How does your baby like to be comforted?

[Kirsty77]

Gemma loves to be comforted with cuddles, rocking,stroking her back or patting her bum.At bedtime if she wakes after we've put her down we try the dummy, and stroke her back until she falls asleep.Last night she went to bed at 8pm and started to stir at 12am, so I popped the dummy in and she fell back asleep untill 3am!Couldn't beleive it!She does love her dummy!

[Gemma]

If Amy wakes during the night, we pick her up for a cuddle until she stops crying. Then put her back in her cot, tell her it's time for bed then say goodnight. Peace Baby CD is always playing in her room. Also we change her nappy if it needs to be changed. I rock her during the day if she is winding down for a day time sleep and use a dummy for the day sleeps if needed.

[BellyBelly]

OooOoh I LOVE Peace Baby CD. It's the best of all the baby CD's out I reckon

[Lucy]

I think I have mentioned this in my earlier post, but I agree about Peacebaby.......it is FANTASTIC! I have 2 copies: one in Olivia's CD machine in her room, and one in our CD machine in our room for Charlie. Both of them have it played to them for every sleep.

With Olivia, before we pop her in the cot at night, we always have a snuggly cuddle in the dim light of her room and as soon as she hears Peacebaby she says, hopefully: "Bed, Mummy?"!!

I breastfeed Charlie his bedtime feed in the dim light with Peacebaby on, and I swear it makes ME relax so much too.......I often shut my eyes and have a mini nap whilst he is feeding!

[Debbie Lee]

Lucy - Gabby listens to "Music For Dreaming" during her day time naps - I guess it's pretty similar to Peace Baby? I listen to it over the monitor and it relaxes me too. At night I have a small fan going (not blowing on her) but just so there's a constant sound drowning out all the noises from the rest of the house that may wake her up. Sometimes I think I just use it for my own peace of mind rather than Gabby's, LOL.

Gabby used to need to be cuddled to sleep and I was quite happy to do that for as long as it took. I actually enjoyed our cuddle time (once I got used to it).
After a while, she decided to start settling herself to sleep (I found out by accident when I put her down to see some visitors out the door or something like that). I had every intention of going back to her (she was wrapped) and cuddling her to sleep but she was already asleep! Cheeky thing!
Now, at almost 7 months old, she still finds comfort in being wrapped and having a dummy during the day. I think following her little routine at night helps her to sleep without the dummy.
On the rare occasion she does wake during the night, the dummy is usually enough to comfort her. Since she was probably 3-4 months old, she has only fully woken during the night a handful of times. Those times I have just BF'd her to sleep without too much trouble.
She's not a baby that likes to be cuddled much. She's not one to be rocked or patted either. She just likes laying still and settling herself to sleep. I bet the "experts" would love that (even though I left it completely up to Gabby - I never had to control-cry).

[Lucy]

Debbie........that's interesting about Gabby not liking to be rocked/patted etc to sleep. Charlie is the same. He LOVES cuddles, but our cuddles never put him to sleep. He is too busy interacting! He likes to be patted on the back after a feed to get the wind up, but not to sleep. The few times I have rocked/patted him to sleep, and then put him in his hammock he wakes 10 mins later screaming. But if I put him awake and swaddled in his hammock (with Peacebaby on!) with his eyes wide open, he goes to sleep by himself within moments and stays asleep, sometimes for up to 3 hours in the day. (And sometimes as much as 11 hours at night!)

I have never left the room if he is grizzly or crying at all, but it freaked me out at first that he was so utterly happy to put himself to sleep so easily.

In fact, I leave our curtains open, and walk round the outside deck & peep in at him as he puts himself to sleep. He literally snuggles down, closes his eyes, and that is it! So cute. And long may his self settling habit without any tears continue!!

[Melody]

Hunter just loves cuddles on my chest.... When i place him, face in, on my chest he immediately settles & hugs me like a koala. I sang A LOT when i was pregnant.... so I also make a point of humming or singing softly (combined with my heart beat) he goes all dreamy & calm.

It is one of my favourite 'spaces' to enter into with him

[Debbie Lee]

Awww... that sounds so lovely, Melody!

Lucy - seems the "experts" would love you and Charlie too! Isn't it funny how some babies just kind of do the "text book" thing without you even trying? Yet.... if I know that if I had tried to get Gabby to self-settle before she was ready, I don't think she would be doing it now. It's certainly a comedy of events!

[beckles]

Oscar is comforted by sleeping with us in our bed during the night. During the day i put him in the sling and stroke his cheek until he falls asleep this really settles him quickly.

beckles

[Rouge]

Lucy sounds like you and I work in the same way. Paris was exactly the same! I hope Seth follows suit Maybe I should invest in a hammock!

*hugs*
Cailin

[Sweetie]

My bub is now 23 months, if she wakes during the night I keep it very brief. I give her the dummy and put her straight back to bed. It usually works, sometimes she needs a drink of water

Mary 8-)

[Smoke Jaguar]

thanks, Jillian, for reviving this one!
i would love to comfort feed Oscar to sleep, but my current oversupply makes that an invitation to windiness, so it's a bit of a last resort. we co-sleep with him on my chest, more often than not, and if he is still unsettled after a feed, a rock, copious kisses, a spine finger massage (a special thing i do up the spine that blisses out dogs, cats and babies alike!) or listening to a Tiffany Eckhardt CD (have the baby classical ones, but i think he likes to hear me sing to tiffany cos she's a favourite), then i remember "if in doubt, get the boob out"...and that will work!
I sleep really well with him on my chest, i never thought it could be so lovely. the only time he sleeps on his own is during the day when i feel he'll sleep in the bassinette, other times i'll put him in the hug a bub and he'll nod off there.
comforting him makes me feel important makes me feel talented, too, when it works!

[Rouge]

OOOOoOooOOO great post!

Seth loves his settling routine.

He has to be a certain amount of tired (I know how bizzarre right?) if its too little or too much bedtime can be disastrous! So we usually try and keep him up for 3-4 hours after his last nap of a day. He usually goes down at about 8-9 pm. He has to be swaddled and plugged, music on (mimicks his sister... I swear genetics plays a role). And he generally sleeps through sometimes he might wake for a replug and if he's unwell or fussy he might wake for a feed but this hasn't happened since he had croup a couple of months ago. Then he'll wake between 5-6 for a feed, back to sleep for another 2-3 hrs and we start the day. During the day he'll have maybe 3 naps 1 60 min, 1 90-120 min and another 30-45 min.

He LOVES his routine when it comes to sleep.

Oh forgot to mention if he's unsettled he likes to be stroked, and if that doesn't work then he's not ready for sleep so he'll either be fed, changed or just hop back up again till he is tired enough for sleep. He's got great sleep cues, both my kids did so he very rarely fusses at sleeptime because you know its sleeptime LOL!

*hugs*
Cailin