When did you start putting your baby 'down'?

[blondie887]

How old was your baby when you started putting them to bed early in the evening, then just using the monitor? I.e when did they get their own bed time?

At the moment we keep our 5 week old down with us in the lounge and only put him to bed (Moses basket) next to our bed when we go to bed. Not sure when this will (should?) change!

I really don’t get the “see them breathing on the monitor” thing…how does that work? Either you’re staring at it the whole time making sure they don’t stop breathing, in which case why bother, just stay with them, or you’re just glancing at it occasionally in which case what use is that going to be if they do stop breathing? It’s not like there’s any warning with SIDs.

My HV advised popping him upstairs on the monitor ASAP when she first came to see me. So we done bath and into bed from a few weeks. He's now nearly 5 months and goes into bed no bother and cares not a jot if I'm there or not😂I generally went to bed a hour/hour and a half after him. i always thought how can they copy your breathing over the sound of the tv/general family life?

Mine went upstairs to bed from about 3 months. I tried the whole sleep downstairs in the moses basket but he settled much better upstairs. I did used to sit up in my bedroom with him watching tele on the ipad as I wanted to follow the SIDS guidelines. And i figured it wasn’t gonna be forever.

Around 4 months we started putting DS in the crib attached to our bed with the monitor in the evening instead of me holding him the whole night until we went up to bed. Now we no longer have to watch things with subtitles yay! And it's much better for him as he sleeps better without hearing us whispering to each other all evening 😅 it's sooo nice to have our evenings back! We decided he was ready when his sleeping pattern was more predictable and we no longer had the long evenings of trying to rock him to sleep. Implementing a bedtime routine at 3 months was when the good night sleeping started! I would wait until your baby is able to have a set bedtime and more predictable sleeping patterns. At that age I don't think I would've wanted to put him in a separate room.. even doing it at 4 months was weird but we're used to it now he's almost 5 months. 😊

Mine were all about 2 months. The sids advice did not extend to naps at that time.

8 months 🙈

About 6 months +

Before then they just wouldn't settle for any length of time in the evening upstairs on their own so it felt like we got more of an evening having them down with us (sleeping in Moses).

Something like 3 or 4 months

8 months. It's not forever and I would NEVER forgive myself if anything had happened and I wasn't following the sleep safe guidelines.

I went to bed with my baby every night at 7pm, to reduce the risk of SIDS. Played on my phone in bed, listened to music with one headphone. 6 months is nothing, a lifetime with her is everything.

A monitor is great, but a baby can't copy your breathing over a monitor.

Crikey times change. DS slept on me u till about 8 weeks when he transferred to the bottle and fell in love with sleep

DD I moved into the nursery until she was 8 months because bf worked.

I am sure ours survived 9n benign neglect.

My baby is four months and still with us until we go up to bed. I won't be leaving the baby alone for day naps or night sleep until much older. There's no evidence this is connected but I have known two people who lost their babies to SIDS and one was upstairs with a video monitor on so I will continue to follow the Lulluby Trust guidance.

First baby - just after6 months when he went into his own room

Second - she's 5 months and goes up to bed when I do , will do a bedtime in the new year ... maybe

I actively tried for a 7pm bedtime from pretty much a few weeks old, by 12 weeks they were reliably asleep at 7pm so I would pop downstairs for dinner for an hour or two then go to sleep in the same room as them

IMO the quicker you do it, the easier it is to implement as it becomes everyone routine

6/7 months. Until then we just kept them downstairs with us, they’d stay asleep when we took them upstairs and put them in a cot in our room. Or we’d go up to bed early and watch tv. We put them in their own room at about 11 months. One didn’t sleep well so usually ended up back in with us.

Until it was clear that they couldn't settle in the evenings with the light/background noise and light of telly. I think you'll just know yourself when it is right.

Can't remember the exact time but was probably around 5 months?

About 6 weeks. Bath, milk, bed (in the dark). At this age it was about 8-9pm, gradually bringing it forward as they were less sleepy in the day so that by about 4 months they were asleep by 6:30 / 7. It helps to teach them the difference between night and day and at around 6 weeks they are more alert in the daytime for longer and start to 'play' / have active time, which further reinforces the contrast between day and night.

I did bath, bottle & bed but I went upstairs at the same time & watched TV in the bedroom, then dh used the the time to go on the computer in the spare bedroom. Dh had just been diagnosed with MS a month before ds was born & had to stop working so we were together 24/7, it was nice to have some time apart.

They're supposed to be in the same room as you for all sleep until 6 months to avoids SIDS risk, so that's what we did. Initially he stayed downstairs with us, then when he started going to bed earlier we would watch tv in bed.

After 6 months we would put him down in his cot then leave him while we went downstairs.

About six months. Pointless before that, they were terrible sleepers between 7pm and midnight - as lots of babies are!

@Jujujuly

I really don’t get the “see them breathing on the monitor” thing…how does that work? Either you’re staring at it the whole time making sure they don’t stop breathing, in which case why bother, just stay with them, or you’re just glancing at it occasionally in which case what use is that going to be if they do stop breathing? It’s not like there’s any warning with SIDs.

I think it's just reassurance - you def shouldn't rely on a monitor to do that for you. I don't think a monitor will prevent SIDS but it helps calm those random spikes of anxiety without you actually having to get up and check on them (potentially disturbing them). They are good for alerting you if they cry though.

It did used to be thought that SIDS was preceded by episodes of sleep apnoea. Sleep apnoea is normal in newborns due to their underdeveloped central nervous system. Hence the monitors that check breathing and vibrate to disturb the baby if they detect a pause in breathing. This was disproven as a link, but the companies producing those monitors conveniently ignore that and continue to flog their products as reducing SIDS risk, even though they don't.

4 months I think, we had a breathing monitor under her mattress as well as a baby monitor that amplifies every single sound. She’s 2 now, nosiest sleeper in the world, before that she had to sleep in a different room with DH because I just lay awake listening to her breath and was exhausted. But we live in an apartment so baby was always reasonably close by. She slept much better in her own room (right next to ours).

About 4 months for my first, though from very young, she'd he in her moses basket in the lounge, and I'd pop in and out, or go for a shower, make dinner etc.

For my second, maybe a few weeks for napping by herself in the day, and about 2m at night. In the day, we had a loud toddler, and despite repeatedly trying, the youngest couldnt sleep through noise. She still can't, and we have yo creep oast her room years later. She would scream if we were watching tv of an evening by 6w.

6 months is the safest sids guidance. A dear friends baby died alone in his room at 4 weeks old. No explanation.
I'd never take that risk with my child when it's as simple as keeping them with me for 6 months in the same room. I can potter around, read, watch tv quietly, eat. Absolutely no bother at all.

Both my 2 used to settle on one of us downstairs then got carried up to bed until they were at least 2 years
Then at that point they went into a single bed so I could get in with them and read while they settled.
Neither have any issues sleeping through now, just do what works for you!

We put her to bed in a moses basket in the lounge with us with the lights dimmed and the TV not too loud. Then moved her to the crib upstairs (usually not waking her) when my husband went to bed (I went earlier). We did this till 6 months then put her in her cot in her room with a video monitor (or both doors open).