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Behaviour/development

Talk to others about child development and behaviour stages here. You can find more information on our development calendar.

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Original poster

HELP?! Baby wakes after an hour, screams for a few mins then goes back off to sleep - anyone else ever had this?

15 replies

LoveMyGirls · 14/04/2008 13:20

I'm a childminder, baby isn't mine so I can't disclose too much info.

Dd2's bedroom is used as a nursery so each child has a cot/ bed and they all go up at the same time (we're out in the morning come back for lunch then they nap before school run, works fab for all of them most of the time so I don't feel we can stagger nap times without it meaning they won't all get enough sleep as we have to be back out for school run)

However I've got baby mindee who is coming up to 1yr, I've been looking after baby for a few months now and everytime baby naps baby wakes screaming for about 5 mins (waking at least 1 other child who then won't go back off and is tired for the rest of the day) baby doesn't want anything other than reassurance that you are there after a few mins baby goes back off to sleep but this then leaves me with 1 other child who is tired and won't go back to sleep and is then not in the best of moods for the afternoon.

I have recently been putting baby in the pushchair downstairs to sleep but I feel this is unfair as baby has their own cot which is much more comfortable than the buggy, I'm due to start having baby everyday day in the next few months.

Just wondering how others have dealt with this situation? Will baby grow out of doing this? Should I just put them all in the same room and see if the other child will come to accept that it's only baby making a quick noise and she can go back to sleep afterwards as my dd2 does? Or should I put baby in pushchair to sleep?

TIA

OP posts:

Are your children’s vaccines up to date?

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avenanap · 14/04/2008 13:23

Sounds like it's having a bad dream (it does happen). Can you put a travel cot in the living room for the baby and put it away when it's had it's nap? This way the other child can sleep in the bedroom.

Original poster

LoveMyGirls · 14/04/2008 13:26

That would be ok while it's term time but what do I then do in the holidays when he's used to doing that and for 6 weeks I've got 3 older children needing to play in the living room? Just concerned that I will have to swap and change and he won't like it, maybe I'm worrying too much?

OP posts:

Original poster

LoveMyGirls · 14/04/2008 13:27

Btw baby does this everytime so not sure it can be a bad dream everyday and also it's always an hour after baby falls asleep.

OP posts:

avenanap · 14/04/2008 13:29

Hmm. Odd. Does it do this at home? Maybe it has mum pandering to it's every need, if it wakes up and cries she's there, it'll think it's then same when it's with you.

Original poster

LoveMyGirls · 14/04/2008 13:32

Yes at home if she wakes whoever is there will pick her up and cuddle her, if she goes back to sleep they put her back down.

OP posts:

avenanap · 14/04/2008 13:35

There you go. She's waking up and crying because she's expecting them to come running to her. She's going back to sleep because she know's it's not going to happen. If the parents just ignore her she'll learn not to do this and go back to sleep without screaming her head off. Good luck telling them though.

Original poster

LoveMyGirls · 14/04/2008 13:47

Hummmmm might try and gently broach this but to be fair they havent got as much need for him to stop doing this as I have and it's much harder to ignore your own child.

It's hard for me to ignore too because I really try and stop the crying so that he doesn't wake the others as much as anything else. Nothing I do actually works though he just cries until he's cried for a few mins then he decides himself to go back to sleep not sure if the crying would get worse or if he wouldn't go back to sleep if i wasn't there trying to comfort him?

OP posts:

avenanap · 14/04/2008 13:51

What do you do to comfort him?

Original poster

LoveMyGirls · 14/04/2008 13:54

stroke her head, say shhhh, let her hold my finger, put the lullaby tune on, give dummy.

OP posts:

avenanap · 14/04/2008 13:57

Ok. So next time you stoke her head, put lullaby on and give dummy, then you drop one, then another until you don't have to do any of this. Sometimes they wake up for reasurance, by gradually withdrawing you are teaching her that waking up will not give her attention. Then when she does wake up she should (in theory) go back to sleep.

MaureenMLove · 14/04/2008 13:59

I'd try the cot downstairs as well, LMG. I know it'll be difficult during school holidays, but there's enough time before the next one to break the cycle.

Original poster

LoveMyGirls · 14/04/2008 14:05

Ok so cot downstairs for a few weeks and gradually withdraw attention?

Need to talk to baby's mum and see if she can do the same at home, bit pointless me going to that effort if I'm not getting support from mum at home.

Strange thing is when baby actually wakes the 2nd time she doesn't do the creaming crying thing just chats to herself until I go up and get her.

Very strange?

OP posts:

avenanap · 14/04/2008 14:07

That's her wake up time. If she's woken up without a full rest she's bound to be grumpy and wants the comfort so that she can go back to sleep.

mumlove · 14/04/2008 16:23

Would the cot fit in your bedroom for now until baby can get moved back into the other room?

mrscoo · 19/04/2008 14:08

hi there, how about trying waking the baby up yourself before baby wakes up screaming.eg if baby always wakes after one hour wake baby up after 50mins and give cuddle/ dummy etc then back to sleep.this should hopefully break the pattern of baby waking upset and waking others.

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