use his feet and push himself up out the top. He hated it and would not stay in it or sleep on his back. When I would put him to sleep on his back he'd be up every hour or so. But he'd sleep great when I put him on his belly for nap time. So I let him sleep on his belly. Calm down and think about something my Mother said to me about the whole "has to sleep on his back" issue. Babies were allowed to sleep on their bellies for a long time without catastrophic death rates. I think they've gone a little overkill with concerns about SIDS. It's a terrible thing definately. But just because your baby sleeps on his belly does not mean it's going to hit him. Now they're saying if they sleep sitting up then SIDS will get them. How are you supposed to keep them from falling asleep in the swing or high chair or stroller or car seat? My son stopped sleeping on his back indefinately after he learned to roll over which was early (I think about 4 months if that). If you are up checking on him anyways, just let him sleep. My son's crib is in my room and I am only steps away from him. So I never worried. I had to stop swaddling him almost immediately after we brought him home because he hated it. And as soon as he could wiggle he decided how he wanted to sleep and nothing I did would keep him from getting that way. I let him sleep on his belly and just kept an eye on him. He was fine. Then he started sleeping restlessly and I gave him one of Daddy's pillows to cuddle with at night and he started sleeping thru the night with no problem. Now when he's tired he grabs a pillow and cuddles. LOL This way I know it's time for bed. Good luck and try to relax a little. Your son won't stay on his back no matter what you do so try to roll with it and let him be comfortable. Because after all it is important that he gets a good night's sleep and that you do too.