Learning to Sleep on Their Own

[bmil]

Our 4 month old finally seems to be over pretty horrendous colic - touch wood. She has been in a pretty good sleeping pattern for a while - feed at 7.30, sleep/colicky fit till 10.30 feed and another feed during the night, although she has slept through till 7 on several nights recently.

The only problem is that she has been going to sleep on one of our shoulders and we have been waiting 20 mins and then carefully lowering her into her cot. If she wakes up she generally crys out and pick her up again and repeat...

During the day she sleeps in a sling, car seat or rocker chair.

We are building up to trying to trying to teach her to doze off on her own. I imagine this will involve a lot of heartache and screaming. Any tips on how to go about it?

b

[DaddyJ]

LOL at 'pretty good sleeping pattern' and 'feed at 7.30, sleep/colicky fit till 10.30'

Your sense of humour is still intact,
I am impressed!

Your timing is good, your thinking is good, and with a bit of luck
there might not be any need for heartache and screaming.

Bumping this for you for time being, will post more tonight.

[trixymalixy]

I just biult up slowly.

I used to rock my DS to sleep and put him down in the cot, then rock till dozing off and put him down and finally was able to put him down and he'd go to sleep on his own.

No crying was involved I never left him to cry. I did leave him if he was just grumping, but the moment he started to get upset i would go in and pick him up.

It took a long time and I would feel i was getting somewhere and then we would have a setback, but we got there in the end.

I found a cot mobile helped a lot.

[Avizandum]

You mention that during the day she sleeps anywhere pretty much - except her cot. Have you tried putting her down in her cot during the day so that she gets used to it?

[DaddyJ]

Some sleep links for you that could be helpful:

Lots of good sleep advice

Controlled Comforting

Interview with Sleep Researcher

[levan]

You could try pick up/put down (Baby Whisperer) - it does involve crying but not leaving them to cry. Basically you pick her up when she cries but put her back down the minute she stops. Repeat ad infinitum - you do need to be patient and it will give you a backache but it worked a treat with my dd at the same age.