How have you progressed in this Co-sleeping to Crib period? Some mothers find themselves struggling with baby sleeping through the night. There little one wakes often and momma is TIRED!
If you find yourself in this situation, there are several elements that may be affecting your little ones slumber. Today we will address a few common issues regarding your baby’s sleeping comfort and how to remedy them.
this post may contain affiliate links
Cozy the Crib
Is the crib in a adequate place? Often, crib placement may be why your baby is not sleeping well. Oddly shoved in a corner or placed in a room surrounded by too much “stuff” may be the culprit. Look around the room and search for ways to make the room appear open.
You want the room spacious and organized. If not already, move the crib to a wall furthest or further from the door. Baby may be waking from outside noises. With the crib for from the door and a sound machine placed in a position near the door to drown out sounds, baby can rest comfortably.
Their Sniffer
Lets look at the weather. If its cold out and the heat is on, the house tends to be a bit dry. Your baby may be sleeping restlessly due to the dry air which may irritate their sinuses. Consider investing in a humidifier to moisten the air so baby can breathe. We surprised our boys with an R2D2 Humidifier and they love it to this day. It keeps them healthy and matches their bedroom.
This one adjustment can make a huge impact considering your baby’s comfort. Some humidifiers also have essential oil diffusers you can use to infuse a tough of lavender to promote good rest.
Rumbly Tummy
If your baby is waking often, they may be hungry. Asses their feeding schedule and determine if you need to set your alarm to provide a sleep feeding. A sleep feeding is when you feed your baby while they are still half asleep. Don’t worry about burping them after. Feed them and leave.
When babies sleep feed, they are relaxed and less likely to swallow air. If you feel the need to help let some belly bubbles out, lie baby on their side and give their back a pat.
Check the Temp
Is the room too cold or warm? Having a thermostat of some kind may be helpful when solving your babies sleep problems. Most baby monitors have a thermostat built in. Check it often to see if the temperature shifts as the night unfolds. If the room is too cold, add a space heater to the room in order to keep it nice and warm.
Remember, your not in bed with them. They miss that body heat. Therefore, when it gets cold, they don’t have you to snuggle up to. Keeping the room warm will ensure they are toasty and cozy.
Confidence
Confidence is key. Babies are hyper sensitive. When you are unsettled and nervous, your baby picks up on that. If you are calm and confident, so is your baby. As your baby settles into their own crib, they will only accept it when you do too. If they sense your uncertain, then its only natural they will reject the idea too.
Build confidence in your baby by emanating that same confidence. This crib IS a safe place. This decision IS a good one. Your baby IS going to be OK. These thoughts should be running reels in your head when introducing your baby to crib.
Taking the time and care to consider these key elements in transitioning from co-sleeping to the crib, your little one should grasp the concept quickly. Good luck momma and sweet dreams.
LET THE ADVENTURES BEGIN!
P.S. Did you find this mini course resourceful in your co-sleeping to crib change? What elements did you find most useful and what tactics didn’t quite work out? I want to hear your stories! Hit reply and tell me your thoughts.
11 Comments
Thanks for sharing this! I’m planning on using it with my 8 and a half month old. But here is my question since you have 2 boys too. I also have a toddler who is 2 years old and is a horrible sleeper. I will be moving the baby next door to him. Is the cry it out method just going to mess up my toddler too? Currently I am sleeping in the basement so as to not wake the toddler up when he cries. And I’m co-workers sleeping. But I need to sleep with my husband again. Are there any other ways we can sleep train him or just do it. I’m really not looking forward to this uugh.
Thanks
Petra
Hi there Petra! I completely understand your concerns. I will say you’re at an advantage for the fact they are in separate rooms. My two boys share a room and that was a battle in itself. Since the eldest is a light sleeper, I would recommend a sound machine, such as a white noise machine or one that makes a rain sound. We used this method for our kids. The rain setting seemed to work best. The consistency of the noise machine will definitely help to drown out the possible noise from brother. This also works vise versa. We had an issue with our eldest keeping up the younger brother. Therefore, the sound machine came into play when he wanted to shuffle around and make noise. Another possible method would be to space out there sleep schedules. By putting the younger one down first until they are asleep may help to settle your eldest. I would say by 30 minutes or so. You could read to your eldest while the little one is settling in. It takes time Momma and I understand the struggle. I wish you the best of luck and look forward to hearing how it goes!
Thank you for sharing this. We used it tonight with our 7 m.o and it seems to be working. She did fall asleep. I have two questions for the next steps if I May, do you follow the same steps when she wakes up in the middle of the night ? We used a Lulaby app on an old phone do we need to keep that going all night to help her fall back into sleep when she wakes up ?
I’m happy to hear it helped you and your LO. Yes, I would recommend keeping a noise machine on all night. Many people use white noise in adulthood to sleep too! I too still use our sound sleeper machine for our kids and they are much older today. Good luck on the road ahead momma!
I’m having trouble with my nine month old Luna sleeping in general at night I work over nights she has a steady schedule yet she Cry’s and keeps daddy up while I’m working. We want to transition her to a crib but at the same time is it OK to sleep train and transition at the same time?
Hi there Taylor. While every child is different, I absolutely recommend sleep training while transitioning. The road may be a big more difficult ahead. However, the consistency of schedule will help in the long run with adjusting to a new nighttime routine. Good luck!
Hi there! I am gearing up to sleep train my 6.5 month old in a couple of weeks. One habit that has developed is my child’s need for a sleep prop to get to sleep. He struggles to get to sleep unless I’m laying in bed and nursing him to sleep. He wakes up every couple of hours for a “comfort suck”and usually only nurses once in the middle of the night due to hunger. any advice of how to ditch the sleep prop while introducing the new sleeping arrangements?
I’ve been there too. For children that have come accustomed to comforts of nursing and sleeping, transitioning may be a challenge. Keep your head up, all will smooth out over time. For children used to sleeping with you by their side, I recommend introducing a lovey for comfort. This simple substitute is a great way for little ones to feel comfortable and safe.
interested to hear how it went Gillian…i’m in the exact same boat and about to start soon as well! Did you try?
How can I attempt this method and having dad involved? Is it just going to be confusing for our baby if we take turns coming in after a few minutes or does just one of us have to do this transition?
Very good question. However, the answer lies with you. If you feel that Dad can be involved and stay firm to the routine then definitely include him. Your little one recognizes you both for soothing comfort, therefore the swap should not affet baby’s reactions unless one gives in more than the other parent. The key is consistency.