# Please help me...baby wakes up as soon as I lay her down



## nannymom (Jan 23, 2004)

a little background-My DD is 6 months old, she rarely sleeps alone, for one month she took great naps but gave that up 2 months ago,she never sleeps on me or alnoe for more than 20 monutes,she sleeps great at night but it is not enough to balance out the sleep she needs. She is tired and i am tired an more to the point I want my evenings back. My husband and i are never alone and when he gets home I usually give him the baby b/c it may literally be the only time all day i haven't held her or worn her. I want her to sleep well and feel good.
I tried the no cry sleep solution and i ended up with a great routine that puts her to sleep but she won't stay asleep no matter where i lay her. any body with any thoughts? i am at my witts end. I feel like i don't want to spend another day with her crabby and exausted.


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## Jennisee (Nov 15, 2004)

I'm not completely sure I understand your post, but I think you're saying that she sleeps great at night, but wakes up from her nap as soon as you lay her down? Have you tried laying down and nursing her to sleep and then sneaking away once she's asleep? That way, you wouldn't actually be laying her down. (My DD at 13 months still can't be put down; she has to nurse lying down so that I can leave w/o her noticing.)

I know it doesn't seem like it, but this will pass. My DD would not nap by herself until she was maybe 9 months old. Every day for months, I tried to nurse her to sleep in the rocking chair and then lay her down to sleep, but she always woke up right away. I was frustrated and resentful, and I thought I would never be happy until she started napping. However, what finally made it better was to stop fighting her and let her nap in my arms. We have a big cushy armchair, and I would have the TV remote, my laptop on a table next to me, and sometimes a book. She would nurse to sleep on the Boppy and then sleep there, mostly nursing in her sleep, while I watched TV and surfed the internet. It actually became my down-time.

Oh, and there is nothing wrong w/ handing off a baby to Daddy when he gets home. They need some time together, and you need some time to unwind.







And once your baby gets a little older, it will probably be a lot easier to sneak off once she has nursed to sleep, and you and your DH will have some alone time again.


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## meemee (Mar 30, 2005)

you know i come across ur nap situation soooooo often. i really think it is natures way to make sure mom gets rest too. i swear i tried EVERYTHING but my dd would not nap alone without me. if i didnt lay down with her she would be up in 20 minutes. once seh turned 1 i could get away but she would wake up every hour to nurse. she would nap 2 rarely 3 hours (or if she was exhausted) only if i lay down with her. finally i gave in and since i couldnt sleep i just caught up on my reading.


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## alegna (Jan 14, 2003)

It's the age. She will grow out of it. In the meantime, let her nap on you (great for posting at MDC







) or nap with her.

good luck! We just got through this stage, now she'll let me lay her down again.









-Angela


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## Music-mommy (Jan 8, 2005)

my dd was the same. I had to nurse her to sleep and sneak away. It was the only way, I could never lay her down. My MIL bought me a pack and play which I never was able to use.


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## Kim22 (Jul 14, 2003)

I'm having the same problem with my ds (7.5 months). You got some great advice so far, but none of it will work for me. I have a 2.5 year old dd here, too, so I can't just take a nap whenever ds wants to.


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## beth568 (Jul 1, 2004)

Same here. I nurse her lying down and sneak away, or take looong walks in the stroller while DD1 rides her bike or rides in the stroller toddler seat.

DD1 did go through this phase, and it passed without my changing anything, so I'm hoping it will happen again.


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## Spencersmom (Apr 16, 2005)

I guess I am a little confused by your message also. Are you cosleeping at night? Where does dd sleep for naps? She wakes up when put down but you said she sleeps well. When does she sleep well?

I can tell you that my son was the same way. In the beginning he was sleeping in a bassinet right by my bed but would wake up as soon as his head hit the sheets. Just to get some sleep I would either sleep with him in a recliner in the LR or in bed, but was nervous b/c he was so little. As time went on, I would go to bed with him at night and nurse him to sleep and then I would just stay there. He woke every 1-2 hours for a few months to nurse and then it went to every 20 minutes - all night long.







I read NCSS and other books to try to help him sleep longer between feedings. We tried the Pantely pull off, alternate ways to comfort, nighttime routine etc. It was a long road and I am not sure what the magic trick was, but he is a dream compared to this now. I nurse him to sleep while sitting on the couch. When he's out, I pick him up and put him in our bed and he stays asleep. He wakes for one feeding at 2 am or so. I nurse him in bed, and slide him back into his spot next to me when he's done and he goes back to sleep.









If you are interested I can tell you some of the specific things that we tried to get him to this point. However, I think a lot of what helped is that he has matured/grown, whatever you want to say. So, hang in there. I know it seems like it will never end, but I assure you it will. Take one day at a time, tell yourself "this too shall pass" and get help/sleep any way you can. It won't be this way forever. Good luck.


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## Carolinamidwife (Dec 18, 2001)

What I am getting is that you can get her to sleep but she won't stay asleep without you. Like, her bedtime might be 7:30pm but unless you go to bed at 7:30 she wakes up... and you don't want to go to bed at 7:30. I don't blame you, now that she's 5 months there's no reason for you to need THAT much sleep.

Plus, I know you work and bring her so taking naps with her won't work...


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## nannymom (Jan 23, 2004)

Sheena is right I do bring her to work (we work 1/2 days) so sleeping when she sleeps isn't an option.
We do co-sleep and I'm nap her in our family bed. I think I may try nursing and slipping away.I think mostly I just wanted people to say it's a phase :LOL


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## MTBto5 (Jul 13, 2004)

I am having the same problem with my soon to be 8 month old. She just will not take a nap without me no matter what I try. I always try to sneek out and then up goes the big head :LOL For some reason my little one just doesn't require as much sleep as I wish she did!! I am also hoping this LONG phase will end shorty. My dd also gets up btween 2~3 times a night still to nurse. Best of luck to you.


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## nannymom (Jan 23, 2004)

Update-I was able to nurse her in bed then lay her down and sit there and pat her and rub her back and after about an hour escape. This was great b/c she went down at 7:30 and didn't wake to nurse untill 1:00.

I think a big part of this for me is that I know she needs the sleep she isn't getting b/c her mood is bad. I also worry that her brain can't grow and function with out enough rest.


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## boatbaby (Aug 30, 2004)

Try the stinky t-shirt trick!

I nurse DS to sleep and nap in the family bed. After he's out, I slip away but I leave behind a stinky t-shirt I have slept in or wore all day. That way my smell is still with him. When he stirs he just grabs the stinky t-shirt and stays asleep.

Good luck!


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