FTM: Tummy Sleep Issue

KatFish2011

My 7 week old loves to sleep on his tummy as I found out today.  He has been very cranky and will only sleep on his back for like 10 minutes before realizing that he is on his back and in his crib.  Other than that the only time he sleeps is in his swing.  But today, DH and I tried to see how he does on his tummy.  He slept 3-4 hours straight with no issues and has been able to move his head from side to side with no problem.  Has anyone had/have issues like this and did you let your LO sleep on their tummy?  We are afraid of SIDS but don't want DS to get use to sleeping in the swing as a place for him to sleep. 

KateLouise

My friend went through this. Her LO would only sleep on their chests for 20minutes at a time, and they tried everything to get him sleeping on his back in a bassinet.

Then they tried him on his tummy, and it turns out he's a great sleeper.

They went through the anxiety of putting him at a greater risk of SIDs and bought one of monitors that sense breathing to soothe themselves.

Honestly I'm glad I haven't had this problem because I know I'd be very anxious for baby, but at the same time if it's how your baby likes to sleep then what else are you supposed to do.

Good luck with your decision. 

FWIW my friend's baby is a happy healthy, 7 month old now. 

 

Marion&Kit

I had the same issue - I ended up giving up on the bassinet and just using the swing with her strapped in. 

DD is around 5 months now and more comfortable sleeping on her back. We just started laying her down for naps in her crib, and gradually it worked. 

Babies just are more comfortable sleeping on their tummies. But that's also why SIDS is such a risk. I couldn't reconcile it in my head, which is why I compromised with the swing.

GL on the decision. It sucks. 

KatFish2011

Marion&Kit:

I had the same issue - I ended up giving up on the bassinet and just using the swing with her strapped in. 

DD is around 5 months now and more comfortable sleeping on her back. We just started laying her down for naps in her crib, and gradually it worked. 

Babies just are more comfortable sleeping on their tummies. But that's also why SIDS is such a risk. I couldn't reconcile it in my head, which is why I compromised with the swing.

GL on the decision. It sucks. 

 Did you use the swing as a place for your LO to sleep in?  Like for the 4-5 hours.  Because that is what we are doing during the night since he will only take 10-30 min naps in his crib.  How did you transition your LO from the swing to the crib?

ar52kortlang

I don't really know too much about the sleeping on stomach, as my LO hates tummy time after a few mins! I have heard other bumpies talk about a monitor that lets you know that your LO Is breathing and after a few seconds if they stop it alarms... This would be good if your LO sleeps on stomach.

Melissabride09

I don't usually post here but since my son is the same age and we just went through this I thought I'd share my experience.  Our son would only sleep on his tummy on my chest.  I was super diligent and tried every trick to get him to sleep on his back, including elevating his mattress a little.  Nothing worked, he wasn't sleeping, and he was fussy and grumpy a lot because of it.  Finally, after reading https://www.askdrsears.com/topics/sleep-problems/sids/prefers-sleep-tummy on Dr. Sears website, and reading some other information, we finally decided to get the angel care monitor and let him sleep on his tummy.  He went from sleeping maybe 2 hours at most to sleeping 7 hours in one stretch.  He wakes up a much happier baby, has a lot less issues with gas, and has been smiling and cooing like crazy since we let him sleep.  Obviously, I'm not a doctor and you have to do what you feel comfortable with, but it's made a world of difference for my boy.  And the monitor gives some definite peace of mind.

allisonty11

I'm at FTM as well and my LO sleeps on her tummy every night. I was nervous when we started doing it -she was about 4 weeks old- but I cleared everything out of her crib and put her down away from the sides. She's much happier now. GL with your decision!