Put baby down awake?!!! HOW??!!

[pinkdaisies]

After having a nightmare getting DS1 to sleep I was determined that I would put DS2 (2 weeks old) down awake from the start so that I never got into the bad habit of feeding/ cuddling him to sleep. I'm convinced this made life massively difficult with DS1 as he could only fall asleep if fed- often 6 times a night at 8 months! But 2 weeks in I'm already failing in this and giving in to feeding DS2 to sleep becuse he just won't settle if put down awake, either in his moses basket or bouncy chair.

Has anyone managed to do this? Is it really worth it? Is it just down to the baby or do I need to persevere? If so... how?!

I know he's really young- and colicky which doesn't help, but if there's a gentle way of helping him with this please let me know!

swaddling? really helped mine drop off.

No advice, just wanted to say I know exactly how you feel. Having had three very different babies, who responded very differently to the same things, some will just settle well and some won't. Please don't feel like you are doing anything wrong, or even that there are any magic solutions. I'd just trust your own instincts, but if he's colicky then things will be tough for a while for you both and just do what gets you through and gets both of you enough sleep to cope! Good luck

I did but it just kind of happened by happy accident really.

I used to keep him up until I went to bed at about midnight so he was already calm from his early evening colicky crying. I had the luxury of us both being able to sleep late as had no other dc to get up to which makes a huge difference.

I was probably just lucky too, which sadly doesn't help you, as ds was a fairly good sleeper.

ooh yes, swaddling does help, and one of mine liked sleeping on his side, swaddled.

tbh I was told to not worry about this until 8-12 weeks, and until that time use Any Means Necessary to get them to sleep.

Can't remember where that advice came from probably due to the sleep deprivation

Sorry not that helpful really.

My DD is 4 months, I've just started to put her down awake. She is bf so up until recently she often fell asleep feeding or was already dozing off before I laid her down. I personally wouldn't worry at the moment, your baby is still so new and will be needing the comfort from being close to you!

I used a dummy for mine. Despite swearing before children were born that I never would. However DS1 was a colicky baby so it rarely worked until that phase passed - have you tried cranial osteopathy? Can be good for colic. DS2 also used a dummy. But he was much calmer and that helped with the sleeping.
Sorry probably not much use.

Don't worry about it at 2 weeks! I spent too long letting it go with dd and letting her go to sleep on top of me always but at 9 months i decided i had had enough and started to put her down awake (falling alseep feeding had stopped working at that point) and sing her to sleep. It took a few days til she was impressed with the plan. But at 2 weeks almost all babies feed to sleep! I would try and put him down awake now and again when looking sleepy from 6 weeks but for now enjoy newborn cuddles. I don't think you can teach them bad habits at this age.

2 weeks is too little.

Some babies are fine and chilled enough that they self settle early. But I think it happens on average later (4-5 months) and even then circumstances have to be right.

Prioritise getting sleep then when they're past the horrid 4-5 month sleep regression, see if you can encourage it.

I wouldn't waste your time if it's not working now. I think you will instinctively know when the time is right, for us it was 5.5 months when we began to think we could put her in the cot awake after two months of gradually reducing the rocking and holding. But I spent hours in the early weeks with her screaming in the Moses basket as I shushed and stroked and patted and sang. It didn't work at all and in retrospect I shouldn't have wasted the energy but I was convinced that I ought to be doing it because the books say so...

Don't force it, if your baby is happy to go to sleep by themselves, then fab, if not do whatever it takes to get them to sleep. DD is 2yo and only just going to sleep by herself in her cot. She would previously doze off with a bottle on my lap. TBH it's what worked to get her to sleep in the easiest/quickest manner, without too much stress. I took the approach that she would work it all out in her own time, and she has.

Of course you can follow a miriad of techniques if you want to, horses for courses. But please only do this if you want to, not because a book/friend/HV tells you you should. All parents and different, as are babies

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