Standing in Crib -- Won't Sleep

It was the hardest thing I ever did, but I let them cry it out. I did this with my first child at 4 months and she has always been a good sleeper. I waited a little longer with the 2nd- we're just starting it now and she's 1. The first night was the worst. She cried for over 30 minutes- hysterically. Then it got to be shorter and shorter. After a few days they would cry a few minutes and fall asleep. Finally they would quietly go to sleep without any fuss at all. This also makes a big difference in night time wakings. They calm themselves down with out you having to come rock them to sleep again. Good luck!

Hi K.,

I have an active 11 month old boy who does the exact same thing. He was mostly co-sleeping with us and I thought that was part of the problem, he didn't love being in his crib. I recently let him cry it out, thankfully it wasn't as traumatic as I thought it would be. Now he sleeps at night in his crib, but we still do have the nap issue. I have found the only way to get him down is to rock him for his naps. Also, my husband for some reason can get him to go down for naps better than I can. sorry, not much help, but your not alone!

Hi K.,
I never let my son cry either it was just a phase I would rock him till he fell asleep (about 10 minutes) and then I would lay him down. It lasted about a week or so.

This is pretty normal. Both of my girls did it. It is very difficult to do, but I just let them cry a little, not for hours of course, and eventually they laid back down and went to sleep. It usually took 10 to 15 minutes depending on how active their day was. Some of the best advise I was given as a new mom (both of my girls are teens now)was that it doesn't hurt them to cry a little. Learning that they have boundaries will be priceless later to them and you. This time goes by quickly, before you know it he will be looking at colleges, so enjoy him.

Hi K.

The only thing you can do is leave him alone. Put him in his crib, and if he stands up and cries, he stands up and cries. Eventually he'll get the message that it is time to go to sleep and give up. Even though it is tough to listen to your child cry, it is necessary to help him to learn that his crying is not going to make you come back. I did this with my son, and the first day he cried for about an hour and a half. The second day it was like 15 minutes and the third day just laid right down and went to sleep. As a side note, the novelty of pulling himself up in the crib will wear off. Good luck!

B. M.

I know it is hard to do, buy you are probably going to have to let him cry for a little bit until he realizes you are not coming back in and he finally lays down and goes to sleep. I will probably be less than 15 minutes. If you do that for a couple days, he will realize you are not coming back in and he will start skipping the hysterics. It is good for him to learn self-soothing techniques that will be important in many other areas of his life. I would skip the blanket in the crib as SIDS is still a risk at this age. Good luck.

Dear K....Try getting a tape deck and putting childrens stories or music on for him...kids don't like being alone...but if you create a soothing atmoshere for them , they eventually calm down...Remember your child is very proud of being able to pull himself up to a standing....
Also, this helped me, put the tapes on during the day when he is playing around you, or in the car when you are driving...It becomes familiar to them, and they are comforted by them...Raffi is wonderful..."Baby Beluga "
good luck and happy new year
C.

If he can not climb out of the crib he is in no danger, so I would just let him be. You need your break and if he is not harming himself he will eventually sit down and fall asleep. Right now what he is learning is that if I stand up and whimper mommy will come back in. If mommy doesn't come back in then it will stop working for him and he will settle down. This worked with both of my boys who were early crawlers, standers, walkers, and talkers. The most important thing is to remember that nap time is more for you than for him. Make sure you get it because without it mommy isn't a happy mommy. And if momma ain't happy ain't nobody happy!
M.

You might also try teaching him to lie down. He can sure fall down safely in his crib, but he might need a little help learning how to get down in a controlled way. You can show him to lower to his knees, then bottom, then lie down. You can do this during play if he has a hard time doing it at nap/sleep time. Help him pull to a stand at a coffee table or other piece of furniture, then help him lower down. He will probably transfer the skill to his crib quickly.

B.

I never had to leave my son alone and let him cry. It's just a phase. You can read about it on www.askdrsears.com. They are so excited about their new abilities, all they want to do is practice. Just don't play with him or encourage it in any way, and it will go away quickly.

The problem is that you're going back in and laying him down. Let him stand up. When he's tired, he will lie back down and go to sleep. He's getting attention by doing it, because you go back in and try to fix it. Believe me, if he can stand up, he can lie down! Good luck.

My 9 month old did that as well. Logan is now 14 months but he was so excited about his new found ability that he would stand up the second we put him down. We let him stand there until he got so tired that he plunked over asleep. He would hang out with the pacifier in his mouth, looking at all the things in his room, singing or humming and eventually crash. I figured that if he was fine hanging out in there then I would let him until he would get pissed or fall asleep. Now Logan is fine going to bed in his crib, even if he is awake. He will just lie there until he is tired. In any case, so long as he isn't crying tons I would say let him hangout until he is exhausted. I have started letting Logan cry for 10 minutes or so if I can't seem to get him down otherwise. Good luck.
A.

leave him alone and let him cry for a bit. he wont cry forever and he is getting the desired effect when you come in

My son seemed to think he was being punished when I put him in his crib. He would stand up and cry - his eyes pleading to be picked up. I also knew he was really tired so I would put a pillow on the floor and lay down next to him. When he fell asleep, and he always did, I would pick him up and put him in his crib to finish his nap.

You might try putting a pacifier keeper (strap) on his pajamas so he won't lose his pacifier. There are also ones that can be used for toys - and can be used to keep toys inside the crib and at his sleeping level...so he'd have to be sitting or laying on the mattress to play with them.