78 responses so far ↓

• 1 Tracey // May 26, 2009 at 11:06 am

  My husband and I started co-sleeping with our 3rd daughter right from birth. At the time we really enjoyed it and she slept really well. We moved her into her crib around 8 months but she does not sleep through the night. She eventually ends up back in our bed around 1:00am or so. She is a terrible sleeper but we are too exhausted to try and get her back to bed on her own so in bed with us she goes. Sometimes its okay but now that she is 19 months she is very mobile so a punch in the face or kick to the ribs is not uncommon. So far my husband and I have remained in the same bed…but we are TIRED!!!!

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• 2 Sam Armstrong // May 26, 2009 at 11:07 am

  Hi Dana i previously had trouble with my lil boy waking at 5 am for a feed, well we battled and with your help got him to sleep till 6.30am which was fine but now for the past 3-4 weeks he has gone back to waking at 5am for that bottle he wont settle without the bottle, i havent changed anything prior to bedtime etc and am stuck ??

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• 3 Crystal // May 26, 2009 at 11:08 am

  I cannot seem to get my daughter to sleep in a pack-n-play when we are away from home. So whenever we travel I either need to put her in a car and drive around for an hour so she gets at least a small nap or she skips a nap, which makes for a very long day for both of us. I understand we are in an unfamiliar place so that causes some hesitation for a nap, but what can I do to make sure she is getting her well needed naps when we are away from home on vacations for days at a time?

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• 4 Kim // May 26, 2009 at 11:09 am

  My 10 month old shares a room with his 5 year old brother. How do I let my 5 year old sleep well, while teaching the baby how to sleep on his own?

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• 5 Guadalupe // May 26, 2009 at 11:39 am

  Hello Dana, My baby is 7 months old and I still breastfeed her during the night and awakenings. It seems to be getting a good napping routine, sleeping them twice per day; one brief about an hour after she wakes up and this nap lasts about 1 hour, and a second one longer after lunch and this nap lasts about 2 to 3 hours when is good. At night she is going to sleep between 7.30 and 8 pm after a bath and a brief soothing routing, but she gets to her crib awake and holds her teddy bear and a pillow to sleep by herself. She sleeps good but she keeps waking up randomly, sometimes 2 times per night, sometimes I lose count of it, and she usually goes back go sleep if I pick her up fairly quickly after soothing her to sleep and breastfeeding her for 5 to 10 minutes, but I started to stop picking her up and it can take me more than an hour to sooth her back to sleep during this awakenings and is been horrible and it involves a lot of crying, also she is now very attach to her thumb and I can say she is a thumb sucker officially now. What do you think I am doing wrong? I know I feel guilty for her to suck her thumb even though it might had nothing to do with her sleep habits or it might have something to do with her been breastfed and not wanting the pacifier, I don’t know, I will really appreciate your comments. Thank you.

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• 6 Ed Hnat // May 26, 2009 at 11:42 am

  We got into a bad habit of not setting a routine for Mickolas. He is now 2-1/2 and stays up until 1,2, 3 in the morning. How do we change this pattern back to 8-8:30 and get his sleeping habit back to normal. Once he falls asleep, he sleeps 10-12 hours without waking up.

  Ed

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• 7 Tina // May 26, 2009 at 11:42 am

  hi,
  My son is 3 months. We have a bedtime routine that I have been doing since he was born. I put him in his bed awake. He was doing well sleeping 5-6 hours, eating and then going back to sleep. Some nights he would sleep even longer8-10 hours straight. I thought I had figured his sleep out but for the last week he has been getting up every hour. He drank to full bottles last night but the rest of the time he just wants me to help him back to sleep. At 5 am after being up all night pretty much I let him cry it out and he went to sleep after about 15 minutes. Why is he doing this after doing so well??? help

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• 8 Liz // May 26, 2009 at 11:42 am

  My daughter keeps waking in the night for no apparent reason and comes in to our bedroom. It’s quicker to let fall back to sleep in our bed and then carry her back in to her bed which she then sleeps in until morning. I don’t understand why this is happening. Please help the broken sleep is making us all irritable.

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• 9 Michele // May 26, 2009 at 11:43 am

  My son will be 1 yr this week. I am nursing him in the morning after he wakes, after I get home from work and just before bed. He knows how to fall asleep on his own, but has fallen back into the habit of waking at night and wanting to nurse. And I have given in so that he will go to sleep quickly so I can return to sleep. I am planning to wean him completely this month. What is the best way to do this? I am hoping that once he realizes he wont be nursed at all, the night wakings will stop.

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• 10 haneen // May 26, 2009 at 11:51 am

  hi …. can you garantee that your sleeping sense programm will work with me …. im going crazy my babies sleeping behavior keeps changing …now he doesnt sleep more than one to tow hours at night and naps not more than half an hour ifeel he is always tierd what should i do …

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• 11 amanda demmerly // May 26, 2009 at 11:53 am

  16 month old who just learned to crawl out of crib. Before he learned he could get out of crib he would fall asleep fairly easy in his crib then wake up 2-3 hours later. but then would sleep with us freak out if we put him back in crib. no bottle no paci just us

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• 12 Jenni // May 26, 2009 at 11:53 am

  Hi! I never thought I’d need to ask your advice as our daughter, Willow, was sleeping happily in her own bed, even though she would only go to sleep when we did. However, around 4 weeks ago she started waking in the night screaming like she was terrified and refused to calm down, this happened 3 nights in a row and in the end I took her into our bed so I could get some sleep. Since then she won’t even consider being in her cot come bedtime. We’ve tried leaving her to cry but after 5 minutes of full on screaming I can’t leave her anymore so give in. I really don’t want to leave her to cry until she falls asleep. Can you suggest any other methods? I put her in her cot a couple of times a day to play with her lightshow but I have to be there at all times otherwise she starts screaming for me. Willow is nearly 8 months old. Thank you!

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• 13 Daniela Ciffoni // May 26, 2009 at 12:05 pm

  My baby is 9 month old and goes to sleep by himself fine, for his naps and at night Every night we have the same routine: Bath, Botle, and good night kiss at 8 pm sharp and he goes to sleep ( in his bedroom) untill 5 am . When he wakes up at tha time, he just cry and cry, I have tried every thing let him cries , but it does not work, He just wants to be with me. I am still breastfeeding but only in the morning, I thought he woke up becasue he was hungry, The other day I did not feeding but he just will not let me put him back on his crib. Since I am so tired , I started at 5:00 am to bring him to my bed with us, he will eat and then fall back sleep for another hour. What can I do? Please advise?
  I am about to stop breastfeeding hoping that he will realize that there is no more breast and eventually he will stay in his crib at leat untill 6 am. Please help me.
  Daniela

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• 14 Tanya // May 26, 2009 at 12:27 pm

  Hi Dana,
  Our 16 month old has always had us to help him go to sleep, we would give him a bottle while holding him and rocking him. Then he would wake up several times throughout the night crying. Anyway about a month ago I went with your advise and we started a 1/2 hour bedtime routine and then would put him in his crib to fall asleep on his own. We stayed in with him at first even though he didn’t have much difficulty with it and by night 5 we could leave the room and come back if he was fussy. This went well for about 2-2 1/2 weeks and now he has started to regress. It takes a long time for him to fall asleep now and he is again waking up a few times a night crying and wanting to be held. It’s like we’re back to square one…help!!!!!

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• 15 Vickie // May 26, 2009 at 12:31 pm

  My son is 5 and still gets into bed with us every night. We read a story to him in his own bed and he falls asleep in minutes but wakes any time between 11pm and 2pm and screams. He is prone to nightmares and is petrified of the dark. We have done al the usual things, night lights etc but nothing seems to calm him until he is sleeping in our bed. It really isn’t that much of a problem that he sleeps in with us but baby number 3 is due in days. Do you think there is any chance for us to help him stay in his own bed?

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• 16 Camilla // May 26, 2009 at 12:33 pm

  Brilliant, Dana makes so much sence and brings everything out so clearly that u need, to help improve sleep issues at night.

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• 17 Tracy // May 26, 2009 at 12:36 pm

  Co sleeping, in my experience, has been an unexpected eye opener for me. I chose to parent my kids in a different way to what I had experienced. Many of my adult years have been spent in therapy overcoming my childhood. My goal for my kids is that they grow up being happy and emotionally healthy people. Co sleeping helped me to realize that my husband was not interested in raising kids, but having me be his mother-substitute. Instead of supporting me and enjoying our children together, he was happy to have his needs placed before the kids. It helped me to see that my husband and I were not able to have or model a healthy relationship to our children because there were not two adults in the relationship. Motherhood forced me to grow up - not him. It didn’t take long to see that my marriage was not not unlike the one my parents had. In the case of my parents, my mother chose to raise my father instead of take care of her kids. I chose differently. I may not have seen this dynamic had I not chosen to co-sleep with my babies into toddler-hood.

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• 18 Jennifer // May 26, 2009 at 12:37 pm

  My 10 mo old twin boy often wakes in the night crying hysterically. We give him a few minutes to see if he will calm down, then try a couple of times to soothe him. He cries so hard that after he fianlly stops, he snubs for a good while. The only way to calm him is to hold him, or lay down with him. If I continue to let him cry, he will wake up his twin. I work and I have to sleep during the night, so I usually just lay down with him until he gets back to sleep., then I put him back in his bed. This doesn’t happen every night, only about once or twice a week. The rest of the time he may whine, then put himself back to sleep.

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• 19 Sandra Archambault // May 26, 2009 at 12:38 pm

  I am a grandmother trying to help my daughter in law deal with her twins Sofia & Maksim. They are 5 mths old. Sofia has been sleeping throught the night for awhile. Maksim is another case, he does not sleep through he is up every 2 or 3 hrs. She has started him on cereal thinking that he is hungry but this did not make the problem go away. He is the type of baby that cries loudly & the only way to appease him is in the arms. They unfortunately have not the means to purchase your product. This does not prevent us from reading your articles . How else can we find some help in making our family home a harmonious one.

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• 20 Barb // May 26, 2009 at 12:47 pm

  How do I get my 3.5 month old to have longer naps? He is only able to nap for about 40 minutes and then wakes. It is then very hard to get him back to sleep to extend the nap but I know he is still tired.

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• 21 Julie // May 26, 2009 at 1:26 pm

  I have a similar problem however, I sleep with my almost 2 year old daughter in a full size bed in her room. My husband would not let her cry it out although he dosen’t want to sleep with her either. For the most part she is sleeping better as she ages but will check and make sure I am there most nights. I would like to move out of her room but am afraid that if I do she will be up at 5 am everyday or throughout the night looking for me? Any advice?

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• 22 Trish // May 26, 2009 at 1:28 pm

  I bought sleep sense a while ago and have enjoyed mostly restful nights (thank you Dana!!!) However, we still have not taken the bottle out of Lily’s sleep schedule, actually she still uses a bottle for naps and just comfort in general. How do i get rid of that bottle?

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• 23 Leanne // May 26, 2009 at 1:33 pm

  my comment is on co-sleeping….I am a single mother of 3 my oldest is 9 my younger children are 2 1/2 and 1 1/2 . I co-slept with both of my younger children and regret it very much.My middle child was in his own bed at 11 months and sleeps wonderful adapted to it very well . My youngest was a totally different story. I just got my youngest out of my bed 2 weeks ago . So for the past 2 years I have had a child in my bed… makes a good night sleep impossible in the long run. When I first started him sleeping in his crib he would cry for 30 minutes now he fusses and yells momma for about 5 then goes to sleep and sleeps until morning. So for the past two weeks I have gotten the best sleep i have in almost 3 years. If I could do it over again I would of had them in their crib the day they came home. Even tho my kids are now sleeping on their own I still sleep on the couch which is where I slept with the baby so we didnt disturb their fathers sleep so he could go to work and provide for us. That eventually tore us apart seeing as how we didnt get any time to ourselves because there was always a child in our bed. Its tough to let them cry it out but it was the best thing I have done i feel like I am better able to cope with parent hood as I am getting restful sleep since I put the boys into their cribs at 8 pm and they both sleep all night and get up at 7:30, and I’m not getting beat up all night with a restless sleeping child . I read your blog when I get the chance and decided to try to do whatever I had to get a good nights rest so I am able to get my job as a parent done right Thank you so much

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• 24 Lee // May 26, 2009 at 1:35 pm

  I am a mother of a 6 week old boy who I beleive is a very sensitive baby. He only sleeps well when being held- the other night he slept for 4 1/2 hours while in my arms.. but when we try to put him in his crib or bassinet he only sleeps for 1-2 hours at a time. He is very gassy and seems to be in pain at times and is only comfortable when someone is holding him… help please… sleep deprived mother of a 2 year old and a 6 week old..

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• 25 Sydney // May 26, 2009 at 1:55 pm

  Hi we have been swaddling Alexander (8 months) since he was just born. Now we are trying to get him unswaddled and we have no idea how to do it. Any tips or ideas how we could accoplish it? His crib is right next to our bed.

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• 26 Melissa // May 26, 2009 at 1:57 pm

  I have a question about naps. My daughter was a pacifier baby, and now we’ve broken the habit (with, I won’t deny, a lot of tears) — but even though she’s sleeping through the night, she will not nap longer than 45 minutes, no matter what — and she wakes up SCREAMING. I don’t feel right about letting her cry for 25 minutes after a short nap. When she has so little awake time during the day, I don’t want her to spend it crying! But I know she’s still tired. What are the chances that her naps will naturally lengthen as her sleep habits improve? (We’re only 5 days into sleep training.)

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• 27 Anel // May 26, 2009 at 2:08 pm

  Alex naps for about an hour in the morning and about 30 minutes in the afternoon, no problems in general then, a short cry or fuss every now and again. My problem is at night. He goes to sleep at 7 each evening also falls asleep mostly with little fuss, but wakes up every hour to two hours after that, crying his heart out, sitting next to him, holding a hand on his back, and soothing him with a SHH! sound and no talking doesn’t calm him down in the least he wants his bottle of milk. The only way he falls asleep, it seems. I travel a lot as we are a pretty active family that scuba dives etc. How can I get him to sleep through the night and fall asleep almost anywhere. He is 5 and a half months at the moment. My first son, maybe I was lucky falls right to sleep anywhere, I’m hoping for a plan to teach Alex the same. But will settle at the moment just for a full night’s rest, I know it exists just can’t remember where.

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• 28 beverly lamb // May 26, 2009 at 2:08 pm

  conner is my grandson. he is in the middle of the terrible twos. he does not like to sleep at night my son lives in charlotte nc. he has tried everything so he will sleep through the night. he recently purchased a book to help. he is so exhausted all the time any suggestions would be helpful. thanks

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• 29 Jessica // May 26, 2009 at 2:33 pm

  Hi, i have a 9mth old son ….. i am only 18 and i am a single parent i am living on my own so i dont have any help from anyone ….. my son wakes up 4-5 times a night and will only go back to sleep if he is in the bed with me and if i breastfeeding him …… it is making me get upset all the time because i am trying my hardest to be a great mum but i would really like him in the cot and to sleep all night and off my breast ….. i have not slept for longer then 3hrs at one time since i had him …. please help me before i go completely insane.

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• 30 Adeley Laurenti // May 26, 2009 at 2:47 pm

  HI Dana I bought your book when I have my daughter Sophia because she did not want to sleep during the day or night for more than half an hour, she is now 17 month and sleeping since 5 month all night, but I have now a baby of 5 weeks old; he sleep at night for 4 hour or 3 straight in a bassinet with me in my room but sometimes he stay awake for an hour crying because he is tired, but he fights for not to fall sleep and I know that he do not have nothing because when I pick him up he stops crying, and when I put him back he start crying again. Then during the day I try to put him in his crib to sleep and he start crying, and as soon as put him in the bouncer seat he falls sleep, is like hi doesn’t want to be in his crib. then when he start crying I have tried to put him the pacifier, but he trows away like avery five minutes, and the same at night when because sometimes he stay awake like two hour crying and he doesn’t want to fall sleep, the problem is that I do not want to let him cry to much at night because I am afraid that he is going to awake his sister, and that is why I try to put him the pacifier, I really don know what to do, I know that the best place to put him to sleep every time is in his crib, and that is not a good idea to use the pacifier, but he fights to fall sleep and he crys histerically.

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• 31 Sarah // May 26, 2009 at 3:16 pm

  Hi,

  My daughter is 9 and 1/2 months and sleeps quite well at home. However, we have had a horrible time trying to travel with her. She did not like sleeping in another crib or pack n play - just screamed.

  Do you have any tips to make travelling with your baby easier??

  Thanks,

  - Sarah

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• 32 Wendy // May 26, 2009 at 3:31 pm

  Sam is 2 years old and we used the sleep program when he was 18 months and worked great! We had a great routine, upstairs at 7, bath, jammies, books with milk, some rocking and singing then off to dream land. Recently he decided he’s not having any of this. Since he changed the routine how can I get him back in one that he is comfortable with when I have no idea what he wants?

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• 33 Ana Drevecky // May 26, 2009 at 3:44 pm

  Hi my 2 year old, likes to come to our bed by 3am, I put her back in her bed, but by 6 am she comes again to our bed and wants to keep sleeping in our bed to sleep with us, I let her do it because I am just tired by 6am to put her back, but I got to admit that its being hard in my body, I do not sleep the same, HELP!!!!!!!

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• 34 Kate Jagger // May 26, 2009 at 4:12 pm

  My 3 1/2 yr old son keeps “appearing” in our bed some time in the night… His sister is 11 weeks old and he has been doing this since my pregnancy.

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• 35 Shelley // May 26, 2009 at 4:40 pm

  For those of you who are having co-sleeping difficulties I feel for you - but for those that find it successful and their babies are sleeping through the night - I just want to say DON’T BE ASHAMED!!

  When I first started co-sleeping with my daughter at 2 months, all I heard was grief from everyone and ridicule on how bad my parenting skills were….even though they didn’t say it directly - you could tell in their body language and tone of voice. She started sleeping through the night for up to 12 hours at 7 months….without waking up to breastfeed as the myth would have it (and I breastfed her up to 16 months).

  When the time came to transition her (which I knew she was ready for because she was pushing me out of the bed) it only took her ONE night to start sleeping by herself - much to EVERYONE’S surprize…and yes she did wake up every hour on the hour that night, but after reassuring her she was ok - she went to sleep and the next night slept by herself in her bed for 12 hours STRAIGHT!!!

  For those of you who co-sleep and are only trying to get the baby out of the bed because everyone else and their dogs are telling you that it’s wrong - listen to your instincts….some babies would never come 10 feet within their parents bed…. each baby is different. When they graduate with honours from high school - will it really matter that they enjoyed co-sleeping for the first year of their life (or more?) Enjoy it while it lasts - because they grow up and all too soon won’t even want to be near you….

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• 36 malgosha // May 26, 2009 at 4:41 pm

  My 13 months old Sophia sleeps third night in her cot with 3 times awake during the night. I breastfeed her each time, but 5 am we start our day completely exhausted. I know she can continue sleeping if I let her fall asleep on my breast, but I want to stop breastfeeding, because my breast is huge since I nurse my baby. Please, advice me how to sleep longer and stop to breastfeed Sophia? She hates any other milk.

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• 37 nikki // May 26, 2009 at 6:01 pm

  heya my son is 4 months old and i have been co sleeping with him since he was 3 weeks old ,i would prefer not to but at the same time i just want to sllep as i have a 3 year old aswell iam exhausted by the end the day ,i have tried him in the crib a few times but he just doest sleep to well and wakes every few hours so i co sleep for a quiet life,how could i get him to sleep longer alone ?,i feel like my life isnt my own anymore Nikki

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• 38 phanice // May 26, 2009 at 6:13 pm

  my two months son shares the bed with me.he sleeps well at night but wakes up immediately anytime i go to the bathroom and i have to soothe him back to sleep.during the day he can’t nap unless i hold him on my lap.he will sleep for two hours.if i soothe him to sleep and i put to bed he wakes up even if he was deeply asleep.

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• 39 Sarah // May 26, 2009 at 7:43 pm

  My daughter is 6+months old. She has two naps during the day, an hour to two hours each. Her bedtime is 7 and we have a routine which allows her to put herself to sleep (awake, but drowsy). However, she still gets up anywhere from 1-3 am looking for something, so I nurse her. How do I know if she’s hungry or just looking for some company? I work while she is at daycare from 730 - 3. Wondering how to get her to sleep from 7 until at least 5? Thank you!

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• 40 Maria // May 26, 2009 at 7:48 pm

  I, recently turned my daughter’s crib into a bed and she wont sleep in it i have a hard time getting to sleep in it as soon as i put her in there she outs. i have to rock her to sleep and she wakes in the middle of the night and the first thing she does is run to my side of the bed and i let her sleep with me. she is about 15 months old I’m not sure what to do to get her back into her own bed. I’m hoping she gets used to the idea soon since its only been a few days since i change her crib. thanks

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• 41 shafeen // May 26, 2009 at 9:23 pm

  my question is my baby doesnt sleeps without me helping him 2,either feed him so carry him up,please help wat can i do 2 make him sleep on his own

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• 42 beth // May 26, 2009 at 10:36 pm

  My daughter has slept thru the nite pretty well for the 1st year, now that sh has turned 1yr she is waking up screaming around 1;30am and will not go back down unless in our bed. She will cry in her crib for an hour- where I cant take it anymore- please advice

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• 43 Trina // May 26, 2009 at 11:17 pm

  I was just wondering how I can get my daughter to sleep in later in the mornings. It doesn’t seem to make a difference if I put her to bed at 7pm or 10 pm, she gets up by 6 am. I tried darkening her room, giving her a snack before bed and moved her breakfast time back. Nothing seems to work. Do you have any suggestions?

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• 44 joanne // May 27, 2009 at 12:02 am

  hi my son is two and half and sleeps 2 hours in the day from 1 to 3 he goes to bed at 730 at night he doesnt wake during the night but he wakes at 5am everyday how do i get him to sleep longer in the morning and extra hour or hour and a half would be great.. Help please

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• 45 Aimee // May 27, 2009 at 1:47 am

  My daughter Luka is 2 1/2 years old and is coming into our bed everynight.It started off in the mornings then 4ish now 1 to 2am, we are all very tired and due to have our second baby yesterday. She slept perfectly until 10 months, never been the same since!We all shared a room for 8 months while building which has made things worse!She has a bottle to sleep but also needs me or my husband there to fall asleep. If we leave her she screams so bad until vomitting we find it very hard to do that. Any advice?? Do we have to let her cry it out? No more energy, please help.
  Aimee

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• 46 Annabelle // May 27, 2009 at 5:10 am

  My daughter is now 11 months old. Since she was born she has never been a good sleeper as she would wake 3-4 times during the night. She is till breast feeding although really only because she wakes up during the night and will cry and cry if I dont give her the breast. She also has a feed about 7am. I know she probably wakes up out of habit or for comfort but I am having trouble not only stopping her from taking the breast but also I end up sleeping with her just so that I can get some sleep. I now want to stop breast feeding and also put her in her own cot to sleep. Which way would you recomend best to handle this?
  Shes in a routine which means she has a bottle at 7pm and then to sleep. She wakes up once maybe twice during the night (on a good night).
  I now want to stop breast feeding completely and get her to sleep in her cot. How do you think best I handle this?

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• 47 Jackie Gibb // May 27, 2009 at 5:31 am

  i have a ten month old son and he will not go to sleep in his cot, we have finally got him to sleep in there at night but he has to be asleep first. during the day if i so much as walk towards his room with him he starts crying. i have tried the controlled crying however he wins after hours and hours. alls he does is stands at the end of his cot and cries, if i go in and lay him down it just gets worse, my mum says he has the loudest cry she has ever heard. i live on the other side of the country and have no family around to help. most days i just give in and either let him sleep with me or he lays on me on the couch. how can i get him to sleep in his cot without crying for hours.

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• 48 linda // May 27, 2009 at 6:16 am

  Hi dana,
  since reading your correspondence l have begun putting Kristian to sleep as l usually do but rather than lie on the bed l leave the room and stay just outside his room till l feel the coast is clear. how long does it normally take a child to break habit?that way l know whether this is working for us!Thanks

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• 49 kim // May 27, 2009 at 6:51 am

  my husband & i have been co-sleeping with our 7yr old daughter since she was about 18months.She goes to sleep in her own bed but comes into our bed every night @ about 1am, I usually wake up to find her next to me, we have tried putting her back into her bed but she will come back in about an hour later.
  She says she can’t remember getting out of her bed & she also sleepwalks, we have found her out in the back yard @ 3 in the morning (we have had to put extra locks on the doors so she can’t get out.
  We have given up trying……. just to TIRED

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• 50 Amy // May 27, 2009 at 9:02 am

  I have a 5 1/2 month old. He goes to daycare 2 - 3 days a week and sleeps in a crib for naps there. At home he sleeps in his crib for naps. At night I put him down between 7:45 and 8:15, he sleeps in his crib for an hour and then he wakes up. I leave for work very early in the morning, it is hard to put him back in his crib and after he wakes a night because he crys himself back to sleep which keeps me up for quite a long time. Please advise me on how to put my son back in his crib after he wakes in the night. Right now we cosleep out of necessity.

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• 51 Darlene // May 27, 2009 at 10:40 am

  Hi Dana, my son is now 14 months old, the sweetest boy, but still has problems with sleep training. He was sleep trained at 4 months old, but when he turned 6 months old, his pediatrician told us that he had a really bad flat spot on the side of his head and recommended getting a head band to straighten it out, we decided against it and did chiropractic treatments for 4 months or so. I was supposed to massage his head as much as possible to move the occipital head bone back in it’s place but the only way i could do that would be to rock him to sleep and massage for 10-15 minutes. He got very used to it and since then i’ve been trying to let him cry it out and retrain him. I’ve done it about 6 times since then. But now he has bad mommy anxiety, so i don’t rock him anymore or hold him to sleep anymore but i do have to wait until he is tired, put him in his crib and rub his back, sing, until he’s almost out or else he screams bloody murder for an hour and pukes. We personally don’t want to change his sheet every morning and we’re worried about the constant puking will effect him. Please let me know what you think. Any advice would be great. Thanks!

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• 52 Dianne // May 27, 2009 at 10:43 am

  What do you advise for a baby who makes herself sick if she is left in her cot. Although Sophie has improved and is sleeping so much better she will not go down unless she is asleep and if we try she makes herself sick and holds her breath which is very upsetting - if she wakes in the night she is fine and stays in her cot and gets herself back to sleep it is just putting her down at night which seems impossible - she normally goes down after a feed during which she has fallen asleep. But the improvement over the last few weeks is excellent - thank you.

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• 53 Tajinder Gill // May 27, 2009 at 12:08 pm

  Hi Dana

  I have been using the sleep program for 3 wks now. Hari is 4 1/2 months old and is sleeping through the night most nights and is used to his routine. Yet we are having lots of problems with his day naps. he cries a lot when put down and then when he does finally cry himself to sleep he wakes up after 15-30mins and then is still really tired and grouchy throughout the day. We have gone back to naps in the day downstairs in his chair at regular times in the day. He only likes his crib at night and not during the day. Any suggestions.

  Tajinder and Hari.

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• 54 Colleen Davies // May 27, 2009 at 12:31 pm

  Is it ok to get up with your child one time per night but not subsequent times. My son is 3 months old and is hungry when he wakes up around 2 a.m. and i don’t have a problem getting up with him. However, he has started to wake more frequently in the last week and i know he does not need to. If I get up once between 1 and 2 but not the other times and i sending him mixed messages?

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• 55 weesam karam // May 27, 2009 at 12:41 pm

  john is 13 months old i am still nursing him. he is up all the time at night every 1 to 2 hours, and he nurses back to sleep, then I rock him to sleep. I am having a hard time stopping nursing because he cries and fights so hard that i actually get physical hurt trying to hold him. i have tried giving him milk in the sippie cup and he refuses to drink from it. how do i get him to drink from a sippie cup and stop nursing him without him crieing and flipping out.

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• 56 Krista // May 27, 2009 at 2:28 pm

  My baby is 5 weeks old. I am trying to transition him from my bed to his crib. He cries and wakes up every 5 minutes or so…he will not stay asleep. What can I do? He will sleep 4-5 hour stretches in my bed. How can I help him to sleep that long in his own crib?

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• 57 mary // May 27, 2009 at 5:33 pm

  my 10month old nd my 2/12 share a room nd he wakes almost evey 2 hours for abottle nd start screamin,how can i make him sleep 4 longer periods without waking his brother up

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• 58 Luciana // May 27, 2009 at 7:49 pm

  I have a 8 1/2 months old baby girl, she is not really a good sleeper but she is slowly improving. I give her a bottle around 7:30 pm and put her down awake in her crib, she falls asleep on her own almost without any crying, so by 8 she is totally asleep. What happens is that she wakes up around midnight and then at 3 am. At midnight I give her the pacifier and she goes back to sleep but at 3 am I have to give her a bottle, it seems that she can’t be more than 7 hours without eating, is that possible? or I’m doing something wrong?
  Thanks!!!
  Luciana

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• 59 MarthaCarol // May 27, 2009 at 9:50 pm

  My 2 year old daughter has to be layed down with at bedtime and at nap. How can i get her to stay in bed and go to sleep without me?

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• 60 Amanda Herbert // May 27, 2009 at 10:00 pm

  My daughter is 17months old and we recently went on a holiday. Before she would sleep through the entire night but on holiday and since our return, she has started to wake up during the night and at different times. Initially she would have a water bottle in the bed and she would feed herself, however she then started to wake up and want to be held. Now she doesn’t even want a drink and won’t go back into her cot. We are now in a situation where we spend half the night with her in the cot and the other half in our bed. She cries and cries when I try to put her back into the cot. Any suggestions?

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• 61 rish // May 27, 2009 at 11:46 pm

  our 2 year old is out of his crib and in a toddler bed. he has been sleeping thru the night since he was 18 months. recently he has been refusing to get to bed by himself and also leaves his bed in the middle of the night and walks into ours. we tried putting him back but he comes back over and over and we are now exhausted of taking him back and then giving in. we have followed all of the sleepsense advice of putting him back but its just not working…can you please help?

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• 62 Melanie Hardy // May 28, 2009 at 12:59 am

  How can I get my 10 weeks old baby to sleep through sleep cycles. She wakes every 40 mins and needs to be soothed and given her dummy before she can relax. She is always trying to get out of her wrap. thanks x

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• 63 Alicia // May 28, 2009 at 7:32 am

  My baby is almost 3 months old and has just started sleeping through the night (mostly). Unfortunately, naps are a different story…she will only sleep for 30 minutes at a time and protests being put down every time, despite that I can tell she’s tired! If I hold her until she’s really really asleep and then put her down, she’ll sleep for much longer…but I don’t have time for this with a toddler running around! How can I get her to a) nap longer and b) settle quicker for naps?

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• 64 Angela Lee // May 28, 2009 at 12:14 pm

  My son Benjamin is 22 months and is an early riser. He can wake between 4:40am to 6:00. I’m okay with 6:00am, but 4:40 is too early! A little while ago you sent a video out that was Does your baby wake too early?, however, the video attached was about co-sleeping. Can you direct me to that video?

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• 65 Lynne // May 28, 2009 at 6:12 pm

  My son is 3 months old. He will only sleep if tightly swaddled and wakes up if he gets an arm loose. I know this is something that I will have to get him over in order for him to sleep on his own. We have also been rocking him to sleep rather than putting him to bed awake. Is it best to work on one thing at a time - weaning him off swaddling then work on putting him to bed awake - or should we start working on both simultaneously?

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• 66 Donna // May 28, 2009 at 7:43 pm

  My 11 month daughter sleeps perfectly during the day without help and will have a two hour sleep in the morning and an afternoon nap for anywhere between 45 mins to two hours. We have a routine where she is fed, bathed and has quiet play then bed. she fights going to bed at this time and we have tried various methods but not many work. White noise doesn’t work, crying herself to sleep sometimes works, putting my hand on her chest sometimes works but it seems the more we interfere the worse she gets and the longer it takes to get her to sleep. We also keep noise down to a moderate level - any tips?

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• 67 DIANNE PARDOE // May 28, 2009 at 10:55 pm

  My 6 month old baby, Alyssa, has to have surgery on her left arm june 11th…She is otherwise completely healthy, but, wondering if I should hold off on “changing” anything about her sleep routine until after surgery?! She goes to sleep not to bad on her own but, wakes atleast 3 times a night, I feed her atleast once…middle of night….

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• 68 Sara // May 29, 2009 at 1:16 am

  Oh my gosh. So funny about the “Mommy” and “Sexy Woman” on opposite sides of the spectrum. I agree. Even with my 5 month old on the video monitor on the side table I have to close it before we are intimate. I agree that there are parents who co-sleep out of neccessity and at first is something that is a choice because its about bonding responding and nursing to make those connections with the baby. I just know that eventually each of you will want your own space and its just that when the child gets older they dont know how to fall asleep in their own space alone. So, if you “teach” them early on they will be happier in the long run. I have a friend who is dying to get their 2 year old out of their bed. They are often sleeping in seperate rooms and waking throughout the night because of the child waking up next to them. I co-slept with my 5 month old for 3 months and now is sleeping in her own crib and 10 hours every night and is a very happy healthy baby

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• 69 Rita // May 29, 2009 at 12:47 pm

  is it ok to leave my baby on her own,even when she is crying,especially at night when she is soppose to be sleeping.

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• 70 Rebecca Kellert // May 30, 2009 at 12:20 am

  My son Ezra is going to be 4month’s on the 3rd of june .
  I’m really wanting to have the 12hour sleep’s that you were talking about! and right now he sleep’s 7-8hours. He wake’s up every morning around 4am and i grab him and just lay in bed and nurse him . I guess my question is what can i do to get him to sleep those 12 hour’s and also how can i get him to bed earlier to?

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• 71 Rebecca Kellert // May 30, 2009 at 12:22 am

  Ezra is really drooling and just wanting to chew on everything and a bit more fussy than usual! …is it possible that he could be teething?

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• 72 Tina // May 30, 2009 at 1:20 am

  When autumn goes to sleep she has to be right next to me and if I leave the room .every 2-3 hours she gets up crying and she doesnt stop until i go next to her.some times she even screams until I walk in the room.she will sleep through the whole night if I am next to her.What can I do to get her to sleep through the night without me.

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• 73 Kristin // May 30, 2009 at 2:02 am

  We have been co-sleeping with our daughter since she was born and she has just turned 2 and love it most of the time. However there are nights where I wish I hadn’t started it. I have tried to put her in her crib/toddler bed (now) once she is asleep but she will usually wake up after a few hours looking for me. She uses me as her pacifer/blankie instead. We just got rid of a roommate which was one of many reasons why she is in our room. I would like to move her to her own room and try to make it a big deal using the BIG GIRL room as an incentive since it seems to work for some things. I was wondering if you had any sugesstions for starting the transition to her own bed and room. I must mention her room is on the other side of the house from our bedroom and it is not close so I would like to do this gently. I am not sure what the first step should be. What are your suggestions?

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• 74 Siobhan // May 30, 2009 at 6:52 am

  Hello, My son is 1 yr in 2 wks and has always slept in our bed. It is as you said in your video, not helping our marriage…he is nursed all through the night, in the morning and evening before bed. I usually have to go to sleep when he goes to sleep so he doesn’t stay awake. I would love to have our bed back for just my husband and me and for us all to get a good nights sleep! instead of 1 hr t a time…help please!!!!

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• 75 claire // May 30, 2009 at 6:16 pm

  hey my girl is now 16months old she could always fal asleep without our help but with a dummy and would sleep all night but over the last 4 months she has been a nightmare she is up at least 5 times a night for her dummy and ends up in our bed i need help!! and sleep!! should i take her dummy from her ? please help
  thanks
  claire

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• 76 Hayden // May 31, 2009 at 2:25 pm

  We’re having issues with our week old daughter sleeping through the night. She’s ok until around 2 or 3 and then she just won’t go back to sleep even after we have burped her, changed and fed her. Any help would be appreciated.

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• 77 veronica // Jun 8, 2009 at 3:20 pm

  Hello,
  My son is 5 months old and has sleep problems. I live in a one bedroom flat with my husband and our pet cat. We have a cot in the bedroom but our son sleeps with us as this was to only way we could get him to sleep in the begining. I don’t mind him sleeping in the bed but i don’t want to create a problem for the future. I usually breastfeed him to sleep in the evening which does the trick for about an hour then he wakes up and i have to comfort him and often breastfeed him back to sleep. Through the night he wakes and i nurse till he goes back to sleep. He doesn’t nap unless we put him in the stroller which was also the only way to get him to rest in the begining. I spend my days walking for hours to keep him asleep. I know when he is tired and needs to sleep buit he will only sleep with the props i have showed him. How can I get him to sleep without props? How can i get him to get himself back to sleep?

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• 78 Wafaa // Jun 23, 2009 at 5:56 pm

  Hello Dana,
  What happens when a 4yrs old kid has his parents divorced and living in separate houses? Any tips on how to deal with co-sleeping and the need to be attended all the time?

  Thank you.

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