Sleep training

Lallie323 · August 2016

So my baby girl is a little over 3 months and I was wondering if i could start sleep training...I know I should to my pediatrician and I will but I would also like to hear what other moms have done and what worked for them?

She has always been a good baby and from around 2 months she would sleep 1 long stretch of atleast 7 hours, but now she has realised that crying gets her picked up, each time I put her in bed she wakes up and cries until I get her and as soon as I pick her up she will go back tk sleep on my mommy's chest.

And I really love it that she loves me so much and wants to sleep on me but by that time I am really tired and want to sleep. ♡

momofmanyinthemitten · August 2016

I'm not a fan of cry it out, and certainly not at 3 mos. You could try the pick up/put down method. My go-to baby sleep book is The Baby Whisperer Solves All Your Problems. All of her methods have worked well with at least one of our babies. Is your SO around at night? Having DH go in with our kids at night solved many sleep issues. They want mommy and go back to sleep quicker if daddy is the first responder.

Lallie323 · August 2016

@kielpinskim My hubby is around. Im definitely going to have a look at the book, the crying out method is really the only method anyone ever talks about, so its really the only one I know how to do, but will buy that book before I do anything. WNt her to wake up later than 5:30am, way too early for me. Lol

korpatch · August 2016

He have been sleep guiding since birth practically. At least trying to make good habits. I love the baby whisperer book! She is so practical! I used the spirit of what she taight in her book, but her practical application didn't work for us at all. We had to let him cry it out once we knew he was mature enough to do so (around three months, but ONLY after I knew his "I'm hungry cry" and only for a certain amount of time. I quickly leaned that with him there are times he needs comfort, but most of the time he just needs to sleep to get it.). He got through his four month sleep regression in only a few weeks and we are doing great with sleep now, even for naps which have always been a lot harder!

ivyvines6 · August 2016

I e been trying to do this with my LO, but he is super demanding and mostly just gets angry if I don't immediately pick him up. We have no problems with bedtime, but naps have been a complete nightmare since he turn 15 weeks! If this doesn't work we're moving on to CIO. https://www.bonbonbreak.com/6-easy-steps-sleep-training/#.V6Ik9Ej3anN

runningwild · August 2016

korpatch said:

He have been sleep guiding since birth practically. At least trying to make good habits. I love the baby whisperer book! She is so practical! I used the spirit of what she taight in her book, but her practical application didn't work for us at all. We had to let him cry it out once we knew he was mature enough to do so (around three months, but ONLY after I knew his "I'm hungry cry" and only for a certain amount of time. I quickly leaned that with him there are times he needs comfort, but most of the time he just needs to sleep to get it.). He got through his four month sleep regression in only a few weeks and we are doing great with sleep now, even for naps which have always been a lot harder!

Wow. Already through the 4 month sleep regression. When did it start and end for you?

korpatch · August 2016

runningwild said:

korpatch said:

He have been sleep guiding since birth practically. At least trying to make good habits. I love the baby whisperer book! She is so practical! I used the spirit of what she taight in her book, but her practical application didn't work for us at all. We had to let him cry it out once we knew he was mature enough to do so (around three months, but ONLY after I knew his "I'm hungry cry" and only for a certain amount of time. I quickly leaned that with him there are times he needs comfort, but most of the time he just needs to sleep to get it.). He got through his four month sleep regression in only a few weeks and we are doing great with sleep now, even for naps which have always been a lot harder!

Wow. Already through the 4 month sleep regression. When did it start and end for you?

It started three weeks ago ( when he was 3.5 months). Because he was already having sleep guidance, I think it gave him the tools he needed to get through it by himself. It was terrible though..., Mid last week he started sleeping all the way through the night again.
Its interesting how his sleep has changed!!! He used to be (or seem to be) in a near coma for dream feeds and such, now he will partially wake up for it. We also used to be able to put him to sleep at someone's house, transport him to the car seat, and then to his own crib without waking. Can't do that anymore. His cycles are completely different too.
I'm just so thankful he learned to sleep on his own before the regression. I think it helped him make it through faster because he already knew how to get to sleep, so after the complete sleep change he could still put the same principles in practice.
Still would never wish that regression on anyone!! Hope all your little ones transition smoothly! I'm glad my marriage survived it

Lallie323 · August 2016

So I have never heard of Sleep Regression until now. My baby sleeps from around 11pm till 7:30am, she has been like that gor probably the last month, but lately she wakes at around 12 crying and when I pick her up she just goes right back to sleep on my chest, and this plays over atleast 3 times every night. Is this sleep regression?
Is this maybe the start of sleep regression?
You ladies think I should start sleep training now then?
And last question, is it bad that she falls asleep that late? As my husband works until around 10pm/11pm every night I figured its not a big deal.

yodiggity · August 2016

This may have already been mentioned but around 4 months is probably not the best time to start with sleep training, imo.

My LO has been sttn since around 8 weeks old but the last week or two (4 months on the 6th) has been waking up in the early morning hours. Not really hungry or even wet, just wants to chat for about half an hour and then go back to bed.

Sleep training in Leap 4 to me seem counter-productive and frustrating.

UnbreakableKimmySchmidt · August 2016

Had LO's 4 month visit to the doctor yesterday and she said we could start sleep training anytime after 3 months. I've talked with other moms and not every baby goes through the dreaded sleep regression. One friend who is also a mom and pediatrician told me that all babies are going to go through times where they don't sleep as well, related to growth but may not have a severe sleep regression.

@Lallie323 - My daughter typically wakes up an hour after we put her to sleep. I have concluded that her first sleep cycle is 45-60 minutes and then we go in and rock her and she goes right back to sleep. It does sound like your daughter is going through some sleep regression, so hang in there! She might not take to sleep training right now if she is also regressing in her sleep. DD also likes to go to bed late but then sleep in late..she gets around 12-13 hours a night (usually waking up at least once in the early morning to eat). My doctor said they should be going down between 7:00-8:30 p.m., but again depends on your family schedule...we usually put DD down at 8:30 p.m.

bean_2016 · August 2016

We have been sleeping training for about a month now. DD has done so well and has been such a troope. She has made such huge gains. However, she still needs to be swaddled because she hasn't lost her startle reflex yet. The problem is that she is so darn strong she gets out of every thing we have tried (sleep sack, swaddle blankets and even the Anna and Eve swaddle strap!). I'm worried swaddling is becoming a sleep prop and I'm not really sure how to stop it yet. Anyone going through this as well?

Missingchampagne · August 2016

beccamccann said:

We have been sleeping training for about a month now. DD has done so well and has been such a troope. She has made such huge gains. However, she still needs to be swaddled because she hasn't lost her startle reflex yet. The problem is that she is so darn strong she gets out of every thing we have tried (sleep sack, swaddle blankets and even the Anna and Eve swaddle strap!). I'm worried swaddling is becoming a sleep prop and I'm not really sure how to stop it yet. Anyone going through this as well?

I think you just have to do a few nights (or even weeks) of allowing the reflex to happen. I took the approach of "the only way out is through".

When I first removed the swaddle and let my little guy do his thing, I watched the Moro reflex happen about 30 times consecutively! Of course it woke him up each time, and that night was miserable until he was finally so exhausted he was able to ignore it. The next night was better, and it improved each night after that.

He still sometimes does a very muted looking version of it when he is first falling asleep, but doesn't wake himself up anymore. For us, it was just under a week of leaving his hands out of his sleep sack before it wasn't a problem.

korpatch · August 2016

beccamccann said:

We have been sleeping training for about a month now. DD has done so well and has been such a troope. She has made such huge gains. However, she still needs to be swaddled because she hasn't lost her startle reflex yet. The problem is that she is so darn strong she gets out of every thing we have tried (sleep sack, swaddle blankets and even the Anna and Eve swaddle strap!). I'm worried swaddling is becoming a sleep prop and I'm not really sure how to stop it yet. Anyone going through this as well?

When we took the swaddle off at 2 months (per Doctor) he still had his reflex for about a week. For naps, I would sit in there and hold his arms while he fell asleep so he wouldn't startle himself away. Maybe since yours is older, it will go away quicker?

momofmanyinthemitten · August 2016

@beccamccann - we had the same problem, so we put him in the magic Merlin sleepsuit. It didn't take long at all for him to adjust. It's a nice way to transition from a swaddle.

ladylolly89 · August 2016

beccamccann said:

We have been sleeping training for about a month now. DD has done so well and has been such a troope. She has made such huge gains. However, she still needs to be swaddled because she hasn't lost her startle reflex yet. The problem is that she is so darn strong she gets out of every thing we have tried (sleep sack, swaddle blankets and even the Anna and Eve swaddle strap!). I'm worried swaddling is becoming a sleep prop and I'm not really sure how to stop it yet. Anyone going through this as well?

We transitioned out of the swaddle by leaving one arm out, then both, then swaddling loosely. He still had his startle reflex until about a month ago, but it wasn't a problem.

ivyvines6 · August 2016

ladylolly89 said:

beccamccann said:

We have been sleeping training for about a month now. DD has done so well and has been such a troope. She has made such huge gains. However, she still needs to be swaddled because she hasn't lost her startle reflex yet. The problem is that she is so darn strong she gets out of every thing we have tried (sleep sack, swaddle blankets and even the Anna and Eve swaddle strap!). I'm worried swaddling is becoming a sleep prop and I'm not really sure how to stop it yet. Anyone going through this as well?

We transitioned out of the swaddle by leaving one arm out, then both, then swaddling loosely. He still had his startle reflex until about a month ago, but it wasn't a problem.

That's what we did too. Worked really well!

bean_2016 · August 2016

Thanks everyone for the advice. I know I have to just bite the bullet and do it.

WBORDERS · August 2016

We're transitioning out of the swaddle right now through the one arm out at a time method. It's not going too well. He wakes up a lot and then wants to eat. We're on day 6 of this. I know it can't last forever so I'm just trying to power through. Hoping it doesn't last too much longer though!

g&tlewis · August 2016

We're doing the one arm out method, too, and he has done great so far. Last night he fussed until I took his other arm out, and he slept fine. He did wake up a 4 am, but I'm pretty sure we're in the 4 month sleep regression. He's been waking up in the middle of the night even if he still has one are swaddled.

bean_2016 · August 2016

@Missingchampagne did you unswaddle during naps first or at night? Our little one is kind of an "all or nothing" personality and I don't think unswaddling one arm at a time will work.

Missingchampagne · August 2016

beccamccann said:

@Missingchampagne did you unswaddle during naps first or at night? Our little one is kind of an "all or nothing" personality and I don't think unswaddling one arm at a time will work.

At night. Plan to spend a lot of time feeling bad for a very jumpy baby, it's amazing how many times back-to-back they can startle themselves awake. I just kept giving him his pacifier, lowering his arms again if he had them by his face, and playing the waiting game.

DrillSergeantCat · August 2016

I'm lurking from Feb16. My LO will be 6 months on Monday and I started sleep training him last week. He's doing great. He's actually to the point now that he falls asleep during song time. However, he's still waking up 3 times a night. How do I fix that???

Missingchampagne · August 2016

DrillSergeantCat said:

I'm lurking from Feb16. My LO will be 6 months on Monday and I started sleep training him last week. He's doing great. He's actually to the point now that he falls asleep during song time. However, he's still waking up 3 times a night. How do I fix that???

Every baby is different and some take longer than others. I can only speak to what worked to stop my LO's 4am wake ups. I weaned him down to a 2 oz bottle and some rocking, kept doing that for about a week, then got to the point where I would only give him a quick snuggle and his pacifier when he would wake. Now he usually wakes up, grabs at his own pacifier, figures out that he can't put it in his own mouth yet, gives up, and passes out again within the span of 2-3 minutes. That's if he wakes up at all.

ladylolly89 · August 2016

DrillSergeantCat said:

I'm lurking from Feb16. My LO will be 6 months on Monday and I started sleep training him last week. He's doing great. He's actually to the point now that he falls asleep during song time. However, he's still waking up 3 times a night. How do I fix that???

Do you feed your LO each time he wakes? Maybe start dropping feedings, or at least giving less each time?
We stopped feeding DS (now 4 months) in the night when we realized he was waking more from habit (once each night right about the same time). He wasn't crying for food, and was mainly just squealing and talking to himself. He got bored of that after a few nights, and has slept through the night nearly every night for a few weeks now. If he does happen to wake, we just put in the pacifier and he is asleep again within minutes.

DrillSergeantCat · August 2016

ladylolly89 said:
Do you feed your LO each time he wakes? Maybe start dropping feedings, or at least giving less each time?
We stopped feeding DS (now 4 months) in the night when we realized he was waking more from habit (once each night right about the same time). He wasn't crying for food, and was mainly just squealing and talking to himself. He got bored of that after a few nights, and has slept through the night nearly every night for a few weeks now. If he does happen to wake, we just put in the pacifier and he is asleep again within minutes.

Last night he had 6 oz and went to sleep around 6 and then woke up at midnight and had another 6 oz. He woke up again at 4 and I think he'd have gone back to sleep if he was dry. He sleeps on his tummy and leaks out of his diaper a lot. He had 6 oz then too.

runningwild · August 2016

DrillSergeantCat said:

ladylolly89 said:
Do you feed your LO each time he wakes? Maybe start dropping feedings, or at least giving less each time?
We stopped feeding DS (now 4 months) in the night when we realized he was waking more from habit (once each night right about the same time). He wasn't crying for food, and was mainly just squealing and talking to himself. He got bored of that after a few nights, and has slept through the night nearly every night for a few weeks now. If he does happen to wake, we just put in the pacifier and he is asleep again within minutes.

Last night he had 6 oz and went to sleep around 6 and then woke up at midnight and had another 6 oz. He woke up again at 4 and I think he'd have gone back to sleep if he was dry. He sleeps on his tummy and leaks out of his diaper a lot. He had 6 oz then too.

That doesn't sound too bad to me. DD is going to bed at 7:30/8 waking at 1am to eat and 5/6am to eat again (4-5 oz. each time).

As pp suggested, you could try feeding less each time. Maybe that would help keep his diaper from leaking too.

redselig · October 2016

Now that our LO's are six months or approaching, anybody else planning on sleep training? I get anxious that if I don't something now, it just gets worse...

g&tlewis · October 2016

@redselig I swore I would never sleep train, but LO got me up 18 times Sunday night so I was desperate. We've done it this week, and it has actually worked so far. It was REALLY rough though. First night, he (and I) cried for 90 minutes then slept all night. Second night, cried for 35 then slept all night. Last night, he cried for about 2 minutes, fussed for about 10 minutes at 2:00 then slept the rest of the night.

redselig · October 2016

@g&tlewis I''m sure it must have been hard! Did you do the gradual controlled crying? I'm on day 3 of pick up/put down and I'm exhausted. Day 1 I PU/PD 21 times, day 2 25 and day 3 20 times. Last night he only woke up twice so that's progress.

g&tlewis · October 2016

@redselig I tried gradual at first until I realized it was making the crying last longer. He would be calming down a little until I went in then the crying/screaming started back up again. I eventually had to just let him get it out. I didn't try PU/PD first, because he wants me to pick him up. He starts crying as soon as I put him down so I didn't think that would really work for us.

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