Wakes 6-8 Times a Night

Updated on February 03, 2008
H.H. asks from Charleston, SC
20 answers

I have an incredible 9 month old, his name is Asher. He is waking up alot at night. It seems that he is moving and turning and waking when he touches the sides of the crib. Twice last night, he was stuck with his legs in the rails up to his knees (no bumper pads.) I reposition him and cover him up and he is back to sleep; however, I got up 4 times last night and my partner got up two times with him. Do wider cribs exsist?

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So What Happened?

Thank you for all the great advice. I bought the mesh bumper pads and a sleep sack. The first night was fabulous, he only woke 2 times. I think we are on our way to more peaceful nights. Again thank you for all your support.

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L.L.

answers from Atlanta on

why dont you have bumper pads? I took mine out for one night and my daughter woke up stuck like that and I put them back on at midnight. I wont make that mistake again.

1 mom found this helpful
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V.H.

answers from Atlanta on

No wider cribs dont exist because if they were wider they could stick there head in there....just imagine coming in and seeing his head caught sideways like that foot gets stuck...feet and legs bend a lot easier than heads. Put up bumper pads. If he pulls them up buy bigger ones and tuck them into the mattress and then they will still provide comfort.

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M.B.

answers from Savannah on

Hi I am a Mama of 5 kiddos and let me tel you this- I think cribs are over-rated!
Get your self a porta crib and use that- the sides are soft, they can not get their limbs stuck in it at all, none of their stuff falls out of it. And if you really think you need a wide one you can get a home and roam which is the size of a play pen but it is indeed a porta crib.
I hope that helps!
...M.

1 mom found this helpful
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M.

answers from Atlanta on

Maybe you should get those mesh bumper pads so his legs don't get stuck. Or maybe just see if he can get his leg out by himself.

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S.

answers from Spartanburg on

I feel your pain, believe me. My son has nver been a good sleeper and right at that age begun to roll around in the crib just like you describe. Doctor told me that it was because they are discovering the joys of moving around at their will and so they do it at night as well (while sleeping!)..eh eh eh, funny for them not so much for us, ah?
My experience is that it will get better with time, eventually he will assume the position that is more comfortable to him and stay still most of the night or moving slightly without waking himself up...until then...get some vitamins to keep you strong and get rest when you can, not sleeping does take a toll on us! Good luck.

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S.R.

answers from Charleston on

I think co-sleeping is the best way to go. Our almost 3 year old is just transitioning out of our bed now. We bought a king sized bed when she turned 1 and it has worked great for us. When she woke up I would just nurse her and she would both go right back to sleep. Just seems like the most simple and natural thing. They were inside of you for nine months then stay very close to you for their first nine months. Another thing you can do it buy a twin bed and put it next to your bed at the same heigth and put a bed rail on the other side or the wall(be carful about saefty. This way you can scoot him over into his bed and you all can sleep well. he might just need a little touch of your hand to know your close too:) Hope this helps:)

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D.P.

answers from Atlanta on

You have a mover! Some kids are all over the place when they sleep and others aren't. I think cosleeping would mean a lot of bruises and even less sleep than you're getting now. I like the idea of moving him to a roomier portable crib/playpen. Also, at 9 months old, if he's waking up in the night, he needs to be perfecting the skill of getting himself back to sleep. Ideally, if he really does wake up from touching the side of the crib, he should be able to get himself back to sleep without your having to get up. There are some good books about helping children to learn to do that. My favorite is one called Helping Your Child Sleep Through the Night by Joanne Cuthbertson & Susie Schevill. I don't know if it's out of print or not -- the one I have is pretty old... I'm sure you could find it on Amazon if you had to -- but you can find books like this all over the place. Good luck to you! Sleep is so wonderful -- I'm sorry you're missing out on it.

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D.M.

answers from Atlanta on

No bumper pads?!! Yikes, that is my biggest concern! That is very dangerous. Not only would they make the crib safer, but maybe if he bumped into their softness he wouldn't wake up. I'm more worried about him getting his head caught etc.......

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N.L.

answers from Atlanta on

don't have an answer for you, but just wanted to let you know I love your son's name :-) We are expecting any day now, and if it's a boy, Asher will be the name.

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S.A.

answers from Spartanburg on

Our baby was doing the same thing, so I put her bumpers back in her crib and now she sleeps SOOO much better. I'm just leaving them in for now since she is doing so well at night.

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C.H.

answers from Augusta on

I don't think co-sleeping is a great idea since it will just leave you with a 3 and 4 yr old sleeping in your bed which casn be horrible on the back and sleep.But you should put the bumper in. My 18 month old has no problems sleeping in his crib and never had had a problem sleeping through the night unless sick but i know ur pain. My 4 yr old was a challenge and still is sometimes when it comes to staying asleep all night.But my baby has gotten stcuk a few times b/c the bumper was to far down. But the bumper does help them from getting stuck.

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N.B.

answers from Spartanburg on

I used a soft sided port-a-crib with my first child. But it gets short really fast and probably won't last you another 9 months. With my second I had a crib, but she was wacking herself on the wood. Sooo I got a great bumper from Onestepahead.com that is mesh with a little padding. It takes the fear of smothering away. At first it looked to whimpy to do the job, but has been great.
N.

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S.W.

answers from Atlanta on

Mine are older so now I can't remember what the issue is with crib bumpers...
That said, I saw some on-line while shopping for a baby gift that were mesh... nothing to smother in but kept arms and legs inside. Don't think there is such a thing as a wider crib and it seems to me he'd probably move around that much more and then have the same problem. Good luck.

Ooops... just remembered they can use the bumpers to climb out once they're pulling up and your's might be at that stage. I know some people use those crib tents, although they look like they'd be pretty clostrophobic!

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L.S.

answers from Spartanburg on

My daughter did the same thing and I used the breathable bumper pads and it helped a bunch. You can get them at Babies R Us.
Hope this helps
L.

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K.R.

answers from Savannah on

Hi H.,
I have a 10 month old so I know what you mean. I would suggest putting in a bumper. It doesnt have to be anything fancy just something to shield the bars from their hands and feet hanging out. You def. dont need a bigger crib because they will keep growing and growing. Hope it helps

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B.

answers from Augusta on

get bumper pads and weave them through the rails in and out like a basket, wil keep him from getting trapped and will keep the bumpers from comming loose in the crib.

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M.M.

answers from Atlanta on

I am the mother of a 15mo daughter and she use to get her legs stuck in the railings of her crib all the time. I searched around and found these crib bumpers and they are wonderful.

http://www.securebaby.com/crib_shields_all.html

The work will all the older, less fancy cribs. I don't know if this will help.

M.

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K.R.

answers from Spartanburg on

A mesh crib bumper would keep his arms and legs inside. Something like this: http://www.securebaby.com/sb50501.html.
Good luck!

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L.K.

answers from Atlanta on

Bumpers pads as well as stuffed animals and thick blankets are discouraged because of the increased risk of Sudden Infant Death Syndrome (SIDS). Basically, the baby could smother. That being said, the highest risk of SIDS is before 6 months of age. At nine months he is old enough and strong enough to move about, so the risk is less. The mesh bumper pads are to keep the arms and legs in the crib without the risk of smothering. I would definitely try a mesh bumper, however I doubt he is waking up just because he is stuck. My fourth child would sleep in all sorts of crazy positions in the crib and not wake up unless she wanted something else too. I'll bet he is also used to his Mommy coming in and comforting him. We all have normal periods of lighter and heavier sleep and technically "wake up" several times during the night without realizing it (unless you're a sleep deprived Mommy, and then you definitely know it). When babies do this lighter sleep during the night they subconsciously check to make sure they are how they started the night. In other words, if a baby falls asleep in your arms, he/she will likely fuss if he gets to a lighter stage of sleep and is not still in your arms. The same goes for falling asleep to music, in bed with parents, drinking milk, etc. I know because I'm terrible at this. My fifth child is 8 months old, and I am just starting to break him of wanting me every couple of hours all night long. It's taken us a while to reinforce good habits, like starting the night in his own crib and falling asleep there. We're down to waking up 2-4 times a night. (I'm a softy and can't stand for him to cry.) I feel for you. Good luck.

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J.L.

answers from Atlanta on

H., My bumper pads for my son were handmade. They are really, really overstuffed and the fabric is tight to prevent smothering. These worked well for my nephew as well as my son. Also, please don't use blankets to cover him up. He might also be waking b/c the covers are off. We dress our son in a plain onesi, socks and a one piece zip up jumper/sleeper. This keeps him plenty warm since he was a preemie infant and you don't have to worry about blanket issues. I don't know if you use pacifiers, but...they help soothe our son if he wakes in the night. But he only uses it at bedtime. Hope this helps.
Johna

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