How does your baby like to be comforted?

I thought I would get the ball rolling and see how your baby likes to be comforted overnight...

Elijah is 11.5 months old and waking 2 times a night, sometimes more, his teeth aren't much fun at the moment so feeds are really comforting for him - one tends to be around midnight and the other 4am'ish. He's been coming into our bed sometimes and will sleep there but sometimes I pop him back in his cot if I need to spread out bit - he sleeps like a starfish! We've tried the patting to sleep, rocking, jiggling - but I am more than happy to offer him a breastfeed if this is what he wants and is his comfort of choice!

As Aidyn is a fair bit older now (17 months) he doesnt wake up too often, but occasionally does get 'Night terrors'. A cuddle, and sometimes a lullaby too, is usually all he needs to get back to sleep.
When he was younger though, if he woke up and was upset during the night I would bring him into our bed with us and he would spend the rest of the night co-sleeping soundly between us.

This is a great idea. I look forward to reading the different resposnes people will have.

Alexander is 3 months old. He has many unsettled periods throughout the night. It may be because we live in a small studio apartment and he hears all the noises we make and we hear him too.

When he is quite restless we settle him with some gentle stroking of his forehead and a whisper and popping his dummy in.

Twice a night we feed him, usually because he is crying. A bottle of EBM around 12 which my husband gives him. Is usually accompanied by candlelight and lullaby music!! Quite a special time they have going there! (But probably not recommended for others wishing to drop a feed - its too comforting maybe)

The next feed is at about 4am and I breastfeed him and he is asleep and back in bed within 15mins. The milk is the comforting factor for this feed.

well our primary source of comfort has always been breastfeding, but gradually we've been able to introduce other things..

He is comforted by me just laying next to him (We have always co-slept so not a problem) likes me to stroke his hair, he'll also play with mine..

Also loves cuddles and being rocked in my arms, loves his Dad to sing they favourite songs together..

Just recently he has been falling asleep with no crying in his pram, and I just rock him and he falls asleep in there for days naps..

As they grow older they just develop more ways to be calmed I have found..it's great..

I think Zander has slept through a totl of maybe 10 times so we are up quite often to comfort him during the night. Generally if he's had his 4 bottles during the day he won't want another over night so that's not an issue.

He likes to be rolled on his side & patted on the back & most of the time that's all he needs. Sometimes he needs to be piked up & cuddled (like at 1am this morning!). I'm not sure what wakes him up but he settles relatively easy now.

Oh & we've found when he gets tired he tends to rub his blanket on his face. Generally he has one with satin edges in the loungeroom when he's playing & he likes the satin.

Ooohh Sarah, the satin ribbon. I still have mine from when I was a baby, that was sewn round a cot blanket!

Olivia now sleeps like a log for 12 hours at night, so doesn't really need any night time comforts. But if I need to try & help her to get to sleep (on a plane, or if she is sleeping elsewhere than home) then she sits on my lap and we cuddle & I sing a special song her her. Believe it or not it is the theme tune from the Koala Brothers. Some times it feels like I have sung it about 100 times, but it works like a charm! I do notice that she kind of "bounces" in my lap and I am sure this is because when she was a little baby I carried her round in a baby carrier to get her to sleep, or bounced her hammock to help lull her off!

Charlie is a very cuddly baby and self settles very well. As long as he has a full tummy and has had a long chatty cuddle with me or Andrew he drifts off to sleep by himself without a sound. In the night when he wakes, I feed him and that takes about 15 mins and he goes back to sleep straight away, in his hammock.

If he ever is unsettled, I simply cuddle him: he burrows right in and calms pretty much straight away.

Both my babies always have "PeaceBaby" on their little CD machines to lull them off to sleep too.

We have had both our babies in the same room with us from birth, and I think that they like the fact that they can hear and smell us. The hammock next to the bed means that it is easy for night feeds, and it means I sleep better because I can always see and hear them. Good for my peace of mind!

Jenna is still in our room too, and its funny when she wakes up in the morning. Sometimes she is just happy to lie there and look at us through the cot. We fiercely try to ignore her, but as soon as she makes eye contact - thats it, shes into bed with us.

She can throw a right paddy, and the best way we comfort her is in bed with us. Shane did it alot when she was really little. Also I usually give her bb when she is upset, and that helps alot.

When we are settling her, she hates not being completly vertical! Any angle to her head, and she gets wild. Maybe a bit of the reflux thing there. So the hug-a-bub was fabulous when she was really little.

She just loves cuddles and bb - probably the same as most babies!!

Fi

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Is usually accompanied by candlelight and lullaby music!! Quite a special time they have going there! (But probably not recommended for others wishing to drop a feed - its too comforting maybe)

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I don't think there is such a thing as too comforting - just like there isn't such a thing as too much love as far as babies go :) Kids remember this stuff - I heard about a Dr. Phil show where his sons were present, and someone asked the boys what their best memory as a child was. They responded with being put to bed - dad (Dr. Phil) would always come to them at bedtime and tell them something to the effect of, 'How is it, that of all the little boys in the whole world, I was lucky enough to get the very best one.' Moreso for the older children but we worry so much about our children remembering that time it got too much for mummy and she snapped or she did this or that - but it's the special things like this that they remember and treasure the most.

If Asha wakes during the night I usually go in and try putting her dummy back in and seeing if she will settle quickly with a pat on the bum (she sleeps with her bum in the air) and if that doesn't work then I will put her in bed with us and she falls asleep again straight away. She doesn't wake at nights very often, maybe on average once a week.

ETA: We still cuddle Asha to sleep in fact I sit in the chair with her lying in my arms and I rock, jiggle, pat her bottom and keep her close and she will drift off to sleep. As the weather warms up we will be trying to get her to self settle, they are doing day times at day care at the moment but I have noticed she will only sleep for an hour or so instead of her usual 2 hours!

Cheers

With Paris (even though she's nearly 4) she had a very particular bedtime routine, and as MIL found out if it wasn't exactly so she wouldn't settle. The room would have to be dimly lit, or dark before entering. She would be wrapped tightly (until about 8 mths then she had a grobag), her mobile had to be on (she used the music up until she was 2), and then we'd gently pat her tummy, or stroke her hair or face until her eyes got droopy and then we'd sneak out. Sometimes she'd whinge or grizzle, but she was very good at self settling.

*hugs*
Cailin

With Kameron I was pretty set on routine. He would be fed around 6-7pm and then I would go to his room, open the blind a bit as it was DLS and wrap him up and put him straight into his basinette (and then cot), pull the blind down and then I would say "Night Night, Sweet Dreams, Love You, Seeya in the morning" and then walk out with leaving the door half open. (nearly 4 years on I still say it). When he woke at 11pm for his next feed ..... a 4hr feeder from day 1..... I would change his nappy, rewrap him, feed him in the lounge so I could watch tele and then burp him and put him back to bed.

Kameron slept through the night from 14 weeks, sometime when he was 1 (from memory) he would grizzle when I put him to bed so we brought the fisher price aquarium that hangs on the cot and he soon got the gist of turning it on himself, so if he was unsettled he would pop that on and re-settle himself

4 years on, Kameron still goes to bed between 7pm and 8pm, but now he occasionally has stories read before going to sleep.

Lachlan was pretty much the same, although the was a 2hr feeder for the first 4 weeks which did my head in as I was too tired from having to chase after a toddler as well. So i put him onto formula and he went out to 4 hour feeds. His routine was slightly different than Kamerons to start off with for the fact that he slept in the basinette by our bed for the first few weeks cause of the 2 hr feeds. But as soon as he was on formula he went into his own room. We have found though that Lachlan hasn't needed music to help him drift off. He fell in love with a Teddy that was given to him at birth thanks Cailin and even now 18mths on as soon as he has that teddy he is out like a light within minutes.

I do have to say though I never went in there if they started to cry, I would let them see if they could settle themselves back down first. Moreso with Kameron. With Lachlan I probably went in there a bit quicker than what I did with Kameron as I didn't want Lachlan to wake Kameron up.

Love

I think it's important to mention ages here too, obviously things are different based on age :)

Breastfeeding has always been our main comforter during the night. The older girls slept in our room until they were almost 2 and then the transition to their big beds was when they felt ready. Sammy wakes up a couple of times during the night and he is always comforted by a breast feed and stroking. He will sometimes sleep with us or I will put him back in his bassinette which is right beside the bed anyway.

Jo

Thanks Kell for starting these new threads! I like them!

Hendrix is comforted by his dummy first and if this doesnt work then a cuddle and bb is all that it takes to settle him. He was sleeping through from 8 weeks but he is waking once again now - im about to look for that book the wonder weeks. I figured that it was related to a developmental period and am not really fussed about having to wake up to feed as i actually quite enjoy the night feed, particularly as it is getting warmer now and we dont freeze.

Matthew comforter is my BB`s, if he`s upset for any reason I pick him up he loks for my BB`s straight away and it soon comforts him.

Matthew was sleeping through of a night from 11 weeks to 15 weeks but since 15 weeks he`s been waking up once a night but for the last week it`s been 2/3 times a night, he has been teething for the last 6 weeks which I think was the start of him waking at night.

Like Heather I don`t mind getting up to him at night as I pick him up and take him to bed to feed and often we`ll both fall asleep but once I wake I do put him back into his cradle.

Kynan's slept through for ages now so I haven't had to do too many o/night comforts. If he wakes during the night now he usually sucks his thumb to go back to sleep. If he can't get back to sleep himself I'll rock him or feed him to sleep. If he's really, really upset then I bring him into our bed and feed him lying down until he goes to sleep.

Matty is almost 8 months and he has slept through from 7 weeks, but on the times that he has needed comfort, a breastfeed does wonders. He also loves a cuddle and there have been a couple of times that he has come into bed with us.

Daytime sleeps however - different story! From early on he never liked his daytime naps and would scream the place down if I tried to get him to sleep. We resorted to the rocking in the pram and for a while that's where his naps always were, then we gradually introduced the cot again and we are rapt - he is back having naps in his cot - yay!

We always try to wind him down. Like not going dtraight from play to bed - just too hard, gentle cuddles, soft voices and some rocking, plus classical baby CD on is doing it for him atm.

Also I should day that early on, in the first few months, I would settle him in his hug-a-bub, oh I loved having him so close to me sleeping soundly - just fantastic!

i thought i had missed this thread but now i see its only new!!!
I/ we comfort makon on our chest, the heart to heart works well!!
during the night if he wakes(usually about 4 am) its a bum change then we lie down and feed then after a cuddle he usually goes to sleep we usually put him back in his bassinet( which is next to the bed) then when he wakes up next at 8 or 9ish he comes in to bed with me until i wake up again!

i didnt want to have him sleep with us but i did it in hospital and loved it and when we got home he stayed with us completely for the first week! i still love it but i like having my space in bed(we dont snuggle)

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!

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.

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

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!

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).

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!!

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 :)

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!

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

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

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-)

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!

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