Does anyone else still rock their toddler to sleep?

Erin&Rod

After reading the "how do you put your toddler to sleep " post from yesterday I feel like a big fat failure with getting my toddler to sleep.  We still rock DS to sleep for naps and for the night.  Sometimes it takes only a few minutes, other times it takes forever.  I'm worried that he doesn't know how to put himslef to sleep.  I feel like we have missed the boat and that it's too late for sleep training.  He also started waking up during the night and it's been really hard to get him to go back to sleep.  I can't imagine the people who have a kid who they put in their crib at 7:30 and don't hear a peep unitl the morning.  I'm so jealous.  Anyone else have this problem?

MrsKellyOrBust

**jumps up and down** Me! Me!

I too feel like a big fat failure but he is has been going through such a rough patch with slow painful teething and illness after illness over the past few months. I just feel like if that's what he needs right now, I'm going to give it to him. Eventually they'll sleep on their own, right? That's what I'm telling myself anyway!

HotDish!

We still rock DD to sleep. We attempted sleep training her a few months ago and she jumped out of her crib the first night. The second night we put her in a toddler bed and she got so upset that she vomited all over herself. After that we just couldn't bring ourselves to try again. I am starting to worry about this as we have another baby on the way and some nights DD doesn't go to sleep until after 10:30. I think in the next month or so we'll have to try the sleep training again  but a modified version that won't be so traumatic for her.

MrsKellyOrBust

I would also like to add that we did Ferber in the past with success but both my DH and have agreed the older he gets, the harder it is to hear him cry and neither one of us are up for the task   We are such softies.

Tess12

Only when she's sick.

And I love rocking her to sleep.  I miss it so much.

Erin&Rod

HotDish!:

We still rock DD to sleep. We attempted sleep training her a few months ago and she jumped out of her crib the first night. The second night we put her in a toddler bed and she got so upset that she vomited all over herself. After that we just couldn't bring ourselves to try again. I am starting to worry about this as we have another baby on the way and some nights DD doesn't go to sleep until after 10:30. I think in the next month or so we'll have to try the sleep training again  but a modified version that won't be so traumatic for her.

We have tried sleep training too and DS does the same thing.  He will cough and gag and eventually throw up.  He is way to stubborn for this.

sar17

I still nurse and rock to sleep for night and sometimes naps, sometimes he'll sleep in the carseat if we are driving during his nap time. but that is it. we've never tried any cio method at all. he also wakes up several times every night, so you are not alone

nosoup4u

I read that post too, and I think a lot of the women posting on there were posting bc they don't have kids who have a hard time getting to sleep - I'm sure there's a decent amount of lurkers on here who have little ones who are still rocked (or even nursed - the horror!) to sleep. And you aren't a failure at all, I swear. I think there's just too much freaking pressure and obsession with having babies/toddlers/kids sleep for 12 hours straight, you know?

That being said, I say this probably because my DS is in no way an easy sleeper - and yes, I or my DH rock him to sleep every night. And I nurse him to sleep if I'm doing the rocking. 

blushado

There is a poem I read shortly after DD was born: 

"Cleaning and scrubbing can wait till tomorrow, For babies grow up, we've learned to our sorrow.  So quiet down cobwebs, dust go to sleep, I'm rocking my baby and babies don't keep." 

I always think of that when I start to feel guilty that I still rock my almost 15 month old before naps and bed.  She can put herself to sleep and almost always does, but rocking is part of our routine and I like to think that it is a soothing, peaceful time for her to be in the arms of the person who loves her most. 

When she was younger she'd fall asleep in my arms, but since around 12 months, she just looks around, but relaxes.  I rock her for about one song and then put her in her crib and she rolls over and falls asleep.  Without rocking, I think going into her crib would be too harsh a transition. 

At daycare (she is only there 1.5 days), she goes down for a nap just fine without being rocked and I think they maybe just rub her back for a few seconds.  She is perfectly capable of self-soothing and putting herself to sleep and does so in the middle of the night as well.  Truth be told, I like rocking her and she enjoys it and it's a nice bonding time for us.  I realize that it will stop at some point, and I do my best to read her cues and will most definitely allow her to go straight to the crib or bed if that's what she wants or needs to do, but for now, she is still so young. 

I work in the early childhood field and can tell you that there is no one clear way to do anything when it comes to parenting.  If rocking is working for you and your child, then by all means do it.  Now if your child is 12 and still having this problem, maybe we need to reevaluate the situation, but at this age, I really don't think it's a problem.

 Good luck!

suh5969

I rock and nurse to sleep sometimes just until she is sleepy.  She can get herself to sleep but I still do it.

SportsLover

One of mine needs to be rocked to sleep and the other prefers to just be put in his crib.  IMO, there is no right way to put a child to sleep.  I've raised my twins the same exact way and they are just going to have different needs.

lanie26

I did ferber but I still rock her for a few minutes before putting her down drowsy.

I love that time, and sometimes I just keep rocking her and let her fall asleep that way. I laugh because her little body literally wraps around me now and I remember propping that tiny little thing up on the boppy to get her on the breast. And remember how tiny she was. I think rocking your child to sleep is great if it works for you. 

 

Temp174496125006552

Ben is 13.5 months and I rock him to sleep for naps and the nights that I put him to bed.  I like that time with him.  I don't plan on doing it forever, but when he's drowsy like this, he'll actually sit still on my lap (which he NEVER does) and we snuggle.  No way I'm giving that up yet.

Jays-n-Shane

I rock her, but not until she is completely asleep.  Seriously, one day, the sleeping thing just clicked for her.  She'll usually go 12-14 hours straight.  We are still re-adjusting back to a schedule because that got thrown out the window when we traveled to my moms 2 weeks ago, but I'm confident it will happen again.  I LOVE rocking her and will do it for at least a few mins every night until she won't let me anymore

Bre92504

We still rock DS at night.  He usually doesn't fall asleep but sometimes if he's really tired (like tonight) he's out.  I actually give him a bottle of warm milk and rock him for about 10min.s.(I know rocking and a bottle, oh my god!)  He is usually awake but drowsy when I put him in his crib.  I plan on transitioning to a sippy of warm milk but am still enjoying our little snuggle time before bed.  A lot of times after 10min.s he will start to do what I refer to as the "alligator roll".  He just squirms and rolls around until I but him in his crib.  Im going to miss it when the rocking is gone for good.

violetblue72

I rock to sleep for naptime and DH does for bedtime.  And I have absolutely no guilt about it.

abbie612

DS is 14.5 months and I give a bottle and rock to sleep still.  And to top it off he weighs 30 lbs and his crib is really hard for me to get him into, so the whole process is no easy task!  But he has very bad reflux and will vomit if he cries for longer than about 1.5 minutes, so CIO is not an option (and I don't think I could do it anyway, I am a softie!).  BUT DS does STTN 90% of the time so I can't see the point of sleep training.  He usually goes down within 10 minutes of his bottle and he does wake up during the night but puts himself back to sleep, so I'm not really worried about him being able to fall asleep on his own.  I know he does it so I just enjoy the cuddle time while it lasts.  Some nights it's rough and I really get frustrated, but most of the time I enjoy it.

funchicken

I usually hold her until she falls asleep.  Sometimes she can put herself to sleep, but she's been teething almost non-stop for the past month, so she needs help.

I agree that there are probably a lot of moms in the same boat 

MT2006

I will make you fell 100% better.  I still nurse my baby to sleep and have to hold her for her naps during the day and we co sleep at night.  She does wake up several times during the night.