Hellobee Boards Topic: How to teach a baby to fall asleep on their own?

Hellobee Boards Topic: How to teach a baby to fall asleep on their own? https://boards.hellobee.com/ Pregnancy, Baby and Parenting blog, by Hellobee en Wed, 13 May 2026 10:59:38 +0000 MaryM on "How to teach a baby to fall asleep on their own?" https://boards.hellobee.com/topic/how-to-teach-a-baby-to-fall-asleep-on-their-own#post-2882059 Thu, 25 Apr 2019 11:45:30 +0000 MaryM 2882059@https://boards.hellobee.com/ There's a facebook group called respectful sleep training/learning that I found really helpful (and non-judgmental) brownepiano on "How to teach a baby to fall asleep on their own?" https://boards.hellobee.com/topic/how-to-teach-a-baby-to-fall-asleep-on-their-own#post-2882056 Thu, 25 Apr 2019 11:12:45 +0000 brownepiano 2882056@https://boards.hellobee.com/ I let my second kid sleep on his stomach from about 10 weeks on. It was the only way he liked to sleep. When we gave in he started sleeping 12 hrs straight a few weeks later (at 12 weeks). pachamama on "How to teach a baby to fall asleep on their own?" https://boards.hellobee.com/topic/how-to-teach-a-baby-to-fall-asleep-on-their-own#post-2882053 Thu, 25 Apr 2019 10:48:29 +0000 pachamama 2882053@https://boards.hellobee.com/ Mastitis is gone. Baby is sleeping even worse. He's basically up from 8 to 1. Naps great . The only way he will sleep is on his stomach. We're screwed. bhbee on "How to teach a baby to fall asleep on their own?" https://boards.hellobee.com/topic/how-to-teach-a-baby-to-fall-asleep-on-their-own#post-2880787 Mon, 15 Apr 2019 08:12:04 +0000 bhbee 2880787@https://boards.hellobee.com/ @pachamama: don’t ask me, you know I broke the rules :silly: I am so sorry about the rough night over there. Mastitis is bad enough without all the rest layered on! Hope you can get some relief and some better nights soon. pachamama on "How to teach a baby to fall asleep on their own?" https://boards.hellobee.com/topic/how-to-teach-a-baby-to-fall-asleep-on-their-own#post-2880783 Mon, 15 Apr 2019 06:20:30 +0000 pachamama 2880783@https://boards.hellobee.com/ @muffinsmuffins: so helpful, thank you. I think I will give it free more weeks til I have a real breakdown. Last night was one for the books. Let's just say it involved at least 10 wakings, a thunderstorm and a petrified dog I had to barricade in the basement with furniture at 3am, and me sleeping on a camping mat on my mastitis-infected boob. I want to die. Eta: my older son just woke up super sick. 👌 @bhbee: he rolled from front to back yesterday doesn't that count?! 🤣 He's extraordinarily strong. muffinsmuffins on "How to teach a baby to fall asleep on their own?" https://boards.hellobee.com/topic/how-to-teach-a-baby-to-fall-asleep-on-their-own#post-2880754 Sun, 14 Apr 2019 18:07:31 +0000 muffinsmuffins 2880754@https://boards.hellobee.com/ I agree with just trying to get into a routine with sleep cues and just do what you have to do until he’s a couple weeks older. Our youngest is 7 months and I feel like around your babes age, we were endlessly bouncing and rocking to sleep and it drove me crazy. But then he started to be able to roll, he took a paci to fall asleep and we introduced a lovey. Slowly phased out the bouncing. As in we decided bouncing on the yoga ball was not a thing we would do anymore because he was so gd heavy and squirmy so we switched to rocking. Tank up bottle, white noise, lovey, paci, hum a couple songs while rocking and into the crib. We did some phrases as well. I would then leave but go back in and rub his back or tummy and then leave. I would pick him up if he was irate but really short periods of time, like 1-2 minutes until he was drowsy and into the crib. Repeated that and eventually he just did it on his own. The tired factor is also a thing as in: he had stopped putting himself to sleep because we were still doing a late 3rd nap. We dropped it and pushed his awake time and he’s now out quickly again. bhbee on "How to teach a baby to fall asleep on their own?" https://boards.hellobee.com/topic/how-to-teach-a-baby-to-fall-asleep-on-their-own#post-2880751 Sun, 14 Apr 2019 15:10:02 +0000 bhbee 2880751@https://boards.hellobee.com/ @pachamama: to be honest, I did let my second sleep on his tummy because it worked so well and he rolled early (but I did it before then too) ... hopefully you will get rolling soon and he can do it himself! But if you’re going to back sleep at night maybe try it during the day in the method above and see if you can get it then? Mine were all 3 just really different sleepers and I did different things with each so definitely experiment. pachamama on "How to teach a baby to fall asleep on their own?" https://boards.hellobee.com/topic/how-to-teach-a-baby-to-fall-asleep-on-their-own#post-2880750 Sun, 14 Apr 2019 15:04:48 +0000 pachamama 2880750@https://boards.hellobee.com/ @MrsKRB: I do but haven't found exactly what to do per se... I mostly just feel like a failure reading her posts even tho we pretty much do her foundational stuff (good nap schedule, bedtime routine, dark room, swaddled, boring nighttime visits). I do nurse him to sleep sometimes tho. @bhbee: this is a great idea and kinda what I had read online. He's such a great napper (for now, will prob change tomorrow). I put him on his tummy for naps and check him every 15 minutes. He'd probably sleep 12 hours straight if I out him on his tummy. But I can't 😩 bhbee on "How to teach a baby to fall asleep on their own?" https://boards.hellobee.com/topic/how-to-teach-a-baby-to-fall-asleep-on-their-own#post-2880749 Sun, 14 Apr 2019 14:57:53 +0000 bhbee 2880749@https://boards.hellobee.com/ How do you put him to sleep now? Does he go to sleep on his own? I am totally not in the camp that there’s a “right” approach just sharing an idea if you are rocking or feeding to sleep. Mine was a little older maybe 4m so take that into account but my approach to fixing night this time was to start with naps. Every nap I knew she was fed and changed, then she went in the crib and I sang her the same song. (She still is not on a hard schedule but I had a general idea and then I started naptime with any tiredness signal.) Then I left and set the timer for 5m. If she was fussing/crying, I went in at 5m and patted and sang the same song. When she was calm, I left and set the timer again. At first it might have taken 20-25m but soon there was no fussing that required help. I did the same at first bedtime. It didn’t fix night immediately but it seemed to make a difference in putting sleep together and gave me a huge break to not have to try to get her to sleep myself, to let her do it. Just seemed like practice when everyone was less tired. Anyway, the 5m timeframe was because I could handle that without feeling cruel and while it may take longer than serious CIO it worked for this baby. I do think every baby is different, so not saying you should do what I did but maybe it will spark an idea to try. ETA I also had luck with a bedtime tank up pumped bottle helping us get through. Again, she was older but an idea. MrsKRB on "How to teach a baby to fall asleep on their own?" https://boards.hellobee.com/topic/how-to-teach-a-baby-to-fall-asleep-on-their-own#post-2880747 Sun, 14 Apr 2019 13:37:32 +0000 MrsKRB 2880747@https://boards.hellobee.com/ Check out the Taking Cara Babies Instagram! Petitduck on "How to teach a baby to fall asleep on their own?" https://boards.hellobee.com/topic/how-to-teach-a-baby-to-fall-asleep-on-their-own#post-2880735 Sun, 14 Apr 2019 10:53:28 +0000 Petitduck 2880735@https://boards.hellobee.com/ He’s still little. I’d just say nothing and quietly pat him on the back/ rub his back until he falls back asleep. Although, if he isn’t hungry or fussy then just leave him to fall asleep solo. My second went though a patch around 4.5 months where he would wake up and yell and make noises (not unhappily) beside our bed in his crib and I just did not engage. Sometimes it lasted an hour and then he would pass back out. If he’s sleeping 3-4 then a 5 pm nap seems unnecessary and probably interferes with his fatigue level and ability to fall asleep for bedtime. Soon he’ll be in the recommended ideal sleep training age by a lot of sleep consultants, which is 16 weeks so just set up your good habits now, not feeding to sleep, not picking up unless it’s really necessary, not letting him sleep on you, keeping night wakings/ feedings boring and dark, etc. pachamama on "How to teach a baby to fall asleep on their own?" https://boards.hellobee.com/topic/how-to-teach-a-baby-to-fall-asleep-on-their-own#post-2880734 Sun, 14 Apr 2019 10:39:30 +0000 pachamama 2880734@https://boards.hellobee.com/ I'm losing my mind here with my almost 13 week old. He's up every 5-45 minutes from 8pm-12 then up at least twice after that. I know we need to help him self-soothe but we are not going to let him cry. Is this something they just learn to do? He's not hungry or fussy even. Also, do you think we should drop the 5pm nap? He's a great napper. He sleeps 3-4pm. Any suggestions in getting babies to fall back asleep on their own? We do hold him and twice out of the billion wakings I nurse him to sleep.