How do people manage to put their 6 month old in their own room?

[merrynelly]

My baby wakes numerous times throughout the night and will only settle when having his dummy put in by myself. So if I was to put him in his own room, I would have to constantly go in and out the room to do this for him.

For those who have put their 6 month old in their own room, do they really sleep the whole night without needing any assistance, or do you keep going in and out?

My daughter doesn't have a dummy but I think she still wakes several times in the night but settles herself back to sleep. Things have been better since she is in her own room presumably because she can't see me. She doesn't get upset when she is awake she just chats and squeaks and then falls back to sleep when she realises I'm not there and there's nothing exciting going on!

Wow, genuinely surprised by the responses above. Didn’t occur to me to not put my babies in their own rooms once they were pretty much sleeping through (I used to do a dream feed before I went to bed about 11pm, then they’d sleep through until 6ish). We all slept really well as a result. I think I must’ve been fortunate; but also we’re pretty routine-based as a family (although fairly laid-back) so we just slotted into this as a routine and the kids took to it.

@moochingtothepub

I don't think many do. I personally don't know anyone whose baby sleeps in their own room apart from ultra religious couple (American) who put their newborn straight into their own room and do regimented 4 hour feeds which I found bizarre, they are no longer friends

You don't know anyone who's 6m old doesn't sleep in their own room?

I don't know anyone who's 6m old DOESNT sleep in their own room!

We don’t. Ds is nearly 1, and has a lovely nursery now recently decorated. He’s never actually slept in it.

I put my DD into her room at 7 months once she dropped night feeds and I thought she was only waking up because of our noise: she then slept through for 2 weeks in her room and after that yes I was up and down a lot. It’s never been as simple as just putting the dummy back in for my babies so I’ve quite liked that then I don’t have to worry about waking DH when settling them. I like reading or watching tv in bed before I go to sleep so it was a bit of a pay off between being able to do that and having to get up a bit

@SGChome20

I’m following this as I am in the same predicament. My DD wakes up and doesn’t cry but sits and ‘talks’ so much it wakes us. I’m hoping when she goes into her own room she’ll just fall back asleep on her own and we’ll not need to go to her if she cries. I think this is acceptable???

Just to clarify I meant we’ll ONLY need to go to her if she cries.

My children slept much better in their own rooms at 6 months. It helps if they nap in there so theyre familar with the cot. I always put mine down asleep at that age.

My first went into his own room at 6mo ish - I just used to go in if he cried - I had a chair in there in case I needed to sit with him for a while. He was a noisy and wriggly sleeper (still is) and we weren't get any sleep. We all slept better once he went to his own room. He also had a early bedtime and it was much easier having him in his own room than me & DH disturbing him getting changed, getting gym clothes, putting washing away etc.

We've just put DD in her own room. She had started waking loads in the night in our room after being a really good sleeper for months. Figured it might be to do with outgrowing the crib and we didn't have space for the cot in our room. First few nights her sleep was the same but slowly going back to how it used to be. If it feels like she is struggling to settle then we just bring her into our bed.

I actually think its quite sad to read how mean/bitter people can be about putting baby in their own room at 6 months. You've got to do what works for your baby. My nice didn't go into her own room until about 14 months and then went into bunkbeds with her big sister at 16 months...its just what works.

I moved mine at about 7 months as she was getting a bit big for her crib and there was no room for a cot in ours, plus we were disturbing her when we came up to bed and of course she was disturbing us. We all slept better with her in a different room! She was a very good sleeper, by that point I’d say usually sleeping through or maybe one wake up. She never had a dummy (I tried when she was tiny). If she needed to feed I brought her in to bed with me. I kept the crib in my room for a few months so sometimes just put her back in that after if it was only a couple of hours til morning anyway.

If I’d still been getting up with her multiple times a night I don’t think I’d have bothered moving her til she was older.

My DS slept through the night once he figured out how to find his own dummy and put it in. Probably about 7 months. We helped by putting spares in the cot with him. He was a great sleeper and we got rid of the dummy just before he turned 2

My DD never took to a dummy (we tried). She was 2.5 before she slept through

Just try it. I found my DD slept much better when she went into her own room. I think maybe I was waking her up whenever I moved around in bed

Or if the dummy is causing the waking you could try weaning off the dummy first

All babies are different, mine slept very happily in his own room ... just had one quick feed in the night and self settled himself back to sleep ... probably just luck but I was quite strict about a proper 'bed time' from day one and never had to cuddle him to sleep ....

We moved our 4.5mo into his own room 2 weeks ago and also took his dummy away at the same time. It's worked wonders for us. He still struggles a bit to fall asleep at bedtime, but once asleep, he's only waking for 1-2 feeds as opposed to needing the dummy every 2 hours. All of us getting much better sleep as a result!
Mind you, he was already pretty good at settling himself, and used to falling asleep without the dummy for naps.

I’ll probably try DS in his own room when he’s six months. He sleeps well and only wakes once (usually.)

However, the guidance is they can go into their own rooms at six months - it doesn’t mean they should.

Mine oldest were all mostly sleeping through before 6 months so I wasn’t up and down like a yo yo luckily.
With my youngest I co slept with her after her first wake until she was 8 months old. After that she slept in a cot in her own room but me or my husband still slept in a bed next to her cot until she was mostly sleeping through.
I attached dummies to a comforter so they were able to locate the dummy more easily.

We moved DT’s into separate rooms when they were six months. They were both rubbish sleepers but less chance of them waking the other when they were in their own room. At least one of them woke almost every night until they were about 10 months old.

I put my baby in her room at 6 months old & she was like yours before always waking up for her dummy! Then I figured it was any slight noise from me or my husband from moving to breathing would wake her up!! So going in her room was much better!!

DS never had a dummy. Did controlled crying for two nights, then he was fine.

I left about 8 dummies in the cot and she picked one up and went back to sleep

Put DD in her own room at 3 months and we all slept much better after that! It would have been earlier, but the room didn't have curtains until then. We were very lucky though, as she was a pretty good sleeper and self-settler aside from the odd patches of development where she'd be wakeful. But a separate room worked very well for all of us, it seemed.

Remove the dummy, it'll be scarey but most likely after a night or two they will go to sleep fine without, dummies are meant to help sooth young babies and 6 months in an ideal time to get rid. Easier to remove now than from a 1, 2, 3....year old who knows how to really voice opinions! I'd go in a couple of times for a feed depending on how they were sleeping. Got far more sleep than having them next to me. Also mine napped in their room so were use to their cot. They'd also sleep there 7pm-10pm when I went to bed and would carry Moses basket through to be beside me for the night. (about 2-4 months). I got rid of dummies at 5-6 months and they both slept fine without. Good luck!

I didn't. Path of least resistance here. Co slept as babies, cot butted up to the bed with the side off. Toddler bed next to my bed when a bit older. Roll over and feed/cuddle/pat/whatever. Sod getting up every time.