Sleeping - Danbury,CT

You may want to put her in a crib and attach a mobile. If she is interested in the mobile, she will lay on her back. i definitely recommend one with a remote control and long playing music so that you do not need to go back in to her room over and over. Good luch

Hey M.,
My son made a lot of grunting noises at that age also when he was in his co-sleeper, so she may be rolling on her tummy b/c she is congested. Was she a c-section delivery, b/c my son was and c-section babies have more mucus b/c the vaginal delivery clears that mucus out more. I would suggest putting a towel underneath the mattress to raise her head a little, that worked for me for a little while. I also found he was much more comfortable when I moved him into his crib around 6-7 weeks old so that may be the issue also. I wouldn't worry though (even though I know you will ) most mom's have told me their child would only sleep on their tummies too and they are fine. Good luck, let us know what happens.

Let her sleep on her belly if she is happy. I am sure she can lift her head and turn it . I can't imagine
being put in an uncomfortable position and have to stay
that way! Instead of a bassinet, put her on her belly
in her crib where she can move around. Of course, make
sure the mattress is a good one. Good luck.

Hi M., why do you need her to sleep on her back? If she sleeps fine on her stomach, then let her sleep. That way you get your sleep too mom. I have had three children, I am also alittle leary of them sleeping on their back at that age anyway for fear of them throwing up and drowning while I sleep. I always put my babies on their stomachs. That could be why she is grunting when you lay her on her back, shes uncomfortable. Hope this helps. Sleep well. D.
You might try wrapping her tightly in a receiving blanket also. That may make her feel like you are still holding her.

It's ok for her to sleep on her belly. just make sure she is well swattled.

My son wouldnt sleep on his back. From 6wk old he slept on his belly. Watch your baby when shes sleeping on belly. If she can turn her head from one side to the other and is not much of a spiter upper, she should be ok. If the baby is still in your bedroom next to your bed its not so nerve racking. You can also try swadling her. Good Luck

I went through the same thing with my son. Our Pediatrician made a big deal about him sleeping only on his back but, at 6 weeks he was getting 10 hours straight on his belly and literally 10 minutes on his back. After going back-and-forth another Mommy friend suggested I let him sleep on his belly and get an Anglecare Monitor which monitored his breathing. Well, that worked and he did just fine. It's tough because you wouldn't want to do anything that will harm your child but, you also know how important sleep is to them at this age. Good luck.

My son did best with swaddling and with his swing. He was colicky and I am now sure why but the minute I even started to put him down in his crib he'd wake and cry. The swaddling helped in the crib, the swing was just a LIFESAVER for us!

Try laying her on her side (preferrably left side), roll 2 towels and place one on either side of her so that she can feel them on both sides of her body. At this age, some babies like to feel like they are in a tight space, like being in the womb or in your arms.

good luck

Hi M.
My daughter was the same way! I had about 2 or 3 of those position pillow supports for her that I got for my shower. I thought I had it all planned, but as soon as I put her in them, she just screamed and I could tell she didn't want to lay flat. Believe it or not, but she would only sleep in her carrier/car seat. So I had the Kiddopotamous car seat support pillow in the carrier and she was so cozy and comfy in there she had no further issues with sleeping.
It wasn't my ideal place for her to sleep, but who cared as long as she slept well.....(which meant Mommy and Daddy did too).
Truthfully, they just do not like to lay flat when they are so young. And I know the "no tummy sleeping" rules can scare the heck out of you.
The only other place she ever slept so peacefully was on her tummy on my chest. (It was my most deep and comforting sleep ever...it was the greatest feeling in the world to have her so close to me).
Good luck and just give her time!
P.

We went through this too... we found that using the Snuggle Nest and letting him sleep in his Boppy really helped. For our peanut he didn't like the feeling of being let go and not snuggled. We would put him down in his Boppy and then slide it out when we knew he was "out". This lasted for about two months (until he could roll over) then it wasn't safe and he really likes sleeping on his belly!

Good luck-

They have positioners that have a small incline that she may like and it will hold her on her back. You may also want to try some music or sound machine that makes white nosie. These will help calm your baby. Cloudb makes some great animals that make the sounds for baby

My son slept well in a semi-upright position...either in the swing or bouncy seat at first, and then I was able to transition him to the bassinet with a couple towels under one end of the mattress so there was a slight incline. I also put a couple rolled up blankets on either side of him so he felt snuggled, but your little guy is probably still small enough to swaddle.

my daughter did the same thing. i bought a wedge that i used to put her in. here's what it looks like. http://www.albeebaby.com/summer-infant-resting-up-sleep-p.... mine didn't have the bottom part, just the side parts. but i was able to adjust it to put her on her side, or on her back. i bought it at babies r us. she may just not like sleeping on her back. maybe the back wedge pad will help that too. and what a special person you must be to be a special ed teacher for autistic children. a truly special job... other than being a mom of course... good luck!

The rules have changed so many times over the years, if she won't sleep on her back, then I wouldn't push the issue. Every baby is different- the reason for concern is that a baby might suffocate in their bedding while on their belly. My mother told me that when I was a baby, doctor's suggestion was to lay a baby on their belly for fear that they would aspirate and drown on spit-up while on their back. Doctor's are really overpaid, educated guessers. Just be sure that there is no bedding to suffocate her and lay her how she is comfortable. My son is 10 months now and the fear of SIDS is practically gone- I am sure you will probably have many restless nights up just watching her breathe, I've been there! My son wanted to lay on his stomach from time to time and the fear of the doctor's warnings played in the back of my mind, but he was more comfortable that way. It's really your call if you want to keep trying, but it seems that she is more comfortable that way. Something about the body heat on their belly actually
can reduce the symptoms of colic (I don't know if you've had the pleasures of dealing with that, I did!).
My suggestion is to make her comfortable, take extra care that there is nothing for her to suffocate in, and let her sleep!
If you are really concerned over fear of SIDS- do some resaerch on the net- there is a special bed cover that will trigger an alarm if there is suddenly a lack of movement in the crib. (like stopped breathing) I can't promise it's cheap or even widely available, but it's out there. I know as much as anyone that peace of mind is priceless, so take a look!

Buy yourself a BabeSafe mattress cover so your baby can tummy-sleep all the time. They have no SIDS ("cot death") in New Zealand because babies there sleep on wrapped mattresses. The doctor who created the product realized that SIDS is relatively new - only common since mattresses have been treated for flame retardance with toxic chemicals like antimony, phosphorous, and ARSENIC. When mattresses get damp (with drool, spit up, or whatever else babies do!) the toxic chemicals in the mattress break down and get released in gaseous form. Since they are heavier than the air, they tend to float just above the surface of the mattress where babies breathe them - and are poisoned by them, thus SIDS. That's why SIDS is infrequent in first born children - because the mattresses they sleep on are generally new, with no chemical breakdown at the start. No baby sleeping on a properly wrapped mattress has EVER died from SIDS, regardless of whether they sleep on their back, side or tummy. All three of mine slept on tummy since birth - but only on a wrapped mattress! Just google "BabeSafe" and you'll get a list of USA distributors - mostly midwives. They're relatively cheap and give great peace of mind. Just make sure that you don't use a regular mattress pad or cover, either - they're treated with the same flame retardant chemicals. I just used the mattress cover and an organic cotton bath towel as a mattress pad.

It's good to see I'm not the only one, so I'll give my bit with more confidence! In the hospital the nurse put all the babies on their sides and flipped them routinely. I was worried b/c our daughter had the same problem and only slept on her stomach, though I didn't think to try the side. I used breathable bumpers and sheets, very important to get the sheets I think b/c sometimes I would find her with her face almost directly face down and I'd have to shift her head. Our ped. reassured us that this was fine too and that the research is never accurate. I also read this online too that they can never be sure b/c the data is collected from people relaying their practices and with babies that sleep at home and are not monitored for data in a lab. Last thing is that now that our daughter is rolling a little and maybe losing that newborn need to be curled up, she will sometimes roll over and fall asleep again on her back or side. Once your baby gets a little older, you may find this happening too, so it may just be temporary. Good luck and thanks for asking the question. It helped me too!

I agree with Kim P and Patty K. Both of my girls would not sleep on their backs even swaddled. So, I put them on their bellies. They were able to move their heads very well pretty early on, so I didn't worry too much. And, my doctor told me to be sure that I used a mattress that was new (not old and made of toxic materials). This is one of the many suspects in SIDS. I also don't smoke (another suspect). They slept very well on their bellies. Best of luck.

I let my baby sleep on his tummy. I really monitored him, even when I slept he was right next to me in the co sleeper, the slighted grunt on his belly and my eyes opened to double check. My Doctor said tummy sleeping was fine. That it's all a bunch of hogwash, considering that so many years ago belly sleeping was the way to go.. now it's like someone got a wild hair and decided to change it. He assured give it a few more years and they'll change it again. He lost 2 of 8 babies to SIDS in his life and he said that neither of them were sleeping on their bellies... moral.. mine slept on his belly because it was best for him (and me) we both got our sleep.

Can you little one move his head at all? As soon as they can do that it's especially okay to do the belly thing. Good Luck

She's young enough you can lay her on her side wi pillows around her to keep her from changing position in her sleep. That's what I did w my son. He sleeps best on his side! I guess that was him in utero.

And do a lot of tummy time--before u know it she will learn to roll + u will find her asleep on tummy in mornings!

Both of my baby boys always slept on their tummies. They were most comfortable sleeping that way, so we always put them on their tummies. They went down on their tummies, and they woke up on their tummies. Never on their backs, because we were told that if you put them on their backs, they could choke on their vomit if they were to throw up in their sleep. We did not use many blankets though.... dressed them in footie sleepers and then put a light blanket over them. They slept great that way. My younger son slept through the night from ten weeks old on. My older son..... well, he's always been a night owl and would almost always end up in our bed with us so that we could all get some sleep! :D We enjoyed having him join us though. Good luck!
D. N.