The nighttime paci game

pb&jojo · October 2013

My lo is 2 months and goes to bed at 7 everynight..we have gotten into a routine of me standing by her crib and puttig her paci back in her mouth each time it falls out. This lasts about 15 minutes until she's asleep. Then I leave and she's fine. I just started thinking I should just put her down and leave..I know habits can't form this early, but I feel like it is! What do you all do?

Let me add that when I don't put the paci back in he doesn't cry..she just kicks and moves all around (as best she can in her swaddle)..

perrybaby25 · October 2013

I wish I had advice but we do the same thing. Sometime it lasts much longer than 15 minutes after his middle of the night feeding. We can't decide if he can't keep the pacifier in his mouth or if he just spits it out because he doesn't want to go to sleep (or wants to cry when he's awake.) I hope to hear some good advice! Thanks for posting.

CourtJack · October 2013

We're in paci-hell too. She's not too bad going down - I may have to go back in to give her back the paci once - but on a bad night it can get bad. As naps - they're my nemesis. I'm in there ALL the time to re-insert. I don't know what to do. All the books say it's too early to try and take it away. So I guess it's just waiting it out till she's old enough to not need it?? I dunno. Hoping someone has magical advice on here!!

BelhurstBride · October 2013

It was bad with dd1. She needed it to sleep and it sucked until she figured out how to put it in her own mouth. A Wubbanub helped. They have them on Amazon.

Dd2 seems more impartial to the paci. :knocks on wood:

EmR22 · October 2013

Have you tried just not putting it in? You said she doesn't cry so maybe see how long she kicks until she falls asleep. My LO loves his nuk but doesn't need it to fall asleep but my dd2 did and it was nuk hell and she carried on like that until she was 15 months.

pb&jojo · October 2013

EmR22 said:
Have you tried just not putting it in? You said she doesn't cry so maybe see how long she kicks until she falls asleep. My LO loves his nuk but doesn't need it to fall asleep but my dd2 did and it was nuk hell and she carried on like that until she was 15 months.

Yeah, that's what I'm going to do...I guess it's just that if I keep putting the pacifier in, I know she will go to sleep soon..without the paci, who knows how long! Sounds like I'm the one with the problem..just want her to go to sleep quick no matter how I do it.

Ahtnamas6789 · October 2013

Same problem here, last night I tried to just leave it out and let her kick. She kicked and kicked for about 5 minutes until she started crying lol.

EmR22 · October 2013

pb&jojo said:

Have you tried just not putting it in? You said she doesn't cry so maybe see how long she kicks until she falls asleep. My LO loves his nuk but doesn't need it to fall asleep but my dd2 did and it was nuk hell and she carried on like that until she was 15 months.
Yeah, that's what I'm going to do...I guess it's just that if I keep putting the pacifier in, I know she will go to sleep soon..without the paci, who knows how long! Sounds like I'm the one with the problem..just want her to go to sleep quick no matter how I do it.

Maybe if you snuggle/rock with her a little longer before putting her down? It's all about trial and error I think so keep trying!

MrsI · October 2013

I did the same with DD so no judging here but with DS I've learned to just walk away. I turn his music on, from his aquarium, and walk out and 9x out of 10 he will put himself to sleep. Very rarely he will fuss and I will go back in, insert paci, pat his back and leave again. I really don't think I've ever done this more than twice. Now he's doing amazingly putting himself to sleep at night and after MOTN wakings. Having DD to tend to also has kind of required this since DH isn't home for bed time.

CBiggs85 · October 2013

Ugh I know! She is fine when she first goes down for the night but when she wakes up for her only MOTN feeding I think she wants to party for an hour before falling back asleep. I have to put the paci in at least 2 or 3 times between 4 and 7 because I can hear her starting to stir and making her "wtf is my paci" noise.

It is hit or miss if I just leave it. Sometimes she can drift off without it, sometimes she won't settle until she has it.

Ashesha13 · October 2013

When my LO does that there's usually something else still keeping him awake. He needs to be topped off with some food, or needs a diaper change or will get to sleep completely without the paci but being held. I don't usually put him to sleep with the paci but DH does and if we do we'll take it out after he's been asleep for a few minutes in our arms let him stay comfortable make sure he's in a deep enough sleep and then out him down. And if he is in a deep enough sleep he's out. Sometimes he keeps that paci locked in his mouth the whole time he sleeps but if we get into the paci game what we try above usually works

pb&jojo · October 2013

Before bed baby girl always gets a diaper change and bottle and usually falls asleep on hubby's shoulder at the last burping...then I swaddle and take her to bed...sometimes she stays asleep through being swaddled and taken upstairs, but most of the time she does wake...that's when we play the pack game. I know she can fall asleep without it! I'm gonna take her up tonight and not even offer it and see what happens.ll.

LJUTCMommy · October 2013

No advice. Sometimes dd needs the paci to fall asleep and sometimes she doesn't. I'm planning to phase it out at 4 months, then get rid of it completely at 6 months, but we will see how that goes.

My mom has a hell of a time getting it away from me. I was 3! None of her other 3 children ever got a paci.

NikkiD522 · October 2013

I am sooo glad im not alone with this one.. I unfortunately have no advice..

I thought maybe I was relying too much on the paci, but its the only thing that soothes him to sleep sometimes... really appreciated the responses!

CourtJack · October 2013

I put Piper down awake with her paci and that's how she falls asleep. I figure if I take away the paci and rock her to sleep, it's just a different "thing" I'll have to phase out. So, I'll stick with paci - and wean her off when she can self-soothe.

PB102012 · October 2013

If LO isn't completely asleep I will put the paci in since the sucking helps calm her. She tends to drop it a couple times, and if she is not completely asleep I will put it back in. When she is asleep completely I take it out of the crib.

pb&jojo · October 2013

It's been about 20 minutes since I out her down and left....she is kicking her legs and her left arm is almost out of the swaddle...but she is not upset and seems like she's slowing down....we shall see!

CourtJack · October 2013

Good luck! Let us know!!

pb&jojo · October 2013

She started to fuss, so I went up. Reswaddlded her and put her paci in. And she went to sleep!...better than standing over her and putting it back in her mouth over and over

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