Question About My Baby Sleeping on Her Face at Nine Months

My little guy (who is now a year) occasionally sleeps like that, too, face down - in the corner - up on his knees. Looks funny and seems really uncomfortable, but it works and he has been fine.

My baby is 9 mo and has been sleeping this way since he was 4 mo old. He would literally stuff his face into the corner of his crib, and on top in it he sucks his 2 middle fingers when he sleeps. I was more concerned about it them because he was so small, but since 9 mo olds can usually sit themselves up and roll over at will, they are fine. Really they will respond just like we do if they cannot breathe, the will move till they can. My son does use a loosely knit blanket, but I stay away from think solid ones. You baby should be just fine :) Hope this helps!

C., As long as she can roll herself over now, she's OK. I know it's unsettling to you, but she should be fine. She just has to be ABLE to move out of that position on her own, but at 9 months, she should be able to. Try not to worry about it. She'll be fine. Don't start habits of having her sleep in your bed now, or you'll really be regretting it.

She is more at risk sleeping with you to be honest.
If she is strong enough to hold her head up, able to roll over herself she is fine.

My son was in a back positioner and actually would flip himself over the top of it and end up on his stomach at 5 mos.!! I was so worried. I was in a panic! The Pediatrician reassured me if there is nothing in the crib, NO BUMPERS nothing that he is fine. It has more to do with strength then anything else. Both of my kids ended up sleeping on their tummies and slept so much better.

Babies have instincts if their airways are being blocked to raise their head. She is obviously getting air. Make sure the sheets are on tight, nothing in the crib and make sure bumpers are removed (these are dangerous).
If she is comfortable you cannot force her on her back.
At 9 mos I would say she is probably close to crawling, rolling around, able to pull up and get herself flipped around for comfort and should be fine! :)

At two my daughter latched on to one of her shirts for a "blankie", she had it with her at every nap and bedtime for security, I used to flip out as she would put it over her nose and mouth to smell it to fall asleep!! I would go in and remove it and it ended up right back there. The nurse kind of giggled at me as I was so worried about her suffocating however what could I do really? Take it away?
She was fine, still does this and is seven! I have a friend whos 6 year old sleeps with covers over her head!!!

My kids always slept better on their stomachs. Not the 'right' way, but somehow they survived. ;)

I think as some have said, after about 6 mos or whenever they start to roll over, it isn't as big of a concern that they sleep on their backs. Just my $.02.

I know that raising kids can be very scary. We all have our ways that we like to sleep and if that is her way then just go with it. I would make sure that she is sleeping on a flat, hard surface. By this age she has really good control of her neck and her body over all. Just try to hold her nose when she is sleeping and see what happens. It is scary, but this is just the beginning of her many milestones.

As everyone has stated, there is no problem with her sleeping on her stomach at this age. Starting at 3 months, when my son first learned to roll over, he has slept on his tummy. We used a sleep sack and usually before I could even get him into that, he was trying to roll over. The tummy part made me a little nervous, but what made me more nervous was the bumpers because he burrowed in so deeply. I tried to take them out and put the breathable ones in, but he burrowed so hard that he would have dents in his forehead after his nap. I then tried to weave the original bumper through the slats, but he still got the dents. I came across the cozy wedges http://www.cozywedge.com/index.html (I have no connection to this product), and bought them. I have felt so much better ever since because he can burrow, but his face doesn't get smashed into them.

I always lay him down on his back, and he rolls over if he so chooses (which he ALWAYS does). He also sleeps with a blanket (and the sleep sack), and I have noticed that he will fuss if he somehow gets it over his head, but that has only happened once or twice, and usually when he is fighting his nap. I use the monitor, but other than that, I don't worry any more. Good luck!

My kids both do this. My son is now two and my daughter is just 4 1/2 months. My son sleeps in the weirdest positions! We let him sleep however he wanted because he was always a terrible sleeper. My daughter is already a better sleeper than he is and it's wonderful. :)

The advice you've gotten is great. She's old enough to roll, so don't stress it. Just make sure there's circulating air and nothing squishy in the crib, and she'll be just fine.

Generally, once a baby has learned to roll over, they will end up sleeping in whatever position is most comfortable. Your Ped. should be able to tell you where to find some guidelines on growth and development. Remember though, they are just guidelines, you baby may be faster or slower, neither of which are a concern, unless she ends up several months behind.
Something I found with my kids, They will sleep in whatever position is comfortable and when they are old enough to start rolling over they are able to move out of an uncomfortable position by themselves. Also, generally, once a child is old enough to ask for their own pillow, they don't need one. My twins never had a pillow until they were almost 10 and now they just play with their pillows "trying to get comfortable".
My best suggestion would be to look around online and find as many growth and development guidelines as you possibly can, then you'll have a fairly good idea of what to expect over the next few years.
Good Luck and Good Sleeping

After a baby can roll over both ways, they're allowed to sleep any way they want. It's only for newborns that they have to sleep on their backs.
About sticking her face in the mattress, I would probably feel nervous about it, despite my knowledge that she wouldn't sleep that way if she couldn't breathe. So I would probably go in there and try turning her head to the side. She might sleep through that.
But if she keeps turning her head face-down, I'd just give up and let her sleep that way.

My son started wrapping his head in a long skinny piece of fleece when he slept. He couldn't sleep without it. It was cute and disconcerting at the same time. He stopped that, but now when he snuggles with me at night, he deliberately sticks his face in my neck. He starts breathing kind of hard to get enough oxygen. I can't stand to sleep like that, but he seems to like it. I think it helps him fall asleep, because we all slow our breathing when we sleep, reducing our oxygen intake. And he's almost 3, so he's perfectly capable of moving.
I think your daughter is, too.

Good luck, and try not to worry!

My daughter did the same thing at 7 months. I just kept turning her over until she was a little older, and she was more mobile. She eventaully started sleeping in other positions.

I have a 10 day old son who sleeps on his tummy. Babies like to sleep this way. Your daughter is 9 months old and can move if she gets hot or has a hard time breathing. Let her sleep - and you get some sleep, too.

Vicki is right about tummy sleeping. I have a sister who is 9 years younger than I am and the doctors said (at that time) to put babies on their tummies so if they spit up they wouldn't choke. The whole "back to sleep" thing didn't come about until within the last 25 to 30 years. Let your girl sleep!

My four children slept this way from the time we brought them home from the hospital. They are now in their 30's and 20's! The medical profession used to tell us not to put them on their backs because they'd choke on spitup. As long as your baby doesn't have a pillow or blanket in bed with her, I think she's fine. I always put blanket sleepers on them in the winter. Do they still have those?

Well, I'm no expert, but I think that because of her age she should be ok. I would think that she's old enough that if it were a problem she would simply turn her head. After they start rolling and crawling there's not a whole lot you can do about how they sleep without making yourself crazy! Maybe just take the bumper pad out of her crib if you haven't already, don't use a pillow for a while, and use a sleep sack instead of blankets so they don't get up around her face. Hopefully this will give you some peace of mind!

When I read your post, it reminded me of when my kids were babies. I tried, with every one of them, having them sleep on their backs because that is what we were told to do to avoid SIDS. None of them would sleep!! When they were very small, we actually had them sleep in their infant car seat, and they slept really well, but when they got too big and we put them on their backs, they wouldn't sleep. 3 of my kids had a lot of gas problems, and I think that sleeping on their backs made their tummies hurt because they were all stretched out. Our second child I remember would cry for hours if we tried to have him sleep in his back, and go to sleep immediately if we put him on his tummy. After reading a lot about SIDS, to me it was clear that the problem was NOT sleeping on their tummies, but sleeping on soft, thick comforters or pillows that suffocated them. So for our last child we just made sure there were no toys or pillows in the crib, and let him sleep on his tummy and he slept for hours. I feel it is perfectly safe for babies to sleep on their tummies on a firm crib mattress with only a sheet on it, and a blanket over them. Also, most SIDS deaths are in younger infants that can't lift their heads. At nine months, I would think that your daughter could move from a position that is suffocating her. Bottom line: let her sleep on her tummy, just take care what kind of soft items are in the crib with her.

C.,

Our daughter started sleeping on her belly and sometimes face when she was about 5 or 6 months and we just monitored it, but I agree, checking every 20 minutes can be frustrating. Rather than turning her over completely, maybe try and just turning her head to the side. I used to do this and it wouldn't disturb her to the point of waking up.

Good luck!
H.

I agree that once they can roll over, they're fine to sleep however they are comfortable. I would just remove anything soft that she could bury into and let her sleep. Our son started sleeping with a heavy blanket over his face at six months and our 9 month old sleeps with a smaller one over her face. Both are security blankets, so not an option to not use. It's never been a problem for us other than when our son was in the hospital in an oxygen tent. They did ask that I not let him cover himself so he could get the medicines. Other than that, they let him sleep with it over his head, so I figured it must be okay. His is really heavy, too. Enjoy her good sleep and go get some of your own. :)

My ped. told me that once they can turn themselves over that I didn't have to worry about it. Keep a fan going in the room to keep the air circulating and don't stress about it.

My son did this too and the doctor said to start him on his back (if he rolls over he rolls over) and make sure there are not stuffed animals, blankets, crib bumpers etc. and let and and you sleep. If you want to use a blanket check out the SIDS web sight they show you how to tuck the blanket in to keep little ones from getting under them the wrong way.

I would mention it to the dr, maybe just leave a message with the nurse asking if it is a problem....But other than that I would put a fan on in the room to improve air circulation and remove her bumper pad if you use one. If you want you might try putting per head to the side vs. turning her over. She is probably fine!

R.

Dear C.,
If your baby can turn her head by herself, in her sleep she would turn it if she were not able to breath. I would think it is just like if a child were to try not to breath, the worse thing that could happen is they will pass out and they would start breathing again. If your baby has some special issues that would cause her NOT to turn her head while asleep, then maybe you should worry a little...if not, she is sleeping so well, she must be okay. Good luck.