What age did you put your LO's in their own room and how did it go???

[Jam77]

I really am dreading my DD going into her own room (DD is 11 weeks) but in my heart I know we will both get a better nights sleep without disturbing each other. On the other hand I want her near me, and I'm worried how she will take to being on her own in her room (she does take naps in her cot) Sooooo many conflicting thoughts/emotions so would love to hear your stories and if you had any worries before hand?
TIA

Me too GM was in tears writing my new thread earlier...it's under feeling depressed so that should give you an indication of how I'm feeling, it may even make you feel better that you're not alone!!! It's good to come on here and know you're not alone

Am off to clinic now, hope you feel better after some sleep hon xxx

I'll be full of the joys of spring! just waiting for docs to ring me back so i can take lo, he's normally so happy so he's def poorly. it's hard when you can't do anything to make them better. thanks jam, it does help to know you're not alone! xxx

A little over 5 months. I was dreading it but dh was quite firm about it. From the time ds was born I'd been sleepwalking and having awful dreams about ds being found dead and suchlike, all rooted in us having lost beloved mil shortly before ds was born. Contrary to what i'd expected, the sleep walking etc stopped as soon as ds went into his own room next door

My DD went into her own room at 3 months. I had fully intended on her staying at least 6 months but we went on holiday where she had to sleep in a big cot instead of a crib. She slept so much better that it felt a good idea to move her into a big cot when we got back. She slept in her big cot for 3 nights in our room and she slept really soundly. It just seemed the right time to move her into her own room. Her room is just across the landing and I left both doors open. We don't have a big house so she wasn't that far away. She has been there ever since and is now 21 months. She sleeps fantastically well and i am sure this is due to her being in her own room. I found that placing my DD in a sleeping bag, rather than blankets, and following the other advice to prevent SIDS made me feel more relaxed about her not being next to me at night. I have never used controlled crying but have used Tracy Hoggs 'pick up, put down' methods if she has been fretful. It worked for us and she is always really happy to go to bed for naps and at nights. My friend moved her baby into her own room when she was a week old as she couldn't stand the snuffling her baby made. She is also an excellent sleeper and no harm has come to her. It really is a very personal thing - just take into account advice about SIDS (cot death) and do what feels right for you. Your instincts are probably the best thing to go by. Good luck.

ooh, whats the pick up, put down theory? Ds is being a little git with sleeping at mo (14mths)

PU/PD is a great tool GM, used by the baby whisperer (Tracy Hogg) basically you don't leave the baby to cry it out instead when they cry, you pick them up, comfort them, and as soon as they stop crying you lay them back down. You may need to do this over and over but the BW reckons most with most babies it takes around 3-4 days to solve the sleep problem. The key apparently is to pick them all the way up and comfort them, put them down straight away when they stop crying and if they start to cry on the way down you still place them down before you pick them up again, even if it means you are basically picking them up straight away again. Apparently is works wonders.

I'll give it a go (i'll try anything!). Got him in at the docs, he has a cold and he's teething - tell me something I don't know!!!! What I wanted was magic, but I can't seem to find any fairies at the bottom of my garden!,just calpol, cough meds, and the doc suggested phenergan - hooray!!! The little man has gone up to bed after taking 7 spoons of different medicine and so far so good! He's been awful today tho, just crying and crying and wanting something but i haven't figured what!

Yes PU/PD is a fantastic tool. It is explained in full in the book 'Baby Whisperer Solves All your Problems' by Tracy Hogg. I do seem to remember though that she suggests you rule out certain reasons for the crying/not sleeping first, such as hunger or pain. It is definately worth a read to put the concept into context. I also think that it would be beneficial to get an idea of her basic underlying theories which are outlined in the first 3 chapters of her first book 'The Baby Whisperer'. Of course, lack of sleep is not really conducive to reading a load of stuff to try and work out how to get more sleep! Jam77 has outlined the fundamentals though. I still use it with my 21 month old - the methods are slightly different (you lay the toddler back down each time they stand up) but the principle is the same. It is a way of getting them to learn how to settle themselves without abandoning them. I had to do it the other night - it took several goes and each time it took longer between her standing up and me laying her down. Eventually she gave up, turned over and went to sleep.You need to be patient and commited to it but it really works for me and my DD. If you have ever watched Supernanny or house of Tiny Tearaways, it is the same principle that they use to return a child to bed that keeps getting up.It can be really hard at first. Tracy Hogg says that you can generally change a pattern of behaviour within 3 days. (This goes for creating unwanted behaviour as well - e.g. let your child into bed with you 3 days in a row and they are likely to keep expecting it!) Good Luck with it Gingermonkey.

Hi GM did you have a good night? hope all went well and DS is feeling better today xxx

Hi Jam. He slept til 5 this morning and has been much better today. He ate a bit today too, I just let him have whatever he wanted so it was crisps and chips but I was so happy to have him eat!!! x

Too right!!! glad he is feeling better

Ds was 10 mths old when his cot moved from our room to his new room

It went very smoothly tbh. I decorated it with a 64 Zoo Lane theme so he had animals, birds and leaves to look at.

I also put a small stereo in his room and played kids tapes and CD's (eg hairy maclary, thomas, toy story)He likes Steve Earle,Springsteen and the O'Brother soundtrack too (he calls it 'cowboy music) so he wouldn't feel alone. It worked a treat....read stories then leave a story or music playing. There are the nay sayers who say I shouldn't do that but he loves stories, music and his vocab is fantastic.

sounds good to me mummy monster!!

Thanks Jam.

Another thing I did was choose bedtime stories where the main character went to bed in the end, eg, Wobble Bear. It kind of said 'look, we're all going to sleep now' and put a full stop to the day.