Am I doing this wrong?

[jollyholly2021]

My DS is 3 months old. He wakes twice every night for a feed (the pattern over the past month) which is really good! He’s sleeping well

I got the monthly email today about my baby at 3 month from some parenting site I’m subscribed to. It said 3-6 months you should stop rocking baby and put them down awake but sleepy

I’ve always cuddled/rocked DS to sleep as he settles really well and when I do this he goes longer stretches. I’ve tried the drowsy but awake approach and he usually ends up awake half an hour later

My HV also at 6 weeks mentioned the drowsy but awake approach and now I’m seeing this I’m just wondering am I wrong for cuddling him to sleep?

I didn’t think it was bad because it really settles him and helps him sleep well :) but it’s my first baby so I don’t know if this isn’t what you’re supposed to do at this stage?!

Do whatever works for you. Honestly mine are 8, 6 and 3 and I have no idea at what age I stopped rocking/feeding to sleep, when they started going longer stretches etc. I know it was far older than 3 months though. They all sleep now.
If it’s working and you’re all happy with it, keep doing it. When it stops working, change it.

Absolutely not the wrong thing to do, if it’s working for you and for baby. Enjoy the cuddles! I cuddled or fed both of mine to sleep every time they woke until they were around 18 months old and loved it. Others don’t like to do it for a variety of reasons and so try to put them down ‘drowsy but awake’. The success of this, I think, depends on your baby’s temperament and how strict you want to be.
If it’s working for you and baby, absolutely no need to change it. There’s lots of good research about how cuddling to sleep/responding to baby’s need with cuddles is great for attachment and independence later, so definitely not getting it wrong. Enjoy… it feels like forever but this stage goes in the blink of a (very tired) eye!

Some of the advice given is for safety and health reasons e.g. no cot bumps, ensure room isn't too hot.

Other advice is simply a guideline e.g. use black out blinds.

The advice on rocking to sleep or putting down drowsy is a guideline. What works depends on the individual child.

15 months still rock and feed to bed. You do what’s best for you and baby. HV told me the same and it just wasn’t going to work for us

There is no one size fits all approach that works for all babies. It sounds like things are going well the way you are doing things, so just keep doing what feels right and works for you.

At 4 months old baby sleep matures into sleep cycles of approx 45 minutes and a lot of babies, when they come into the light sleep at the end of a cycle, will wake when they realise they’ve been moved i.e. from your arms to the crib. Hence teaching them to fall asleep on their own and putting them down drowsy but awake. You’re not doing anything wrong, at the moment it’s working and that’s great. But you might find that in a month it suddenly doesn’t work. Hence all the talk of the famous 4 month regression. If that happens then it could be time to change things but right now, no I wouldn’t change what’s working for you!

My baby needed rocked to sleep for the first 6 months. HV was horrified I was still rocking him and told me to stop. Of course I ignored her as it was what he wanted/needed. He doesn't have a dummy or comforter so this was his comfort. He's now 9 months and I just plonk him in the cot and he goes to sleep no bother! They grow out of it. It used to really annoy me the sheer look of horror on peoples faces when I said I rocked him to sleep but people don't bat an eyelid for a dummy or comforter🤦🏻‍♀️ Just do what makes you and your baby happy.

Your baby hasn't read the email (!) so I'd just do what suits him and you best. All babies are different.

No you aren't doing anything wrong. It's perfectly normal.

Honestly you do whatever suits you both! They are little for such a short period of time, make the most of the cuddles (if that's what you want).

Honestly I think "drowsy but awake" is a myth haha
My daughter is almost 2 and I still rock her to sleep in a chair in her room after reading her a goodnight story.

When she falls asleep I put her into her cot. She sleeps the night in her own room and self settles if she wakes but she likes the cuddles while she initially falls asleep, it works for us so if it ain't broke why fix it.

3 months is so young, definitely carry on enjoying the cuddles! Like most things when it comes to parenting I think it depends what works best for you and your baby - there’s no ‘right’ way!

Remove all the expectations from your mind and just think about your baby.

Why would it be bad for him to rock him to sleep every night?