Night Crying

[Rose1999]

Please can I have some advice? I'm a ftm to a 16 week old. She wakes regularly during the night but always has done. She's ebf.
During the early hours, I'll feed her and she falls asleep in my arms. I could be holding her sleeping for 5 minutes or 1 hour but she always cries and cries when I put her back in her bed. So I end up taking her out, calming her, she falls asleep and it happens again. It can sometimes take two hours to finally settle her in her basket.
What am I doing wrong?

Many babies are like this. I don't think you're doing anything wrong as such, she just wants to be close to her mum. We had this and ended up cosleeping (following Lullaby trust guidelines).

Seconding PP, you're bit doing anything wrong at all. Babies are biologically programmed to want to be as close as possible, I also co-slept with both mine following the safe sleep seven, and we were both waking up refreshed.

I also follow an account on Instagram called Heysleepybaby, she's really good and helped me loads with my first, not a sleep training account she has lots of tips on layering sleep associations for when baby is a little bigger.

You’re doing nothing wrong and it’s so so normal. If you’re struggling with lack of sleep then you could think about safely cosleeping, sleep training or doing shifts with your partner.

@InTheRainOnATrain you're advising sleep training a 16 week old?!

I said she could be think about it. It’s a practical solution, not the only one of course hence why I also said safe cosleeping or shifts and didn’t recommend one over the others.

I would hope that it goes without saying that anyone considering sleep training would take some time and do some research first so no definitely not going for going for it right now tonight with a 16 week old! Although US paediatricians including Ferber himself, typically recommend starting at 4 months which OP’s baby is almost. Pick up put down is a more gentle method and it’s supposed to work best with 4-6 month olds. So OP is almost there IF she wanted to do that. If she doesn’t, then as I said it’s not the only option and doing shifts with a partner or cosleeping would also help her get some more sleep.

I agree with the aspect of sleep training. Obviously, not leaving baby to cry but babies need to learn to self settle quite young. Many babies aren't taught this skill hence the amount of mothers on here who co sleep. Ds was put in his moses basket awake but sleepy. I used to play a nursery rhyme cd and he would drift off to sleep peacefully. He was consequently a great sleeoer, still is.

Your baby is probably hitting the 4mo sleep regression so I'd hold off doing anything drastic for now