GinaF:
We are a family of three, and for the most part, have had our 9 mo old in bed with us for her whole life. We’re hoping to move her to her crib (and working on it), but I’d love to have advice from other Catholic mamas and daddies who have been in this position before! I am not a fan of the “cry-it-out” idea (it totally goes against the grain of being a mother), but I’m getting incredibly worn out from our baby waking several times a night. By several, I mean at least 3-4 times.
Thanks!
This is a tough one because all children are different. We went through the same thing with our youngest two, especially the youngest. At about your baby’s age I started the transition by only giving them water at night. By this time most babys don’t need the nutrition and are using nursing/bottles as a way to soothe them back to sleep. This is also a good time to take away a pacifier. By the time a child has teeth, they become a choking hazard.
I started by giving them a sippy cup of water for night time. (I phased this out later, just before potty training) If they wake up to water they are less likely to have the incentive to wake and are more likely to learn ways of self soothing.
I made sure to put them in their crib for every nap time. (do you already do this?) This gets them used to being able to sleep alone in their room.
The first thing you need to do is cut out the night time breastfeeding (assuming your child has no developmental delays)
Once your child is accustomed to napping regularly in their bedroom start a great bedtime routine
Kids thrive on repetitious routine. Do you already have one? We usually gave our babies a relaxing bath, listented to soft music and read 1 or 2 bedtime stories, then turned out the lights and I started by standing next to the crib and helping them fall asleep in their crib, then I would slowly, over several days or weeks get further and further from the crib.
A sudden change in routine will signal to baby that something is “wrong”. This is especially true if the baby senses anxiety in you.
The best thing is to change the nap/bedtime routine,to make it conducive to what you want to achieve. dont’ get upset if baby doesn’t want to change. Children find alot of comfort in routine and it will take a little persevernce on your part to change the routine of what your child thinks is normal.
I am not a big fan of “crying it out” either and only had to resort to this with my son after we tried everything else. It only lasted a couple of nights. Babies learn quickly what works to their advantage and if they see that every time they cry you come and pick them up out of the crib, they cry even harder. This is especially hard to do with the first baby, but you have to be there and let them know you are there yet react as if sleeping alone in the crib is the most natural thing in the world. Once the child gets used to teh fact that mom and dad are still there but aren’t going to pick them up because they are supposed to sleep in the crib, the quicker it will end… otherwise you will have a much more difficult struggle with it. You can do it step by step by making an easy transition or do it cold turkey.
You seem like a wonderful momma Gina
