at my witts end

[babymou]

Well, I had a method of putting my lo down for naps, was working great up to 2 weeks ago. She is almost 12 weeks old. I would sit and rock her till she was drowsy and then put her down.Now as soon as i swaddle her, she starts to freak out, she crys really hard for 2 to 10 minutes then she is out like a light. I do the shh pat, but she crys so hard...turning really red type cry, that i feel so bad for her. I stopped swaddleing and she does the same thing. so what should I do. I am so afraid of teaching her bad sleep habits, like depending on the swing to put her to sleep. Or am I overreacting....I am just so second guessing myself lately. I need some reassurance and advice. I feel like just when I think things are going smoothly things change.  We are on 3 hour easy, have been since she was 6 weeks old. I am watching out for her tired cues and I put her down with the first yawn or fuss. I have also tried putting her down sooner...same thing. please tell me she will learn the wind down routine. I am at my witts end.

[Aarismom]

Some babies need to let off steam before naps and bedtime, that's pretty normal. If she's really wailing and crying out for you, then it's probably a good idea if you stay in the room while she goes through it and try to calm her. However, if the cry is steady and doesn't escalate in pitch at all, what you're hearing is probably a mantra cry, and you can leave her be. I'm sure by now you know the difference between the "I'm just letting off steam" cry and the "I need you now!" cry. Mine has gone through that change as well, that is, going from an easy put down to crying a little bit before going to sleep. It happened around 3 months too. I figured out it was a way for her to self soothe; my being in the room made her more restless and upset. The moment I left she drifted off to sleep :lol:

It's so easy to second guess yourself...I think we've all done that more than once. Just trust your instinct and knowledge of your lo.

*HUGS*
Sonya =P

[Macadamiaqueen]

I am going through the same thing as the first message!  I get so tired and frustrated and when I get short with my little one at the end of the day I feel like a bad mom.  It's exhausting and it helps to know that I'm not the only one.  Everytime I feel like things are going great, they seem to get worse than they've ever been!

Anyhow, I guess all new moms go through this at the beginning - I just keep in mind what everyone else is saying, that it gets better!

Sometimes I call on Tracy in my thoughts - maybe she can transfer some of her good energy to the process..

[momofnewbaby]

My lo still "cries" before she sleeps. Its just her way of venting. As long as there are no tears, and she's not crying for me, I let her be, but if she is in distress, then I go in and comfort her.

HTH.

Sumita

[Jamasco]

I talked to my ped about this because my daughter used to cry all the time before going down and she reassured me that a lot of babies need to let off steam before going to sleep and it was perfectly normal.  A painful cry is a different story but crying to put themselves down is very normal.  Ends up she sleeps 10-11 hours a night since she was 4 months old.  I'm not going to complain about that!