Hi, I'm hoping someone could share their advices with me... my baby is a very active 5 month old, she's always moving nonstop. Rather than the average norm of sleeping 14-15 hrs/day for her age, she gets at most 10 hrs. A few days ago, she managed to flip from her backside to her tummy & has been doing it nonstop. Just last night, we placed her in her crib (on her back) at 6:30pm & instead of sleeping, she was on her tummy looking around until ~8pm. Everytime we put her back onto her backside, she would move onto her tummy again. We must have put her back at least a good 10X. She finally slept at 8pm, but then woke up again at 8:30pm. Fell asleep again at 10pm & was up this morning at 4am (& just went back for her morning nap ~8:30am). Again, she was on her tummy! I've tried to sleep train her (with advice from the Healthy Sleep Habits, Happy Child book by Marc Weissbluth) since this Jan, but have not been too successful. Any advice would be much appreciated... thanks!
Advice from parents of very active babies...
- Thread starter lylee
- Start date
southside852
Registered User
Active is a good thing! 
When she wakes up at night does she cry or is she just playing in bed? If she just plays then puts herself back to sleep, then I would not worry about it.
What do you do during the day to stimulate her? Her hours of sleep during the day and her activity directly affects her night sleep.
When she wakes up at night does she cry or is she just playing in bed? If she just plays then puts herself back to sleep, then I would not worry about it.
What do you do during the day to stimulate her? Her hours of sleep during the day and her activity directly affects her night sleep.
Thanks southside 852. When she wakes up, she's just playing in bed... she's either on her tummy looking around, sucking her fingers or blabbing. The thing is, it seems she doesn't really know how to put herself back to sleep. Just this morning, she was awake from 4am until 8:30am (I gave her the bottle at 7:15am). During the evenings, I usually put her to bed by ~6:30pm, but she would just play/lay there until at least 9:30pm. I've tried postponing her bedtime, but nothing seems to work. She cries when she's overtired, so that's why I try to put her in nice & early.
This is our usual schedule -
7am: wake-up & bottle
7:30-8:30am play on the mat or have breastfast with us
8:30-10am nap
10-11am: fruit puree & walk outside (park or supermarket)
11:30am: bottle
12-2pm: nap
2-2:45pm: bottle & play on the mat/read stories
(Sometimes we could sneak in another nap at 3pm for about an hour, but not over the past week)
4:30-6:15pm: Bath, bottle, sing, bedtime story
6:30pm: Put to bed (however she doens't really fall asleep until 9/10-ish & then wakes up at 4/5am)
Just fyi, she didn't really sleep well during the 1st three months when the confinement lady took care of her. Long story cut short, basically the lady rarely put her to sleep, baby was either always on her lap or on the Bjorn chair. And when she did sleep, the lady would wake her up to bathe or give her a bottle. I'm worried that the 1st 3 months had a negative impact & that's why her sleep habit is as it is now... I very much regret hiring a confinement lady. Anyway, that's another story.
Should I take her out more often? Too many day time naps? And is it too early to sleep train a 5-month old?
Thanks!!
This is our usual schedule -
7am: wake-up & bottle
7:30-8:30am play on the mat or have breastfast with us
8:30-10am nap
10-11am: fruit puree & walk outside (park or supermarket)
11:30am: bottle
12-2pm: nap
2-2:45pm: bottle & play on the mat/read stories
(Sometimes we could sneak in another nap at 3pm for about an hour, but not over the past week)
4:30-6:15pm: Bath, bottle, sing, bedtime story
6:30pm: Put to bed (however she doens't really fall asleep until 9/10-ish & then wakes up at 4/5am)
Just fyi, she didn't really sleep well during the 1st three months when the confinement lady took care of her. Long story cut short, basically the lady rarely put her to sleep, baby was either always on her lap or on the Bjorn chair. And when she did sleep, the lady would wake her up to bathe or give her a bottle. I'm worried that the 1st 3 months had a negative impact & that's why her sleep habit is as it is now... I very much regret hiring a confinement lady. Anyway, that's another story.
Should I take her out more often? Too many day time naps? And is it too early to sleep train a 5-month old?
Thanks!!
carang
Registered User
there's really no need to keep flipping her over at night. if she is strong enough to turn herself, she's fine sleeping on her tummy. the problem with young babies sleeping on their tummy is that they may have problems breathing. if she can turn her head and indeed her whole body, it is nothing to worry about.
southside852
Registered User
yes, my son could turn his head and body very early on as well and was a tummy sleeping since the start (reflux baby too).
is it dark in her room? do you have a nap/night time routine? just from quickly looking at your day schedule, have you tried shortening her nap in the morning to just 1 sleep cycle?
is it dark in her room? do you have a nap/night time routine? just from quickly looking at your day schedule, have you tried shortening her nap in the morning to just 1 sleep cycle?
we flip her back at night because we want to let her know it's bedtime & not playtime. we usually put her on her tummy during play.
we usually put a night light in her room & the night time routine is bath, bottle, sing, bedtime story. however, don't have a routine for naps, but usually put her in right after the bottle. i haven't purposely shortened her morning nap because want her to get as much sleep as possible, but sometimes she would nap only for 30mins & she still has problem sleeping at night. just wondering if i should continue with a sleep schedule or just let her nap whenever she's tired...
we usually put a night light in her room & the night time routine is bath, bottle, sing, bedtime story. however, don't have a routine for naps, but usually put her in right after the bottle. i haven't purposely shortened her morning nap because want her to get as much sleep as possible, but sometimes she would nap only for 30mins & she still has problem sleeping at night. just wondering if i should continue with a sleep schedule or just let her nap whenever she's tired...
carang
Registered User
honestly, you are making things MUCH harder on yourself by flipping her over all the time.
think about it... do you ONLY sleep on your back? highly unlikely. it's natural to roll over.
it may be that you are trying to schedule her too much. why don't you leave her for 3-4 days and let her sleep when she's ready. THAT should help you make up a schedule to suit her.
sometimes, (i'm not saying you) parents get stuck into a set schedule without ever realising that the baby's needs have changed. the parents keep fighting to get back to 'schedule' while the baby's body is trying to tell them to sleep at times different to what the baby's body clock is saying.
i would sincerely say, forget the flipping, you will only keep the baby up by doing so.
if she's playing quietly, leave her. if she's screaming her head off, THEN go to her. no one falls asleep immediately, except maybe my husband, babies are no different.
think about it... do you ONLY sleep on your back? highly unlikely. it's natural to roll over.
it may be that you are trying to schedule her too much. why don't you leave her for 3-4 days and let her sleep when she's ready. THAT should help you make up a schedule to suit her.
sometimes, (i'm not saying you) parents get stuck into a set schedule without ever realising that the baby's needs have changed. the parents keep fighting to get back to 'schedule' while the baby's body is trying to tell them to sleep at times different to what the baby's body clock is saying.
i would sincerely say, forget the flipping, you will only keep the baby up by doing so.
if she's playing quietly, leave her. if she's screaming her head off, THEN go to her. no one falls asleep immediately, except maybe my husband, babies are no different.
southside852
Registered User
i agree with carang. don't flip her if she can flip herself. we always put my son on his back for bedtime, but he immediately flips to tummy.
when i first tried to figure out my son's routine, i recorded when i saw signs of him getting tired and then when he actually went down for his sleep. after you do this for 3-4 days like carang suggested, you'll see a pattern and use that that to direct her new sleeping schedule.
Is there a reason why there's a night light? I would perhaps do without that.....
when i first tried to figure out my son's routine, i recorded when i saw signs of him getting tired and then when he actually went down for his sleep. after you do this for 3-4 days like carang suggested, you'll see a pattern and use that that to direct her new sleeping schedule.
Is there a reason why there's a night light? I would perhaps do without that.....
carang
Registered User
i only started with a night light when my son became aware of "monsters & ghosts". that was about a year ago. he's 4. my daughter is in the same room as him, so they share the light. but, it REALLY isn't necessary. babies only 'LEARN' to be scared of the dark when they get older. think about it logically... it ain't exactly light or bright in the womb, is it?
thanks for both your advice. i actually don't mind if she sleeps on her belly, the reason why i flip her back is because when she's on her tummy, she's looking around the room rather than sleeping... and it's not for 15mins, it could go on for an hour or more if we just leave just leave her alone. she seems to have problem soothing herself to sleep.
but i agree & will try to let go of the book's schedule & rather let herself figure her own schedule out... & try to do without the night light. we put it there because she would cry everytime we turned out the light when she was ~2 months old.
but i agree & will try to let go of the book's schedule & rather let herself figure her own schedule out... & try to do without the night light. we put it there because she would cry everytime we turned out the light when she was ~2 months old.