Baby likes to sleep tummy down

Vanessa226 · December 2015

I know this isn't recommended but my 5 week old LO sleeps really well. He settles in nicely, let's out gas and can adjust himself when needed. At first I would only let him sleep this way during the day and watched him closely but he's been doing so well I started letting him sleep tummy down at night too. Anyone else's LO like this?

basdenjn6 · December 2015

I'm scared to do so but I suspect mine is the same way since he sleeps so well on his tummy when I hold him. I haven't tried on his own but a few of my friends gave in early with their babies for the same reason.

millereliz13 · December 2015

I don't let my little guy sleep stomach down because of SIDS prevention. Most babies do sleep better that way but I'm way too paranoid to allow that.

ameares721 · December 2015

If my LO falls asleep on her tummy on me I just wait until she's sleeping deep enough that when I lay her on her back she will stay asleep. It took a few weeks but she sleeps on her back swaddled at night for 8+ hours.

mak1020 · December 2015

I'm in the same boat. LO is 10 weeks and he's been sleeping on his tummy for about a full week now. He has great head control and that's the only reason I let him sleep on his tummy. And if I don't like the way he lays his head I move it and if all else fails I will flip him around. He use to scream all night long and flail his hands and legs around and wake himself up. He hates to be swaddled and always breaks free when I do. He use to wake every 2 hours while sleeping on his back, now he sleeps from 8/9pm- 2/3 am then 3-5/6 am. And he actually did sleep thru the night on tues. but I know that you should not put him on his belly but he does roll over sometimes as well.

brossi359 · December 2015

My LO is 5 weeks and starting this past week we've put him on his stomach to sleep! he would not sleep on his back for longer than 30 minutes and he had to be in bed with us to even get that long out of him! Neither of us would get sleep and we really wanted him in his own bed. We started off with for two days I would let him nap on his stomach, not only would he nap without me holding him but it was for 2 straight uninterrupted hours!!! After I was comfortable that he could move his little head I put him in the bassinet at the end of our bed and put my head right next to it so I could hear if he stopped breathing and I have never slept so good since 5 months pregnant. Different things work for different babes and parents, for us the pros of sleep and not being sleep deprived to take care of him out weight the risk of SIDs

midge519 · December 2015

We have at tried at night yet but LO loves to sleep on his tummy. Most of his naps are on his belly. He does roll from belly to back at 5 weeks old and has great head control but I'm still paranoid.

kelsojohnso · December 2015

Look into getting a monitor! It alerts you if they stop breathing! Clips to their diaper

carmv01 · December 2015

Ours loves napping on his tummy - it's an easy transition from falling asleep on you/upright in your arms. He sleeps for hours on his tummy, we'll watch movies or tv etc. As long as we're right next to him and checking on him I'm not worried. He can roll onto his back so just gotta watch out when he starts stirring.

koriemo · December 2015

I am too nervous to let him sleep on his tummy, but when he starts to roll over, I will probably but him on his tummy. He sleeps pretty well if he is swaddled, but we usually only swaddle him at night. I know I should start swaddling him for naps, but he usually falls asleep without me trying to put him to sleep, and swaddling him would wake him up and start the whole process over again.

leah665 · December 2015

My LO loves to sleep on her side. We've pretty much been sleeping like that since birth and she has been fine.

Telebell · December 2015

We do it because our DD sleeps better that way too. From my reading of the literature, the majority of SIDS deaths seem to be sleep accidents that result in suffocation. So if you take the other precautions - no pillows, thick blankets, no getting drunk/high and rolling into your baby- chances are very very good you'll be fine.

kklabinski11 · December 2015

My baby is 9 weeks old and we've been doing naps on his belly for a couple weeks now. I was super paranoid about it because of everything you hear about sids. Truth is, they don't know what causes sids. And it wasn't that long ago that drs recommended babies sleep on their bellies. My other 2 kids both became belly sleepers as soon as they could roll over. I sleep on my belly. It's just how we're comfortable.
My little guy is such a light sleeper and letting him sleep on his belly helps him get into a deeper sleep. He's more well rested. I make sure his face is to the side and that there's nothing around him.

momma2char · December 2015

I think my baby girl is a belly sleeper too.. My husband and I are ordering the secure beginnings safesleep sleep surface (it's like a mesh crib mattress) that she will sleep on in the crib so she can breathe through the mattress if for instance she ends up face down rather than with her head going left and right. I'm a nurse and throughout nursing school it was drilled into my head that they always need to sleep on their back and I'm supposed to tell parents this.. But this new mesh crib mattress I feel extremely comfortable letting her sleep belly down and hopefully she will sleep better at night!

jamielynne1533 · December 2015

My daughter is now 9 weeks but has been tummy sleeping since about 3 weeks. At her 2 week appointment her pediatrician said if we want we could put her to sleep on her tummy if that would be more comfortable for her. He said when a lot of the original SIDS tests were done, they were done in the 90s and they were conducted in some country (can't remember which one) where babies slept on pillows and blankets full of sheep's wool. So of course the babies sunk in and suffocated. So he said as long as we aren't putting her to sleep on a bed of wool or pillows she should be fine. And she has been sleeping just fine. So I say, if your comfortable with it, let him sleep on his tummy.

jamielynne1533 · December 2015

Oh! One last comment. I have also read that babies awaken easily when on their backs because of their startle reflex. When babies sleep on their backs, they get that feeling like they are falling over and over again. I think some adults get that falling feeling as they are falling asleep too. And they jolt a bit. ( I personally have never had that) that's why when some babies sleep on their backs you will see their arms how up in the air. But when they are on their bellies, they don't experience that falling feeling.

kail28 · December 2015

I've had my LO on his belly since 3 weeks because he wasn't comfortable on his back and would scream all night long keeping us up. I tried it out first durning his naps and he would sleep for 2-3hrs straight. At night now he sleeps for at least 5-8hrs straight and he is 9weeks old. I also asked my mom who is a nurse and she said as long as he can move his head from side to side it shouldn't be a problem

Trose76 · December 2015

I concur! Belly is best for our DD of 9 weeks. Really she sleeps in our bed, and right up on a breast since she doesn't care much for any of the various pacifiers we've been trying to use since about 3/4 weeks young.

bcooper81 · December 2015

My little girl loves sleeping on her stomach. She has been since 4 weeks. Only way she will sleep for Long periods. She will sleep on her back if she's sleeping right next to me while I'm watching tv, but that's the only time.

tpete12 · December 2015

My daughter would sleep for only a couple hours at a time on her back and the first night that I put her on her stomach she slept 6 hours straight. For the first few nights that she was on her stomach, I checked on her A LOT, but now we are both pretty comfortable with it.

crbpjb · December 2015

This thread has made me feel so much better! We discovered on accident that baby girl sleeps better on her belly. Hubby laid her on her belly to wake her back up and she ended up sleeping for her longest stretch ever not being held. We watched her like a hawk but she shifts position just fine while sleeping and turns her head to the other side. I still worry, but she makes noise when she sleeps so that helps calm me. We started trying it once a night and it's the only time she will sleep not on us. To me there is more risk with her sleeping on us. I just was feeling like a terrible parent, but this is reassuring.

Vanessa226 · December 2015

Thank you for all your responses! It's reassuring to know that others are doing the same thing for similar reasons. Everything I've read says baby should sleep on his back but that didn't work for him. I think we all have to set the baby books aside sometimes and do what is best for our babies. They are all unique.

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