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September 2015 Moms
LoveLee85
member
Non-CIO sleep training methods?
LoveLee85
member
Has anyone been successful with non-CIO sleep methods? I guess by successful I mean:
Baby sleeping independently through the night?
how long does it take to put LO down for naps and bedtime?
I'm trying to look up non-CIO methods so we can start the beginning of October. LO will be 13 months. September is so busy and crazy away weekends, and I want to be consistent so we shall wait until October.
Baby sleeping independently through the night?
how long does it take to put LO down for naps and bedtime?
I'm trying to look up non-CIO methods so we can start the beginning of October. LO will be 13 months. September is so busy and crazy away weekends, and I want to be consistent so we shall wait until October.
Re: Non-CIO sleep training methods?
We have successfully put our baby to bed without using cio and she has been sleeping 10-12 hours, straight since 7 months. I'll start by saying that each baby is different, but I do believe that it's worth a try.
I think there are 3 keys parts. The first is to make sure they have lots of activities and outdoor time (fresh air works wonders with sleep), second try your best to have a routine (bath, story and milk) and lastly follow their cues (ie we put her to bed when she's had enough of crawling, playing and it appears that she's getting tired, not at a set time each night).
Next we put her in her crib and rub her back and stay with her until she's fallen asleep (usually 5 mins max) I understand that some may think that she's relying on us to fall asleep but, as I said, she's been a solid sleeper for several months now and hasn't woken once during the night.
I personally love watching her fall asleep and am lucky that she sleeps so well at night. I know it can be tricky but good luck!
We follow the same routine for each nap, so he would get used to the pattern, and would know what to expect next. Go into his room, close his blinds/curtains (say goodnight to them), walk over and turn on his white noise machine, we'd then walk out of the room and put him into his sleep sack, back into the room and lay him in his crib with a small little square blankie. When we first started we would hold him and sway back and forth in the room for a few minutes (maybe 3-5ish?) and then lay him down. Of course, he wouldn't fall right to sleep, and sometimes he would fuss...but I would say he never truly cried hard. We were consistent with this pattern day after day, if he fussed we did not go back in (thankfully it never turned into heavy crying). After awhile, he would settle and fall asleep on his own, we were AMAZED. We stuck to this same pattern with every single nap, and eventually got to the point where we wouldn't even have to sway with him. We would just set up his room, go in and lay him down. He still rolls around for awhile, and talks, etc (sometimes 5 min, sometimes 20), just depends on the day. Our doctor told us this is totally fine...it's just him winding down before falling asleep.
When this became successful with naps, we did the same for bedtime. Routine is a little different though. He goes upstairs (bath if it's bath night), gets changed into a fresh diaper, jammies, we read a story, and then to bed. You can tell he knows what to expect with these routines, the other day I went a little off, and he knew his story was supposed to come next. He walked over and was trying to get to the books.
I think the key is consistency. Some days may go smooth, others may be rough. But stick to it. If you go back and forth, I think it gets very confusing for them. I am so happy we started this when we did, because overall he does great now. He is typically in bed for the night at 7, usually asleep by 7:20, and sleeps until 6:15-6:30ish in the morning with no night wakings. Of course there are the "off" days, like yesterday where he was refusing his afternoon nap and rolled around and fussed for what seemed like forever. But, you just roll with it that day, he did eventually fall asleep on his own. He has new teeth ready to pop through, so it's definitely bothering him!
I wish you luck, and hang in there...it will get better! Just be consistent.
Night two and we have had two HUGE successes. Trying not to get too excited. We already had a good routine but I just moved it to his room. Lights on super soft, star projector on the ceiling, soft sleepy music playing. Crib back in his room! We talk to him, tell him he's safe and we are here. Point out the stars and hum to the soft music. After about 10 minutes of 'hang out/reassurance' we walk out. He flips but quickly gets distracted by the soft music and stars on the ceiling. I go back in and tell him he's OK and we love him. We even hang out in there, pick him up and give him little snuggles. Lay on the floor next to his crib. Whole process less than 30 minutes and he hardly cried. It was AMAZING!!!!!!!!!! Fell asleep all on his own.
To all the moms out there like me who are told over and over CIO is the only way, it's not!! There are still a few tears but so much less stressful and night ruining.
Before, anytime I put him in his crib, pack n play, or just a baby gated off area he would instantly freak out...
I'm actually doing laundry and he's happily playing in his crib with his baby music on. And I'm hopping in and out of the room putting laundry away.
You are very welcome, @SunSilverfox
I just want to let you know we are still struggling randomly, because co sleeping they get so dependent on the snuggles, BUT overall it's going pretty smooth. My main issue was the stress it caused me/baby and our household. The screaming and crying gave me so much anxiety to the point of neck and headaches. I would stay up for an hour after he fell asleep just upset that this was how it had to be. I was so scared he would wake up and hate me(dumb but it was an honest fear)!
My my daughter self settles for nap and bed with a lovey and pacifier. But she still wakes 1-2x a night. Do you think it's bc of the pacifier? We're back to night weaning too where my husband is giving a bottle and well slowly decrease the amount of milk in it. Tips?