Best sleep training for clingy 6mth ds

[toomuchtooyoung]

Ds needs help learning how to go to sleep and I need to pick some brains. Nightimes aren't too bad, daytime naps are only 30 mins but I can live with that, dd was same until 7 mths, but it's the actual letting go and falling asleep ds has a problem with.

i've tried the gentle staying in the riom, holding his hand while he drifts of peacefully and safely to sleep. In reality it's 20 mins of him crying, fussing and whinging with me holding his hand, rubbing his tummy, putting dummy back in when he spits it out and being within sight if him. Then he'll fall asleep but cries when he wakes and I'm not there. Dd is (and so am I) getting fed up of me spending all day long trying to get him to fall and stay asleep

Is this the sort of situation where leaving him and returning every 1,2,5,10 mins would work best. Or pu/pd? Softly softly is not working and I can't leave dd on her own for 20 mins every time he goes for a nap.

I don't want to use a sling for daytime house naps as it doesnt help dd when she wants to play/cuddle when she finally gets some mummy time.

Any thoughts?

[Kittycatcat]

I did pick up put down to start with as ds rocked to sleep but would wake as soon as I put him down. Then I moved on to cc. Fortunately it didn't take long. Only a night or two and he didn't cry for long each time. I reckon that's your only way. Good luck.

[toomuchtooyoung]

I presume I keep pu/pd and returning at intervals until he goes to sleep?

[Kittycatcat]

Yes sure that's what I did. Every time he woke, repeated.

[sharond101]

Sorry to hijack but can you explain pu/pd please.

[Kittycatcat]

Have a google but for me it meant when he cried I picked him up, calmed him down, then put him down in his cot again. It takes a lot of time and patience as they'll keep crying when put down. Once they've got to the stage where they are calm in their cot you can try just patting them or staying in the room until they are asleep. Once that works you should be able to just put them down.

[brainonastick]

The best kind is the kind that you are happy with, and so can follow through.

So a gently gently approach if you can't bear crying, so long as you don't mind it taking ages to work.

Or a bit of controlled crying (leave to squawk for 2 mins, then back in and resettle, then leave again for 4 mins, etc etc) if you want to try a quick fix, but can cope with crying. NB not cry it out, that's just cruel imo.

What approach is best for you?

[TripleRock]

Will he fall asleep in the pushchair? If so you could go for a walk at nap time then wheel the pushchair back into the house and spend time with your DD while he finishes his nap

[toomuchtooyoung]

He'll sleep happily in the pram, as long as it's moving, wakes when we stop, as soon as we get home and/or when dd goes poking about to see her brother

He must have heard me cursing him yesterday as this morning he went down for a nap, I walked out and he went to sleep with a few grizzles