I can't lay my baby down after he falls asleep

[rileys_mom2005]

I really need some advice here.  I have a 5 month old boy who has sleeping problems.  He hasn't been good at it since birth but it's getting worse.  He does not take naps at all.  He may nap in my arms for 5-10 mins but if I lay him down, he is up again.  At night, He falls asleep in my arms, I try to lay him down and he wakes up just as he is about to lie on the mattress.  He will sleep if he sleeps with me but I don't want him sleeping in my bed all the time.  I've tried letting him cry but he just cries harder.  I'm really at my witts end and need some advice here. 

[Richelle]

HI,

Do you have either of Tracy's books?  YOu have to use the different techniques of pat/shh or PUPD to teach independent sleep to your LO.  It will be hard but if you want him to sleep on his own, he needs to learn to go to sleep on his own without letting him cry it out with Tracy's techniques. 

Like I said it will take a huge commitment on your part and a consistent plan but you can do it.  Let us know if you have read the books and maybe we can go from there.

[rileys_mom2005]

Well our daily routine has changed some since he has been born but I'll let you in what it's like now.  If he sleeps in his crib through the night, he gets up around 5.  I usually take him out in bed with me and feed him there just because I am so tired.  Then we get up around 9ish.  If he has slept with me through the whole night, he wakes at 8:30.  So after we are up, we have cereal and some milk and then his bath.  By then he is tired again.  I rock him and he falls asleep.  I wait maybe up to 1/2 hour and try to lay him down.  He will not go down in his crib at all but if I lay him on my bed, he will take about 45mins to an hour nap. Then he is up again.  So we have some play time.  When that is up, he will have his lunch then some more play.  Then he is tired again and this is around 2pm.  Sometimes I rock him to sleep, he might lay down on my bed but sometimes he won't go for that either.  Today for instance, we layed on my bed together.  He fell asleep there.  This nap varies.  Sometimes it's from 5-20 mins upto 3 hours long.  Then he will get up to feed again.  After that there is some play then a quickie nap in my arms.  He won't go down at all after that.  And thats around 5ish.  So for the rest of the evening it's mostly play time until between 10-11pm.  Thats when he gets tired again.  So he usually falls asleep on the bottle.  I was breastfeeding but I am trying to wean.  We only BF 2-3 times a day now.  He'll fall asleep that way.  I rock for at least 30 mins afterward and then try to lay him down.  Some nights he goes right down, most nights he don't.  It's usually up and down.  I've trying patting his back and shh, I've put a pillow at his side, I've taken him out and rocked him again, and I've sang to him.  It usually doesn't work.  So depending how tired I am, he may end up in bed with me again. And thats a typical day for us. 
 I have not read Tracy's books.  It was only last week I think that a friend mentioned her to me so when I get to a book store, I will certainly look for them.  I have read up on the PUPD method.  I have tried it but probably not as much as I should have.

[naunmom]

Just wanted to share that pat/shh never seemed to work for me (maybe I was too sleep deprived to keep at it).  But I basically held dd to sleep until recently ... now I'm doing pu/pd and she seems to respond better to that with a little pat/shh when I lay her down.  I'm only pu/pd for naps at the moment.  For night time sleep I do a swaddle/jiggle.  It's craziness!

Good luck and hang in there!

[rileys_mom2005]

Hey there,
 I just wanted to give a quick update.  I bought Tracy's book "the baby whisperer solves all your problems" and so far it did.  We bought the book saturday and myself and my husband just flicked through it and it already helped.  We do the wind down then pat/shh and he goes right to sleep and I can lay him down.  It really amazed me.  I'm so happy I bought the book.  I just hope it keeps working for us.