We are having a terrible time trying to get our rainbow to sleep. Anyone have any tips as we are fresh out of ideas and exhausted. Rhys is 7.5 months and sleeps in our room in his Fischer Price rock and sleep bassinet, but he is getting too big to sleep in it much longer. He fights going to sleep and we have to bounce, walk and rock sometimes for hours. Sometimes he is up for long stretches of the night and refuses to go back to sleep. We are trying to transition him to his crib but he will NOT sleep in it. Once I lay him down, his eyes pop open and he starts crying.

We just don't know what to do. He can't sleep in his bassinet much longer as it won't be safe. I'm afraid I've done this to him. When I was pregnant, I constantly was poking him to make him move. The poor thing probably never got to sleep. Then, when he was born, I loved rocking him and holding him. Now he is used to that and requires it to sleep. I'd love to continue rocking him but he is getting too heavy for me. Seriously, anyone have any ideas, experience or can just commiserate?

Hi. I feel ur pain. Our daughter (now 4) barely slept her whole first year; spent the first five months colic screaming as well. My son, who slept in the same bassinet as yours, wasn't a great sleeper either. Then he went to sleep forever after dying of SIDS at 6 mos. my husband and I could never bear to let either of our kids cry. We held and rocked and swaddled and cuddled both of them to sleep. We were exhausted all the time. We ended up just switching off nights once they stopped nursing, so at least one of us could rest. But I know how hard it is to sleep when u can hear Dad and baby struggling. At some point though, u will have to do some sleep training to save ur sanity! Honestly, I don't even think my dsughter sleeps thru the night now and she's 4! Hang in there, and take shifts. I have been there, u will be ok!

Hi Julie,

Thanks for the response and encouragement. I am so terribly sorry for the loss of your beloved son. Honestly, SIDS terrifies me, and part of our problem is that I am always checking on Rhys. I always have one eye open per se and I sleep very, very lightly. My cousin lost a baby to SIDS. Her story also terrifies me. I know way, way too much and it has me looking for danger around every corner. It will be a miracle if my children grow up without a complex.

We have tried sleep training several times. I always cave. My son seems to be as stubborn and strong willed as I am, or more so. He can cry for hours without going to sleep. He gets hysterical almost. He is very hard to settle then once we do pick him up and many times he is soaked with sweat. I just can't do it anymore. Is sleep training supposed to be like that? We've also tried the pick up, put down method with no luck. I've tried controlled crying and setting a timer. Anyway, thanks for the advise and encouragement. We shall keep trying.

Hi ejb,
I have a couple of suggestions for you. Hopefully, some of them can help. Ysmael is my third living child and I used a swing for the first time, only when he was awake though, never for sleeping. I always transferred him to his crib as he was falling asleep. Someone lent me that swing when he was around 4 months ols, and I was so glad I didn't have it earlier, because I could see how addictive it would have become.
Anyway, what I'm saying is that if he got used to the swing, it's going to be a little more difficult for you to sleep-train, not impossible but you'll have to work. harder at it.
I found it's very important for babies to have regular naps if you want them to be good sleepers at night. About 3 hours after my son wakes up in the morning, It's time for his morning nap. Then after the nap, again, 3 hours, and early pm nap. 3 hours later, it's time for a catnap 30-45 min and then bedtime around 2 hours after that. Babies who are overtired tend to be very bad sleepers at night.
I personally think that the pick up-put down technique is idiotic, it just wakes up the baby too much. You can try the crying-it-out technique, although it might be tough if your baby hasn't developed any self-soothing techniques, and if the crib seems so foreign to him. But you could tryit for naps at least, and only say for the 10 minutes the first week, then 15the second, usually you don't need to go further than that. Some experts recommend gradually lowering the swing speed. For example, speed 4 the first week, then speed 3 the second, so that you slowly wean him off the swing.
My first 2 kids never had a pacifier, or a lovey, but Ysmael really liked having a specific blanket, and when I put him down for a nap, and he would start screaming, the blanket would immediately do the trick.
Whatever you decide to do, you need to be consistent with it, it might take a couple of months for anything to work if he's really used to the swing. Babies really love routines, it makes them feel calmer, so make sure you have one and stick to it. Also, oyu need to relax about it, your baby will feel your stress and frustration and react by being cranky and restless. Make the half hour before bedtime all about relaxation and enjoying each other. Explain to your baby what you're going to do. (He will not understand of course but the sound of your voice will soothe and for you, laying out a plan might be helpful.) If you sing a lullabye, always sing the same one, if you read a story ditto.

Good luck!!!

Getting our daughter to sleep was our first really big battle (many to come with our adorable yet headstrong little lady). She had (my own stupidity and lazyness, I guess) gotten used to falling asleep while breastfeeding. When I stopped that at 9 months, so did the sleeping. After weeks of desperate attempts and absurd methods of getting her to sleep, including putting her in the car and driving around the block till she was off, we finally had einough.

We did the sleep training as desribed in the book "Every child can learn to sleep". It is probably a controversial method and our daughter did scream like crazy on the first night, I was close to giving up, but it worked. The second night was already much better, and after another couple of days I could put her down in her cot, give her a kiss, say good night and leave the room. She'd fall asleep on her own withing minutes and without crying most (not all) days. I'd recommend it!

Please don't let your sweet little one cry it out. I know how tempting it is, my son wanted to party all night when he was a baby!!

Have you checked out a book called the No Cry Sleep Solution? I've heard it's very helpful and you also won't have to let him cry himself to sleep, which can be dangerous.

I'm sorry I don't have more suggestions. Hang in there <33

Thanks everyone for the support and suggestions. Some things mentioned we already do and they help. I'm with Maggie though, I hate letting him cry it out. He literally can cry for ever and I can't stand to leave him. Right now he has a nasty cold and he is teething so I wonder if these things are contributing to his poor sleep. I will look into the books mentioned and see if there is something else we could try once he is feeling better.

Thanks again ladies!