??? for moms with tummy sleepers
Before I get started I would like to say that I only want to hear from moms with tummy sleepers. I know the risks and I don't want this thread to turn into a debate. I really want helpful experienced answers to my questions.
Ok. My LO is 4 months old and is a pretty good sleeper. He takes a few naps through out the day that last anywhere from 30 minutes to two hours. Plus he only gets up at night once or maybe twice. So he spends a lot of time on his back. At 5 weeks we noticed he had torticollis and developed a flat spot on one side of the back of his head. The physical therapist taught us how to safely put him on his side to sleep. So he's been side sleeping for a while however he only stays on his side for the beginning of his sleep. He ALWAYS rolls back onto his back and about 99% of the time he sleeps on that favored spot although he can easily move his head and neck. He still seems to favor that one side which is not helping the flat spot. Pedi said it will round out and it's not bad enough for a helmet.
He's had the flat spot since he was a newborn and it hasn't gotten worse but I can't tell if it's rounding out or his head is just bigger.
Anyway, I'm thinking about letting him sleep sometimes on his tummy but I have a few questions.
How old was your LO when he/she began tummy sleeping? Do you have a breathing monitor for night sleeping? Do you only tummy sleep for naps?
Any tips?
TIA!
Re: ??? for moms with tummy sleepers
big brother 5/30/10 * cp 4/27/12 * little sister 2/25/13
Oh lord pp...sounds like you had a little sanctimommy with your cereal...
Op, as long as he is rolling around I would be comfortable with having him sleep on his tummy. He might not even like it though, just to warn you. Ask your pedi about your child's specific risks/benefits.
My dd was a preemie, and had severe reflux in the nicu. They had her sleeping on her tummy there, which was completely safe, as she was on a monitor. However...when we came home, without a monitor, she would sleep no other way. ::shrugs::
Not at all. OP said it wasn't getting any worse so I'm curious why she would change anything.
big brother 5/30/10 * cp 4/27/12 * little sister 2/25/13
I'll also add that DD hates being on her tummy, prefers her back. So OP, if he always rolls to his back, that may be his preferred way to sleep and might not sleep on his stomach at all.
big brother 5/30/10 * cp 4/27/12 * little sister 2/25/13
It was your last sentence that drove it home
My DS also had torticollis and favored one side when he was sleeping. He did not develop a flat spot, but always slept with head tilted and to one side. We were in physical therapy for a year, and the torticollis finally resolved. The one thing we were never able to "fix" was his preferred resting position. We gave up. To this day, when DS is sleeping on his back, he reverts to that position, even though the torticollis is completely resolved.
I think it is safe for babies to sleep on their tummies when they can pick up their head and roll from front to back in both directions. You are not far from that point. For your own piece of mind, see if you can wait it out. Also, don't be surprised if your LO turns himself over to get back into his favorite position.
If not, maybe just keep it for naps when you are in the room. My DH used to put DS down for naps on his tummy, but it was always in the room we were in. Even so, it always made me nervous.
For the pp, I think you are being very dismissive of her concern. I would not call a flat spot that could possibly require a helmet a minor cosmetic issue. Yes, it can be resolved, but if you could prevent your child from having the wear a helmet, why wouldn't you? She is looking for a safe way to do just that.
My 4 mo old always sleeps on his tummy. He can roll both directions though and flips over when he wakes up, so I'm 100% not worried about it. If your LO can roll or lift himself up when he's on his tummy, then I'd go for it. Just keep blankets/bumpers/etc out of his sleeping space and use a firm mattress. Does he sleep a lot? Mine isn't a great napper, so he spends most the day creeping around the room on the floor. I'd think soon it will work out since they won't spend so much time on their backs.
LO has slept on her tummy from very early on. It's funny, I put her down on her tummy and DH puts her on her back, simply because that's most comfortable for each of us. She sleeps just as we'll either way.
We have a sensor pad monitor which has really given us peace of mind.
She can roll over, but she doesn't seem to at night.
She mostly sleeps on her tummy because I put her down more often.
She does sleep with blankets too.
DS2 started at 6 weeks when we moved out of the rock and play and when he could pick his head and lift from side to side.
We do have a angel care monitor and I couldn't sleep without it.
5.5-6 months for DS2. DS1 was about 10-11 months.
Both boys are developmentally delayed and weren't great at rolling over ever. But they slept much better this way.
[url=http://www.TickerFactory.com/]
BFP#1 7/13/11 EDD 3/16/12 DS born 3/16/12
BFP#2 5/16/14 EDD 1/23/15 CP 5/21/14
BFP#3 6/25/14 EDD 3/2/15
I think mine started sleeping on her belly when she was 6-7 months when she got really good at rolling both ways. I always put her down to sleep on her back and she had always slept fine that way, but then suddenly just decided she preferred sleeping on her belly. It freaked me out in the beginning but she's always been fine and she moves all over her crib so I know if she wanted to sleep another way she would. We don't have an Angelcare monitor.
Haven't read thru whole post yet, but just wanted to throw my two cents in.
DS slept on his tummy since 8 weeks old, and slept10 hours straight at night as well. He was never swaddled and he could roll from belly to back at 8 weeks as well.
Choose what works for you. I think we did start it during naps around 6 weeks when he was near us. Then eventually at night, it helped alot with his gas pains and he slept really well.
I'm just trying to see what my options are to help his head round out. I'm not saying I want him to become a permanent tummy sleeper for this issue. I'm just looking at multiple sleeping positions. He already sleeps on his side as well as his back. I wanted to find out more about tummy sleeping. If that means he only sleeps on his tummy during naps when I can safely monitor him then that might be an option. That is why I'm asking questions of moms with tummy sleepers.
Thanks!
Thank you. I'm actually thinking about tummy sleeping for naps while I'm near. It will be limiting because I will likely have him nap on the sofa next to me as opposed to his crib. I don't know. We'll see.
And you're right...he might not even like tummy sleeping because it hates tummy time. If he wakes up on his tummy, he may actually be aggravated.
For the record I didn't TELL anyone they couldn't respond. Nor did I tell anyone how to respond. I simply stated who I WANTED to hear from. And you are correct! It is the internet and I cannot control it. Like I said in my OP, I wanted experienced helpful info. Where in my freaking post did I INSTRUCT anyone on how to respond?
My point was I wanted information. I've seen it too many times where these threads turn into debates and the OP ends up never really getting information and the help they requested. Or you find that out of 50 responses only 4 or 5 people actually answered questions or offered information because the rest of the responses are filled with flaming fckng debate. Now THAT is ridiculous.
What is this? High school? Because I'm new to the board I have to act like some scared poster. This is crazy.
Again. I didn't DECIDE anything. I simply stated who I WANTED to hear from. That is all. Yes everyone is free to respond, comment, whatever. But because I'm new to a board I can't specify that I want HELP as opposed to judgment? Because I'm new to the board, I cannot respond to snarky responses? If this board mainly consists of people like YOU then don't worry....I won't be seeking future advice from the likes of you.
Yes I AM charming. Thank YOU very much. Here's the deal. I've said it before. I never told anyone how to respond. I only specified who I wanted to hear from. As a PP mentioned before, I don't control the internet so clearly anyone can respond. I just wanted useful and helpful information. I'm not getting the confusion here. Where exactly did I tell someone how to respond? That question still has not been answered.
Please show me in my post where I told someone how to respond.
Reread your post. I think you missed the whole first part.
Here is where you said what you wanted to hear and who could post.
Well I of course know there is a statistical correlation between tummy sleeping and sids, I just don't see that as the same as tummy-sleeping in and of itself killing babies. It's clearly a personal choice and I wouldn't advise anyone else to do anything they are not comfortable with; I was just sharing my experience with someone who asked.
I simply said who I wanted to hear from. It was just a preference. It absolutely does not tell anyone they cannot post here. I also said I don't want this thread to turn into a debate. Both of these were wants....that was all. No one is obligated to actually give me what I want but I don't see anything offensive about stating what I wanted. A want is just a request. Not a mandate.
There were other women who responded to my post who didn't appear to be offended by what I said. So I really think it's just a matter of perception. The first response that I received seem kind of judgmental however I was respectful in my response to that poster.
Frankly I didn't get b!tchy until I began to receive responses with snarky comments. The very people who are trying to critique how I communicated my post are being snarky in their communication to me about my post. When I responded to those snarky comments with my own snarky comments I'm being told I'm "too new" to be fussing with regulars on this board. Really? I never knew that I had to have a certain "rank" to defend myself against others.
But I suppose we can go on and on about my intentions and people's perceptions and never come to any type of happy medium. So that being said, again I am grateful those who responded to me with helpful and useful information. To the others, there's not much more I can say.
My LO is a pretty good sleeper so he's in his crib sleeping on his back a lot.
He's not as mobile yet so I'm thinking I will just let him tummy sleep for naps. I'm still uncomfortable with the nighttime for now because I've been sleeping kinda deeply lately from a little exhaustion.
Thanks for the response.
My LO is a pretty good sleeper so he's in his crib sleeping on his back a lot.
He's not as mobile yet so I'm thinking I will just let him tummy sleep for naps. I'm still uncomfortable with the nighttime for now because I've been sleeping kinda deeply lately from a little exhaustion.
Thanks for the response.
Ok. I'll concede to that. It could have been worded better as to not sound demanding because that was not my intent. I'm not perfect. However I do feel that if anyone had an issue with how I worded my original post, that issue could have respectfully been communicated as opposed to being told how "ridiculous" I sound and being accused of telling people what to do.
If anyone on this board had sincerely communicated being put off by my wording then I would have apologized. But I was met with snarky comments and that is what I returned.
But see the way we see it is that WE were met with snarky comments before you even started your post. So that's what you got back...and not nearly as bad as we've seen in the past.
I have definitely seen worse responses to people on the bump which is why I respond to snarky comments with b!itchiness. But I would never actually intend to be offensive while I'm asking for help. All I wanted was help from sincere people. That was my only point because despite how supportive some people are I've also seen people lay into other people because they have a different parenting style...from cereal to breastfeeding to tummy sleeping. So it was not my intent to offend. I just wanted non judgmental help. But when I get people telling me I'm too new to be fussing with others...then the conversation is going in a more negative direction. There was only one person on this board that to me seemed sincere in her communication to me about how she was put off.
I have definitely seen worse responses to people on the bump which is why I respond to snarky comments with b!itchiness. But I would never actually intend to be offensive while I'm asking for help. All I wanted was help from sincere people. That was my only point because despite how supportive some people are I've also seen people lay into other people because they have a different parenting style...from cereal to breastfeeding to tummy sleeping. So it was not my intent to offend. I just wanted non judgmental help. But when I get people telling me I'm too new to be fussing with others...then the conversation is going in a more negative direction. There was only one person on this board that to me seemed sincere in her communication to me about how she was put off.