4 Month Old Still Wants to Be Swaddled, but She Gets up 4-7 Times Each Night.

Put her to bed and let her cry it out. As long as she's fed, dry and comfortable otherwise, you are at the point where she just needs to learn to go to sleep and stay asleep on her own. As long as you keep jumping up and going in and reswaddling her, etc., she isn't going to learn that. The first few nights will be tough, but she'll be fine.

It is really hard at that age. try some baby rice cereal if you have not done so already. may be she is hungry. try one of the swaddle blankets that have the velcro on the side. they sell them at target.they are made by boppy and are about $10 each. all babies are going to be ready for diffrent things at different times. go by you instincts but also go by what she needs too. I know it is very fustrating at times. hang in there.
D.

I also thought about the swaddling with the arms out. It might be a happy medium. What about letting her sleep in her car seat. I didn't have to do that, but I know LOTS of people who let their kids sleep in their car seats IN the crib. have yu tried white noise in her room? That might help too.

Maybe you could try a sleep sack. It isn't as restricting as swaddling, but maybe she would still feel secure. Does she take her naps in her crib? That is how I transitioned my son over. He took his naps only in the crib for a few weeks before he slept there at night. Also, we use a sleep sheep which makes noises like the ocean or rain and he loves it and puts himself to sleep. Good Luck.

Hi. I actually had the same issued with my now 22 month old daughter (who by the way didnt sleep through the night until she was 9 months). I swaddled her for a LONG time. When she started "busting" out of it, I bought bigger blankets to do it. But eventually, what I started to do was just swaddle her body and allow her arms out. She still liked the swaddle feeling on her body but her little arms could move. She was up every 1-2 hours (I slpet on her floor becuase I couldnt stand getting in and out of bed so often) when she slept in her crib. She actually slept in a cradle swing that moved side to side until 9 months (we tried the swing at my sisters house and she loved it and we bought one that went side to side immediately at around 6 months)! Thats the ONLY way we could get sleep.I say do whatever works for you. Everyone told us that she would get used to the swing and not want to sleep in her crib. That was NOT the case! She transitioned fine in the crib. I think the only thing she WAS used to was the sound of the swing going back and forth, it made clicking sound so for the first week or so I ran the swing while she slept in the crib and it was fine! She loves her crib. You need to do what works for you. You and the baby both need to sleep. Best of luck!
K.

I know this in unconventional and not reccomended by doctors, but I sleep my kids on their tummys. What an amazing difference from sleeping them on their backs! They woke up very quickly when placed to sleep on their backs, but on their tummys curl up sooo comfortably and sleep wonderful! I also have the Angelcare Movement Sensor monitor so this gives me the added security as to not worry about them stopping breathing. Good luck!

I feel for you! It is so hard when your baby won't sleep. I think that is the biggest stressor! When my son was having difficulty, I read Healthy Sleep Habits, Happy Child by Marc Weissbluth. I hope you get some sleep soon! Good luck!

Do you have that special swaddling blanket? I got one w/ my youngest & it had velcro so it stayed swaddled but was in a lightweight tee material so not heavy.

I'd try that.

Hello L.. My son did the same thing at 4mos. So, I decided to tackle sleep training at the same time I removed the swaddle. I recommend the book...Healthy sleep habits, happy child. The book is fantastic and several of my friends have use the book with great success. Also remember that it usually takes three days for the baby to get through any transition. So, as she is getting used to being with out the swaddle she will also be learning to put herself to sleep. It took my son two days to work through this process. But, it was the best thing for him. He has been a great sleeper ever since. Email me if you have any questions. good luck!

Mine did this for a while too. I would put him in his sleeper but not put his arms through the sleeves and then swaddle him ("let me see you get out of this one, kid.") It worked until he was just done with the whole swaddeling thing. I would start trying to wean her off the swaddle during naps, not at night. You need your sleep at night!

Hi L.,

My son went through a similar stage at age 5 months. He sleep great through the night from the time he was 4 weeks until about 4-5 months. We kept him swaddled until he was 5 months old and he went through a period of about a month where he couldnt' sleep with it and coudln't sleep without it. It does pass, but it is a difficult transition. You can try the no-cry sleep solution by Elizabeth pantley. You can also try some of the swaddle me sacs - as they may keep the babies arms in better. They sell them at babies r us.

We ended up bringing out son into our bed. He would go down in his crib, then at 1 am when he woke for the first time he would come into our bed and nurse. and slept with us the rest of the night. It helped me to get more sleep and helped him to sleep better.

J.

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Hi, why not try moving away from the swaddle gradually so that she gets used to it. Start by leaving one arm out, and one arm in. Then after a few days or a week (or longer), leave both arms out, but still swaddle her body. Then after a week or two more, once she's comfortable, then just tuck the blanket around her instead of swaddling. Take each step as slow as your daughter needs you to.

Try letting her play in her bed to help make her tired ( with a musical mobile or one of those musical baby televisions and mabye one rattle) She is probably confused and sounds like she's reaching out for a new routine. If you keep doing what your doing now you will have to wait a long time before she will fall asleep in her bed. You need to make her bedtime fun, but in a peaceful way. Try lavander baby wash too (it is relaxing). My babies slept in those nightgowns that tie at the feet and have hand covers, buy a few of those to immitate the swaddling!

Maybe she is feeling a little cold during the night. If she has a wet diaper that may be making her feel colder. Try putting her in a sleep sack. Babies R' Us has them.

I agree with everyone else on starting to wean her on the swaddling by leaving one arm out, then both etc...
My daughter went through this when she was 4 months old and it is difficult at first (she always had her hands in her face and would wake herself) but it will get better as she learns to control her body. You may have a few rough nights but it'll smooth out before you know it. Best of luck and hang in there!!
R.

I read all the other responses and am glad that they actually worked for them, but I am a grandmother now and the whole swaddling things sounds like this is taking these children longer to adjust to sleeping on their own. That was something that was never recommended back when my children were young. When my son was around the same age he slept the whole night up until he hit the 4- 4 1/2 y/o and then did the same thing as far as waking up several times a night and wanting to be held and when he would go back to sleep I would put him in his crib and leave the room. Then an hour or two later he would wake up again. I took him to the doctor's thinking there was something wrong with him. According to the doctor, after a checkup, my son was waking up to get the attention. The more he would cry I would get up check his diaper and cuddle him and he would go to sleep. He advised me the only way to stop that is to allow him to cry, even if he cried all night. He told me that if he would cry, to get up and check on him to make sure he was not in any harm but not to let him see you. Then let him cry. He told me that it may take a week or so until he realized that you were not coming in to cuddle him at night. I was really upset about that but knew that it was the only thing that I could do. When he would cry I would get up and sneak into his room and look in on him to make sure that he was ok. He never saw me. The first two nights he cried for hours. But then each night the crying didn't last as long. Then in about a week, it was restful sleep all night. It was really hard to do but I knew that it had to be done. You have to be patient. But it worked for me.

Good luck honey. My son is now 31 y/o, married and a daughter with another child on the way. It's worth the sleepless nights!!!!

Let me know if it works for you. Your daughter will not hate you for it!!! And you will get your much needed sleep.

J. H.

I don't believe a 4 1/2 old baby is just trying to manipulte for attention. I believe there is a legitamate need. To allow a baby to cry and not soothe him TEACHES him, when you need something you will not be taken care of. I feel very strongly that this causes MORE insecurity in the child which then triggers an emotional response to cause more unrest.....The baby is crying cause she needds to be cuddled or swaddles. Try weaning her off all of this SLOWLY by reinforcing you understand WHY she needs this. It all worked beautifully and my daughtes are a GIFT of God' s love-----they are 19 and 23 years old and are a delight to my soul.....love K.

I have 4 children, all of which I spoiled for at least the first 4 months. When it got to the point of sleep deprivation for both of us, I read and followed a book called "How to solve your childs sleep problems" (I think that's the name. It's by Dr. Ferber. It's the first edition and he explains all about the sleep process and how you can help your child learn how to sleep on their own. It took a couple weeks, but it worked. Good Luck.

You said that she wakes up as soon as she works her hands out of the swaddle. My kids were NOT into swaddling but from your description, I'm wondering if she is waking because her hands are cold. Have you considered trying some mittens or socks on her hands at night to see if perhaps that is the case? I know when my brother (10 years younger than me) was a baby, he wouldn't sleep for the 6-12 months of his life without having a hat on his head because his head would get cold. Like I said, I'm not an expert or very experienced with swaddling (all three of my children can't stand to be tightly wrapped), but I hope this suggestion is helpful.

Good luck.

My son was the same way. He would not sleep unless he was swaddled and in his swing. ALso, if he would "break free" of his swaddle he would wake up! I found these cool swaddle blankets at Babies R Us that had velcro to keep it closed. They worked GREAT!
Wyatt slept swaddled in his swing until he was too big for it and eventually he learned to sleep lying in his crib. I really think it's a maturity thing. They were comfy and moving all the time in the womb and then they are born and we expect them to sleep on their back, flat in a bed.
Don't worry, continue to swaddle and put her in the swaing to sleep. it will not hurt her and she will eventually sleep in her bed.
Wyatt is not 3 1/2 and sleeping in a toddler bed.

My son loved being swaddled and now at age three loves being cuddled. (He seeks comfort) I had the same problem until I learned to swaddle him with his arms out. That was a temporary solution. I tried letting him cry...this was heart breaking and my child is a crier, can do so for more than 3 hours. I finally found out he loved sleeping on his tummy. He was most comfortable there and slept for hours at a time after I discovered this. Although this is not recommended by most doctors, thank God it worked for me and my baby.