Struggling to reach into cot

[Mamatodoodles]

Hi everyone
My DD is 8 months old and her cot is on the lowest setting as she can sit up unaided. Up until now she will only nap on me during the day or sometimes in the pram (usually falls asleep at the end of the walk and immediately wakes up once back in the house).
I am wanting to try and get her to nap in her cot now because I am 3 months pregnant and I won’t be able to have her napping on me once the new baby arrives. My DH does bedtime and when putting her down she needs to have her arms held by her side because otherwise she thrashes around, and then once she drifts off she can be left and sleeps really well. I have tried this in the daytime for naps but I am already struggling to lean into the cot at this stage in my pregnancy and I just cannot get her to sleep so she ends up napping on me again. I even struggle to lean in and change her bed sheets.
I have tried leaving her to see if she will fall asleep on her own but she just sits up and cries.
Would it be a bad idea to take the side off the cot and use a bed guard with blankets and pillows on the floor so I can lean in better? Has anyone done this at this age and had good/bad experiences? I just can’t do this any longer. I’m already struggling with back pain ☹️
Any advice would be appreciated please x

Can you rock her to sleep in the pram at home? I know she wakes up but maybe she's not in a deep enough sleep when you get home so when the rocking motion finishes it startles her? I work in a nursery and am struggling to put babies in their cots now so I understand the struggle, and we tend to put them in and check on them every 15 minutes and if they're still up we just lie them back down and walk out again. I hate leaving them to cry but it's gotta be done unfortunately.

Hi @shopaholics thank you for your reply. She used to sleep in her pram in the front room when rocked to sleep but she has started to resist this and I also thought even if she does go down in the pram she might not sleep as well downstairs once the new baby is here. She loves her cot at night but I think my DH has more patience than me in putting her down! He’s taller so can lean over better. I might try doing what you do and keep lying her back down again if she’s still awake but I’m worried this might ruin her night sleep if she associates the cot with crying. I might give it a go and see what happens. Thank you x

Sorry for the delay in reply. What are her exact sleeping conditions in the cot? Does she have a comfort blanket or toy? Is there white noise and black out curtains or blinds?
Some babies need total darkness to sleep and so it could be worth draping a blanket over the cot (but leave a little gap around the bottom to let air in) until she's asleep. Otherwise she might need a nightlight or some white noise or a sleep cd playing. It's hassle figuring it out but if you're determined to get this sorted before baby is here I'm sure it's doable.

There won't be much of an association, I look after lots of children that scream the nursery down when we put them in bed at first but then the next day or whenever they're absolutely fine and are practically running to the cot room.
I know she might not need it but maybe try a warm bottle of milk at sleep time too? Pop it in with her and check every 5 minutes until it's empty or she's asleep as that can often help.

Sorry for the late reply back to you!
When she sleeps in her cot at night she is just in her sleeping bag with complete silence and does have a blackout blind because it’s still quite light when she goes to bed so I agree with her needing total darkness. She’s fine with this at night but fights it in the day.
When she sleeps on me downstairs I play Ewan the dream sheep for her to listen to so I’m still able to watch the TV but he only goes for 20 mins before switching off and this startles her so I have to keep switching him back on so this wouldn’t work in the cot. White noise is a good idea though and I’ve seen different machines online so I think I will try this, and a sleep CD if this doesn’t work. With regards to the bottle, she’s not able to hold a bottle herself yet but loves to throw the empty bottle around once she’s finished a feed so I think she might play with it rather than drink it as she’s not able to feed herself.
Thank you so much for all of your suggestions and there are definitely options you’ve suggested that could work for us so I will be trying these ASAP!
As a side note, I’m not trying to get her to sleep in the cot just because a new baby is on the way (hope you don’t think that!). I absolutely love snuggling her to sleep but she wakes up sweaty and I know she’d be much better rested sleeping in her cot! I know she’ll need it once her sibling arrives.

I'm short with short arms & struggled with the cot when it was on its lowest setting. We had a little footstool (actually, I think it was a toddler toilet step thing) which I stood on which gave me the height I needed to be able to put DD down comfortably.

Oh right ok thank you, I will go out and get one!

This is the stage when you really need a drop side on a cot! Hope that you find a stool helps.

Not for everyone but my sister put her daughter in a toddler bed with a side and crash mat thing on the floor around this age because she couldn't lift her in and out of the cot. She obviously had a monitor but I don't remember her ever falling out.

Dn just accepted it and they missed all the drama of trying to teach her to move into a bed and stay there all night!

@Pythonesque yes a drop side would be so handy but I’ve heard they are dangerous and I didn’t actually see any when choosing her cot ☹️

@Rubberduckies we’ve been toying with the idea of doing that and we do have a monitor so I’m glad to hear your sister had a positive experience if we do decide to go down that road!

Many thanks for all the suggestions. I’ll be trying them all out ASAP!

These cots are so annoying. We have recently bought a beautiful cot for my 7 month old and I have realised i can't get her into it either. I'm fairly short (5"3) and can't put her in gently enough so she is still in her crib which worries me as she would be able to get out of it. Wish they all had drop sides.

Could you use her old crib for naps and stay in the room with her and then your DP do bedtime? I have to do bedtime so don't know what I am going to do :(

I recently came across the "drop sides are dangerous" issue - my children are teenagers and it had previously passed me by. It sounds a classic example of ban/denigrate rather than regulate (crossed with a generous dose of one-country-says-so-so-they-must-be-right).

I have concluded that we could do with a "Department of Unintended consequences" that would be tasked to review all proposed legislation and send people back to think again ...

@foxsbiscuit it’s the same cot she’s always had but we’ve had to lower the base to the lowest level now as she can sit up unaided and if I readjusted the base every day I worry it might make the holes loose where the fixings go into. I’m sorry you’re having the same problem as me ☹️

@Pythonesque yes you’re right. My mum says my siblings and I were all in drop side cots too and that was the norm. I think if a bad thing happens and it’s baby-related it ends up being a massive deal even though so many people have never had a problem. It’s just one of those things!