What if your baby hates tummy time

New Mommy 2B

My DD hates tummy time.  We try to do it 2x a day for 10-15 but she usually starts fussing then crying after a couple of minutes.  I have tried it on the play mat and also being propped up on the boppy and she doesn't like either one.  Does anyone have any other ideas or help?  TIA

amesinholland

Nope, I am in the same boat.  We just keep trying.

jen&gene

My DS doesn't really like it either.  I sometimes lay him on my lap or hold him on my shoulder.  I am curious to see what others do...glad you asked this!

StephanieDeanne

Our LO would fuss after 1-2 minutes so we'd end it.  Then we started holding her on our chest and reclining a bit to give her her tummy time, and it's worked great.  Now that she has stronger neck control (and realized she can push herself over from front to back) she enjoys her tummy time more.

cbjpl31

We do the chest thing too and DS sleeps on his tummy so he gets plenty of tummy time when he wakes up before he starts to fuss/cry to be picked up.  Something else we do to help strengthen his neck muscles is to put him sitting on his bottom on our lap facing us and put our hands under his arms and hold him by his body.  Doesn't do much for upper body strength but helps him learn to control his head.

Ivana_Stolichnaya

Katie can only handle about 1 minute until she starts to panic.  We've had better luck with putting her to our shoulder.  At over 3 months old, she does well holding her head up while we carry her, but she can't really hold it up while doing tummy time.  She can only lift her head about an inch or two from the mat and then drops back down.

mrsschwags

We also use the recline method.  She cries when she does it on the floor but when she is on our chest with us reclined she does a great job of holding up her head for longer periods of time.

Lindsey7521

I sit down in the recliner with my little girl and lay her on my chest...she likes it.

sarahandandy

I'm a 4th year medical student and the pediatrician I've spent some time with has recommended doing tummy time for shorter stints, more frequently.  For example,  2 minutes 10 times a day and then gradually work up to 4 minutes 5 times a day, etc.  It's like reps for weight lifting, you can do 10 reps 3 times or 5 reps 6 times.