Sleep props - what do you think? are they so wrong?

[hmmmum]

My husband or I cradles our 3-month-old dd while sitting on a bouncey ball to help her drift off to sleep at night. It's easy enough to deflate the ball and bring it with us when we go away. However after reading the Baby Whisperer, the author suggests you shouldn't rely on props like this to help your baby get to sleep. I'm not sure why it's such a problem...Obviously we don't want to still be bouncing her to sleep in a year's time but surely she would just naturally grow out of this? or are we going to regret it if we don't wean her off the bouncey ball now? Just wondering what mumsnetters think of props like this. I can't really see what the problem is - she goes to sleep at half 7ish after being soothed to sleep by the ball. Through the night when she wakes up for a feed she doesn't need the bouncey ball to go back to sleep again; she only needs it initially in the evening. I'd really appreciate your views as I don't want to be doing this if it will store up problems for the future. thanks

Sounds fine - if a little bizarre - to me. She's far too young to sleep train anyway, so I'd carry on.

I worried about the same at first, but now believe it to be utter drivel. He doesn't need it any more, but when my DS was younger we'd walk him around in a sling, rock him, play him music, drive him around, take him for a walk and do anything else we could think of to get him to sleep. As he grew older he needed less help and now settles on his own, and without fuss, 99% of the time. But even now (9 months) when he's unsettled for whatever reason at night we'll co-sleep with him. He always goes back to sleeping on his own in his cot without a fuss once he's better.

I wouldn't worry about it yet. Some babies seem to need teaching to go to sleep on their own (but NOT at 3 months old) and some seem to naturally develop the ability to self-settle as they get a bit older. I think it's worth putting her down to sleep awake every now and then- maybe at nap times?- to give her a chance to practice. Sounds like a good sign that she can get herself to sleep after nightfeeds (or does she feed back to sleep?). 3 months is far too young to worry, anyway, unless you are at the desperate sleep deprived stage and NEED her to get a bit better at sleeping fast. Being bounced off to sleep sounds lovely.:)

My daughter is 5 months old and I have always needed to use props (swaddle/dummy/rocking/singing) for naps during the day. Just recently she has started drifting off in her pram with her dummy if we go for a walk and even more recently I have been able to lay her in her cot at night with her dummy, turn on her lullaby singing sheep which lights up and she goes off by herself (this only happens at night and when she is very close to sleep). My sister was still rocking her 1 year old and saw no light at the end of the tunnel but she now puts her in her bed awake, says night night and that's it she goes to sleep by herself. Personally I think I would prefer a few props rather than hearing my baby crying in her cot until she falls asleep. I don't see anything wrong with what your doing.

It's only a problem if it's causing you a problem. If it's not, carry on.

Personally, I think the Baby Whisperer is bonkers and I would have enjoyed the first 4 months of DS's life much, much more if I'd not read her books.

thanks for your responses. it felt like it was an ok thing to do until I read the Baby whisperer. it's good to know my instincts were maybe ok after all ...after all if it helps her feel calm and sleepy it can't be that bad surely. and I agree with you cockle, would rather use props than leave her to cry. a lot of these books make such categorical statements about stuff, i should maybe start avoiding them and go to mumsnet for advice instead :)