Hi, I'm looking from tips from people whose babies/toddlers learnt or were taught how to fall asleep themselves in their bed at bedtime from the age of my DD or older, she is 11 months. How did you go about doing this or did they just do it themselves eventually and if so at what age?
DD does fall asleep herself in her cotbed sometimes, for naps and bedtime. This when she's been put down asleep but wakes upon transferring but then goes back to sleep herself, or is put down 'drowsy but awake' and goes to sleep herself. I can't say how often she does this because I usually don't try to put her down awake yet as a lot of the time when I do try, it doesn't work and she gets more awake and bursts into tears as soon as I put her down or after I've left the room. I can settle her asleep in her cotbed with me beside her sort of rocking her tummy but this sometimes involves tears, sometimes doesn't, but even if it doesn't it takes far longer than our usual way of getting her to sleep on a night which is just being held until she falls asleep which she does in about 10 mins with no work on my part.
I'm all for an easier life so that's partly why I've not bothered to change it but wondering what other people have done who similarly haven't been super bothered about it up until this age or a bit older? I'm wondering whether I should just give putting her down awake more often a go and just see how often it works and pick her up and cuddle her on the times she gets upset and over time eventually she will go to sleep herself more and more of the time, is that how it works for people who don't want to do any kind of controlled crying? The HV recommended gradual retreat or CC but I don't think I want to go down either route yet at least as it's not a big problem for any of us atm and either she sleeps herself fine, in which case I don't need to do either of them, or she gets upset, in which case she will get veeeery upset (my DD does not do 'upset' by halves, trust me...!) which I don't feel the need to subject her to.