Patting/Shush has become prop

[SMorrisette]

My baby is 6 1/2 months old.  We started with EASY when he was newborn.  The trouble is that he has gotten used to the patting/shushing to be put to sleep.  Nearly everytime that he wakes (in the middle of the night or in the middle of his naps) he has to be patted/shushed again - this is often 6-8 times a night.  He doesn't seem to be able to go back to sleep on his own.  I had thought that the patting/shushing was supposed to encourage independent sleep, but he has come to depend on it.  He starts crying again when I try to leave the room if he is still awake.

We also still swaddle him because he is not able to get to sleep unswaddled and wakes up even more when his swaddle comes off.  I am wondering if he is getting to big/old and is getting uncomfortable.  He also prefers to sleep on his side, and I am worried that this is unsafe (we use tightly wrapped blankets to prop him.

Any help/ideas greatly appreciated.

[Taylor's Mommy]

congrats on your son and starting him on EASY early on.  My questions to you is do you pat/shush all the way until he is asleep?  The idea being that you pat/shush to get them calm, esp. when they are a newborm, and to help them fall asleep in the crib from an awake state.  As they get older though, you are supposed to back off the pat/shush so that they don't need it to fall asleep.  So you would gradually decrease it and maybe just keep a firm hand on them, and then eventually just a few pats and leave them be to settle themself-but of course intervene if the need you.

pat/shush is great to soothe with young babies since they can't soothe themselves.  But as babies get older and can learn to start soothing themselves, you want to take it away gradually.

so...with that being said, if you have always pat/shushed all the way into deep sleep, then perhaps it has become a prop?