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DS is 10 months old & has been co-sleeping since he was brought home from hospital. I've been trying to get him to sleep in his cot but it just isn't happening! I moved the cot into our bedroom thinking that maybe it would help but still the same response. I wait until he's asleep and lay him in the cot but he immediately wakes up and screams until he's picked up.
Just wondering if anyone has any ideas how to solve the issue?
Is he in the cot for his day sleeps? Can you move the cot right up against your bed and drop the side, ensuring the cot is securely against your bed? ie at arms reach. I know with my DD if she is not fully/deeply asleep she wakes up when I put her in her cot, if she is really asleep she doesn't wake up. Perhaps he is not in a really deep sleep? Try covering the cot mattress with something of yours that smells like you ie something you have worn, a rug you have been lying on? Has he got a comforter with him ie a cot teddy, a ruggie etc? Just some ideas...
Also, have you tried giving him playtime in the cot? Just short periods with you there and some favourite toys or books so he develops positive associations with it and thinks it's a pretty nice place to be.
Hi Nella!
We have just gone through the same thing! Ds still comes to bed with at about 2am but sleeps in his cot till then!
How does your little one fall asleep? Ds is bf to sleep then when he is in a deep sleep i pop him in the cot! So maybe make sure he is in a deep sleep before putting him in? I pat ds while holding him so when i put him in and he is a bit restless i pat him till he drifts off again!
Do you have music that your son relaxes too? We play ds music on repeat so if he does get upset he has something familiar!
It has taken at least a month to get him to where he is now. So keep at it, it will eventually get better i promise!
Hope this helps a littl! Good luck! xx
Deirdre- He won't go in his cot for day sleeps either - he doesn't sleep very deeply during the day and only naps for 30 minutes at a time. I put a shirt of mine in there with him but it still didn't help.
Sacha - Yes he plays in his cot with no problems he loves playing in there :)
Boomba - Glad someone else is going through the same thing! Its going to take a while I think. DS is bf to sleep aswell its the only way he'll go to sleep. Last night I let him lay with me on the bed for an hour after he went to sleep to make sure he was in a deep sleep and then tried laying him in the cot but he woke up within 10 seconds of putting him down. I left him in there and tried patting him back to sleep but he wasn't having any of it!
Thanks for all the ideas :) Just going to have to be persistent I think.
Nella *hugs* Make sure you are doing what is right in your heart. I really hope it works out.
Keep with it, but dont let it upset you or him make sure your both happy!
xx
hi all;
My DD was the same, i would feed to sleep then get up and try and put her in her bed. The second her head hit the mattress she would wake and scream until we got her. So I would feed her on a pillow, then when sheh finished feeding and was asleep i would pick the pillow up with her on it, trying to keep her as flat as possible, and put pillow and DD in bed. So she now sleeps on her pillow in her bed. She loves it. I have been doing this for around six months now, and it works 95% of the time.
Now though she is 10months old and she is rolling off the pillow which is what is waking her up, so now we go in there once she is asleep and has rolled over just enough to get the pillow out from underneath her. And she sleeps so much better!!!
Not for everyone , but could be worth a try!
hth
Ok, I don't want to start an argument here, but after general information.
Why do you guys endorse co-sleeping?
Seems to me that the problems you're having now, converting them to a cot, would not be happening if they were never 'co-slept'?
I love co-sleeping with DD, it is one of the most beautiful things in the world. Just so special.:
BUT DD has never slept well in her cot, in actual fact, she sleeps much better with us, and we sleep better. However i start her off in her cot, with the ultimate goal that she will sleep through the night there, but if she does wake she is more than welcome to join us in bed. She knows that she can have cuddles whenever she wants.
BUT co-sleeping has never played a part for us when it comes to quality and or quantity of sleep in her cot.
Our DS had reflux and it meant that it was a lot easier to get a bit of sleep if he was with us. He seemed to be happier knowing we were next to him especially when he was in pain and not feeling well. I also enjoy the closeness. Now that he is older we put him in his cot until he wakes around 1amish. During the day he will sleep in his cot if he is really tired. At the end of the day co-sleeping saved us from a lot of lost sleep, which I and mu husband needed as I am now back working :D
Nella - I could be way off but do you think it could be a cot thing? Having slept in a bed until now, perhaps a cot seems way crazy to him? Have you thought about a bed with a bed rail/guard? He might be more comfortable being in a familiar sleeping environment? Just a thought....and I must admit I've never co-slept so feel free to disregard my query!!
If DS has an unsettled night I give him cot play time in the day (when I'm putting his clothes away for example) - he bounces on the mattress, he has his cot-only toys there, he's magically settled again that night. If I don't he's unsettled again.
DS has a cotbed, I will sometimes climb into the bed with him and move myself when he's asleep. Actually, I climb in every night for his story and we snuggle up to read it which REALLY settles him well. But sometimes I need to get back in until he's properly asleep.
We co-slept for 10m until DS wanted to stop and he always started off in his own crib/cot, mostly because he went to bed before DH and me. I love co-sleeping; not only do I get more sleep because I don't have to get out of bed we get loads of cuddles. It helps to regulate a baby's system and thus reduces the risk of SIDS, it helps set up the brain chemical system so co-sleeping babies are happier babies as well as learning a diurnal rhythm; they may not sleep through but they know day from night. It makes children more secure and lets them know they can always turn to their parents rather than there are times you're not wanted - imagine knowing you're not wanted by your parents ever!
The main downside of co-sleeping with a toddler is getting kicked as he wiggles. That's the only one I can think of.
Also many children have trouble crib to cot, or cot to bed - the problems are a new place to sleep, not co-sleeping to not.
Damo,
no need for debate, we as parents do what we believe is right for our children and being curious as to how others parent is totally cool!
Co sleeping is a very natural thing. I suggest you read the "science of paretning", "helping your baby to sleep", just to name a few and this may shed some light on why we choose to co sleep!
The reasons behind us trying to get Ds to sleep in his cot is DH is having trouble sleeping and is a shift worker. I dont mind it when ds comes in after dad has gone to work! But like most parents we all wish our babies slept for 12 hours straight hey! co sleeping or not ds would be up at least 3 times a night! So cosleeping gives us both more sleep! iykwim?
Hope this has given you a little insight into co sleeping!
Sanp rosehip you must have been reading my mind! everything i wanted to say but couldnt! lol
:
I love co-sleeping; not only do I get more sleep because I don't have to get out of bed we get loads of cuddles. It helps to regulate a baby's system and thus reduces the risk of SIDS, it helps set up the brain chemical system so co-sleeping babies are happier babies as well as learning a diurnal rhythm; they may not sleep through but they know day from night. It makes children more secure and lets them know they can always turn to their parents rather than there are times you're not wanted - imagine knowing you're not wanted by your parents ever!
I love co-sleeping & whether you co-sleep or not, moving a child into a new bed/environment is always difficult.
I think DS will be co-sleeping until he's ready for his toddler bed :)
So far, no success with the cot but luckily its a 2-in-1 & will go straight to a toddler bed so didn't waste any money on it :)
Hi ladies... I'm on the same boat as nella, thing is, as much as I want to co-sleep with DS until he's ready for his cot, I have to move him, as another bub is on the way and will be out in November!
DS used to sleep in his cot probably for 2 months (when he was 3 mos old up until about 5 months old) until he got colds and I was dead worried and had to put him straight back into bed with us, and then after a week of sleeping with us, he wouldn't go back to his cot, and up until now he's co-sleeping with us and I love it, he loves cuddles and it's easier to put him back to sleep especially now I'm 6 months pregnant...
I might try putting a cot that folds on the side next to our bed and see how I go...
Just an idea....
If your putting him down into his cot when he is already asleep, and he wakes up suddenly he could be waking more with fright thinking "were the hell am i, i went to sleep in mums arms and now im here" so he panics...
I had this problem when i wanted to move my DD from the basinette to the cot, she refused and i thought getting her to sleep with me then putting her down would work, but almost every time within 5-10mins she would wake screaming, and it occured to me she is confused.....
so i started recognising her tired signs and putting her down awake in her cot, we had prob 2 weeks of hard work, every day sleep was a bit of a battle, i would have to do lots of dummy runs, patting and "shhhing" but eventually she learned that it was ok in her cot and that mummy would still be back....she is now a FAB sleeper and we dont have a single sleep problem, we have 4 days sleeps and 10-12hrs overnight without a problem, it was hard work but it was worth every second....
just perservere - keep an eye out for tired signs and put him down then now when he is asleep
hope i made some sense!
Nina good luck with putting DS in his cot hope all works out for you :)
Littleme thats what happens with DS he just gets scared because its a new environment, will have to try that for a while and see how he goes :)