Advice on getting baby to sleep in crib?

Question

I have put her in the crib before but she will wake up every 2 hours. If she sleeps with me she sleeps 12 hours, but I can't rest good. She is 5 months. How long does it take for her to get used to sleeping alone?

Answer 1

My son was breastfed and up until about 4 months, he considered me his sandman. Just from personal experience I can say that letting her "cry it out" is the best way. It was hard for me to do, but it took less than a week and my son was sleeping through the night on his own. The longer you wait to fix the problem, the harder it will get. My tips are to establish a bedtime routine. A baby that is 5 months doesn't need night time feeding so I suggest....
1. Feed her
2. Bathe her
3. Read her a story
4. Kiss her, hug her, put her straight to bed.
Try and keep the lights and sound low at this time, so she gets the idea that it's quiet time. You can check on her as much as you want, but try not to pick her up during "sleep time"

Some parents don't agree with this method. It doesn't work for everyone, but it DEFINATELY worked for me.

Answer 2

It can take a week to months. You'll get there with some sleep training. If you can't rest good you really have to stop sleeping with her...she'll expect it all the time. I too made this mistake. It gets harder and harder to break. I sleep trained my baby using the book below...it took perseverance and patience and sometimes I felt like giving up. But, we are there now ... it took me about three weeks. But, I didn't have to let him cry it out, thank goodness...

The No-Cry Sleep Solution: Gentle Ways to Help Your Baby Sleep Through the Night by Elizabeth Pantley and William Sears
Is my personal fav.

This is the other extreme...
Solve Your Child's Sleep Problems: New, Revised, and Expanded Edition (Paperback)
by Richard Ferber
Good Luck!

Answer 3

You have started a bad habit here. You have to give her longer in the crib. Let her cry for a bit, and try controlled crying. At 5 months she should be sleeping in her own room in her own bed. Otherwise you are in for a life time of no sleep.
I know it's hard, when they are upset all you want to do it hold them. And the easiest thing to do is let her sleep with you because you can actually get some sleep yourself. But, you have to nip this in the bud now.

Answer 4

She should already be doing the crib thing. My suggestion is to feed her right before bed. Also create what can be termed "white noise" in the baby room. A small fan directed away from the baby, a small radio playing Enya on low volume. Those 2 items plus a nice little humidifier should create an optimal enviroment for her to sleep in.

http://www.babyworld.co.uk/wb2/default.aspx?action=91&read=22067&fid=40&thrd=false#246438

a great site!

Answer 5

Well you should rock her and make her sleep in her own crib she needs to get used to it by an early age or she Will always have to sleep with you because she wont be as comfortable so just sing to her rock her and stuff like that.

Answer 6

Oh, you've waited a while to do this. With my second child I started at a couple weeks. She cried at first, but soon got used to it. As long as she was not hungry, wet or hurting (sick) I knew she would be alright. She cried at first a while, but soon got used to it. After a while I would just put her in the crib and she would go to sleep without crying. You will just have to ignore the crying. If she cries too long check her for a wet or dirty diaper. She will get used to it. Hang in there you can do it. If you wait too much longer you will have a toddler in bed with you. Which is up to you and what ever you can handle. Good luck!

Answer 7

My DS co-slept with us until he was about fifteen months.

Maybe change your bedtime routine or give her a bath with some calming lavender?

You might also try staying with her until she falls asleep. That is how we got DS in his own bed.

For three or four nights, I stayed with him comforting him with my touch and voice. I didn't pick him up unless he really started crying.

Then for another three or four nights, I soothed him with just my voice from the door (If you have a big room, you might do half way to the door) - again, not picking him up or touching him unless he was really crying - not just fussing.

After that, I stood on the other side of the closed door and soothed him from there.

After just three nights of that, I could complete our bedtime routine, sing him two songs and tell him "Go to sleep. Mommy will be back to check on you in a few minutes." No crying, fussing or anything.

Not to say there haven't been 'bumps' along the way, but for the most part, DS is a great sleeper.

Answer 8

Our boy was ready at 3 months. We would put him in and if he cried for more than 10 min then we'd go in and not take him out but soothe him. Then repeat. Eventually we'd have to pull him out again and feed him. After a while though he got used to it and would sleep on his own and threw the night.
What ruins this process is picking them up ever time they cry or not letting them cry themselves to sleep. We would leave our son for 20 min when he was 6 months. He would eventually fall asleep. Some parents can't stand it and rush in but in fact that is not going to help them. Try and leave your beloved alone for longer and longer periods of time. But of course you know best and will be able to tell when you need to intervene and when not to.

Answer 9

If you want to put your baby to sleep in 20 seconds you must get the "Instant Baby Sleep" MP3 sound track. Here is their official web-site: http://www.instantbabysleep.net

The sound track gently produces energy over the full human hearing spectrum with an embedded pulse that gently eases the brain to the Alpha state well known for drowsiness and sleep induction.

Answer 10

Try to give her something to hold on so she could have some sense of security. Usually a doll or even a piece of plain cloth would do the trick. Try to make her assiociate the object with rest and that will accompany her well at night.