I can't get my son to fall asleep on his own. Ever since he has started to pull himself up on everything, as soon as I lay him down all he wants to do is climb up the rails in his crib. My husband and I used to be albe to lay him in his crib and he would fall asleep with in 5 minutes. I am afraid to let him cry it out and fall asleep on his own because the more tired he gets the more he falls. I don't want him to hurt himself by hitting his head on the crib itself. We have been letting him fall asleep in our arms then take him to bed, but there has to be an easier way.
Let him cry. He will be ok. I have 3 kids from 6yrs to 3 months, and all 3 sleep independently without any help falling asleep. My baby even sleeps through the night and most mornings I have to wake him between 8-9 am. Hope this helps.
J.
my 10 month old does the same thing. shes pulling up in her crib and just stands there eventually she gets tired and plops down. shes bumped her lip once and her nose once but nothing life threatening. i would just let him work it out or else you will have a baby who wont sleep on his own.
S.,
Both of my kids have been really good sleepers. They both just lay down and fall asleep on their own. I have never rocked either one to sleep and laid them down! I miss the rocking them to bed but in the long run, it has been very easy to on me at bedtime. My advice that I have for you is to maybe put a CD player in your son's bedroom and play music for him when it is naptime or bedtime. I would highly recommend that you don't rock him to sleep and then lay him down. You can rock him before bed but lay him down awake/drowsy. THey have to learn how to fall asleep on their own! I think that if you give yourself a week or so and let him cry it out he is going to realize that by crying, you or your husband are not going to come and get him. It will be difficult in the beginning but believe me, it will get better and you will thank yourself for it! The crying can get to you so you may just need to remove yourself and go to the basement, if you have one or try and tune it out. I always think that if I let my kids cry, they will remember that I let them do that and they are going to hate me when they get older. Trust me, they won't! Good luck!
We have the baby einstein aquarium that looks like a turtle. I turn it on and my daughter is amazed by it's lights and spinning fish. The music is really soothing and calming and usually puts her to sleep. She also sometimes listens to her lullaby cd. Sorry I can't think of anything better. Good luck!
After scanning all these replies, I had to weigh in. I don't seem to understand why everything is black & white. You fon't HAVE to let them cry it out. If that's what you want then that's OK. I have a 5 yr old & a 14 month old. I still rock my baby to sleep & she sleeps about 10-12 hours a night. At about 15-16 months, my son (5 yr) started going to sleep on his own & has been every since. We gave him a small bottle of water & gradually decreased that until it was a pacifier. Some nights, he would play for a couple hours, but he fell asleep on his own. Soon, we will be working with my daughter. But, I personally, don't believe in cry it out. Remember, it's about what works best for you. Just because it worked for me or for someone else, doesn't mean it's best for you.
I used a book - Good Night, Sleept Tight by Kim West. She talks about a concept called the "sleep lady shuffle" and has a lot of good ideas to try - the book goes all the way up to sleep problems in five year olds. We started her program when my son was 9 months old. At 2 1/2 he's still a great sleeper. We will be using this with our second baby (he's just four months).
Hi S.. My daughter is the same age as your son and also pulling up and trying to stand against everything. I put her in bed awake when it is nap time and yes, I can hear her rattling the side of her crib!! She doesn't go to sleep as quickly as she used to but will eventually. Some days there is more crying than others but I do not go in unless I hear a big bump and screaming. You will be able to tell the difference in cries if there has been a bump. Many times I have gone to check on my daughter once all is quiet and she has fallen asleep sitting up so when they are tired enough, they will sleep. I am working with my daughter on standing up and then sitting down again so that maybe this will help at bed times. Rocking in yoru arms is a hard habit to break so I would say stop this as soon as you feel comfortable and keep with the routine of putting your son in bed awake. If it makes you feel better, you could keep going in there and laying him down until he sleeps but I think this prolongs the awake time as he is getting stimulation from you coming in. Good luck :)
I would just keep trying and start letting him learn how to fall asleep by himself, yes- you'll have to leave him! With my son, for a while we would just have to go in when he'd been crying for 10 minutes or so, or started getting hysterical, lay him back down and pat his back for a little and then try to leave again. In the beginning, the back patting used to put him right out, YES- he was a tummy sleeper- I know, I know........ I would just keep trying different things and you will figure out something! And just when you have him figured out, he'll change again! Good luck!
He will soon get over the excitement of standing, and it will get easier again.
Hi S....I have not encountered this problem with my kids (yet ;)But, I have heard the suggestion of putting his mattress on the floor. Now I know, he is only 8 mos. But, maybe check with your pediatrician and see if that would be ok or if she/he can give you an idea along those lines...Good Luck!! C.
This may sound harsh to some of you mommies out there, but you need to just let him cry his self to sleep. If he learns that you will go in there everytime he pulls himself up then guess what he is going to do???? Pull himself up so you come in there. I know that doing that is one of the hardest things that a first time mommy has to do, but believe me.... you will thank yourself in the long run. I am a working mother of 3 and just like you, I struggled with the very same thing with my first child. I was working for a group of doctors at the time and I asked for advise from each of them. It all came down to, you have to let them cry to sleep. The first night they might cry for an hour and then the next night it would decrease (usually by about 1/2 the time from the night before) and then eventually, they would just know. When I am put in my crib, then I need to go to sleep. With all of today's technology in cribs and the pads, it is highly unlikely your baby is going to hurt himself. I know this is your first child and you treasure him so much and you only want the best for him and to keep him safe, but what you have to remember is.... Let kids be kids! Kids are going to get some bumps and bruises. That is all just a part of life. If they do cry uncontrollably, then walk in the room and lay him back down and pat him and tell him he will be ok, but DO NOT stay in there.
That's my advise... I hope it helps!
There is not always an easier way but a healthier way for him. First of all, make sure the mattress on the crib is all the way down! If he is a climber then he could soon fall over and that could be really bad. Don't worry about him hitting his head on the rails, he will learn that hurts. Place a soothing musical toy in the bed with him that will get his attention maybe something that has a moving part to distract him so he will not want to climb and instead watch and listen. Only put that in his bed so he has something to look forward to everytime he goes to bed. Keep him on a schedule so his body will have a schedule. Let him cry it out...sounds cruel but that will not last long. When he falls asleep in your arms he expects to be there when he wakes up and not in his crib. That is confusing for him and will only cause more problems later. Boys are great but very active and curious. Have fun with him!
S.,
He is not going to hurt himself too bad, really, babies are resilient! you are training him to fall asleep in your arms (my husband and I have(had) one too) what you need to do is what our doctor told us, shut the door,turn off the lights and go somewhere noisy-he WILL cry. It workes! We are all guilty of creating bad habits.Good luck!!
I saw on TV that they have covers you can put over your crib so they can't get out. I am not sure where you can get this but you can ask around. Personally I would not let him fall asleep in your arms or he will forever be doing that. Just let him cry it out. I know it is hard to listen to but if you can secure him in his crib so he can't get out then you won't worry about him harming himself. I had to let my daughter cry herself to sleep and believe me don't start something that you will have an ever harder time of breaking him of later.
When my boys were little (they're now 6 and 4); I used to put music on to get them to stay in bed, and that actually would work out pretty well. I have four children by myself, and getting them to stay in bed is not easy. You could also try reading to him before bed, and then laying him down with some soft music (my children love country). Good luck!
I am a single stay home mom of four: 8, 6, 4, and 16 months.
Take the mattress sheet off of his crib and have you and your husband sleep on it for a couple of nights and then don't wash it, just put it on his crib mattress. The smell of you two may calm him down. If this works try this for a couple of weeks and then gradually stop doing it. I did this with my son and it worked very well. You might also try putting him to bed sooner, before he gets too tired or maybe later after he is more tired. Just a few thoughts from a mom of 4. Bottom line is there isn't any right answer for you just keep trying things until they work! Good luck.
i have two boys and they are thirteen months apart a 1 and 2 year old. i found it best to play a rest fool relaxing cd or tape in there room at night. but also let them cry it out if you are worried about him getting hurt then leave the door just cracked enough that you can peek through and make sure there all right with out him knowing that you are there.so make sure the hall way lights and stuff are off. Thats what i did and my boys go to bed with no problem now.
S.,
I agree with the 1st two moms. I wouldn't worry and if you are try a pack n' play that have net sidings instead of rails and bars. Your little man will realize that if he gets his way now, just what can he get away with later?..lol Take him to his crib lay him down and continue this process. He's growing, experimenting, and becoming a little more independent. He'll fall asleep, trust me!! Most of the time with crying and standing up they get tired and they do 'plop' down and fall to sleep. Go on in there after like an hour of him sleeping and check on him & cover him up. I still do with both of mine. Best of Luck!
M.
Ahhh! He is your 1st child and life seems to revolve around that little guy...right? If that is what you need to do to get him to sleep with your mind at ease, then so be it! He is your experimental child...you live and you learn through trials and error and then when the next one comes along you are more knowledgeable. Ha Ha..so we think! I remember rocking my daughter to sleep, and cuddling her each and every night. I miss those baby days. She is now 5 and sleeps very independently on her own with great sleeping habits. I don't think this is going to do any harm. Enjoy those baby moments and cuddle them as much as you can!
