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moses basket hell!

we need help, Evie has decided she no longer wants to sleep in her moses basket- she's only 3 1/2 weeks old! she will go to sleep no problems in my arms or on dh chest but as soon as we put her down in her moses basket she wakes up screaming. bed times are becoming a nightmare as we are not getting any sleep. she ended up sleeping inbetween us in bed last night (naughty i know but it was the only way we could get any sleep)
she used to sleep in it fine of a day but today she has been a pain and wont sleep anywhere other than on me and dh.
what can we do as i am slowly going mad trying to get her to settle!

xxxxx

Replies

  • Try propping up her moses basket slightly at one end, we did this with my little boy when he was a similar age as he got trapped wind and hated being laid flat .
    xx
  • I'm not sure I can give you any easy answer, but when this happened to me with Amber (now 8 wks old), I just decided that I would dedicate myself to soothing her once she was in the basket (used a dummy and shhhing). I spent a long time sitting next to her in her basket, holding her hand, shhing and putting dummy back in 'til she went to sleep. She's still not perfect and after her 4am feed often won't settle and I'm so tired I take her in bed with me, but we are getting there, so I'd say perseverance and refusing to give up is key. You are in charge, not your lo (even tho it doesn't always seem like it). Good luck xx
  • My LO outgrew her moses basket at 6 weeks and wouldn't settle. As soon as we put her in the cot (moved the bumper down so she didn't travel too far) she has slept through the night. Might be worth a try if you thing your LO is ready.

  • My lo hated his moses basket. I thought it was because he wasnt on me, or on his back, or flat, so i tried propping up his basket, putting bits of my clothing in there, on his side, rocking it, dummies, the works. Eventually i twigged it was because he was enclosed and couldn't see around, so i put him in his cot and haven't had a problem since. He was only little, but he's swaddled so he still feels secure, but he is obviously comforted by not being so enclosed. Not all babies like their moses baskets, so it might be worth trying a change of location x
  • Hey there.
    Ruby was exactly the same. She slept on us for the first 2 weeks, we took it in 2 hourly shifts throughout the day and night so that we could get sleep, my Mum and Dad also ended up taking shifts!

    After that she slept in our bed for 6 weeks. We pushed it up against the wall, put a bolster down the 'gap' and she slept on that side, with me next to her and oh on the other side!
    It wasn't ideal from a sleeping point of view or for safety but it was the only way any of us could sleep!

    Eventually, I went into the nursery with her, I slept on a camp bed and put her into the basket and let her cry it out (on the HV recommendation and my Mum!).
    She cried for an hour and a half solidly the first time and then about half an hour after each feed that night.
    The second night was less and the third night barely anything!

    After that, we both moved back into our bedroom (went in the nursery originally so oh could sleep in our bedroom as he had work!) and she slept in the basket next to my side of the bed until about 4 months when she went into a crib.
    She hated that and so after just 3 nights, we put her into her cot and she was fine!

    It is not easy, trust me and we spent months going through the 'controoled crying' and it is sooo hard but so worth it,
    Your lo is very young at the moment hun and so if you can, just do what feels best for you. I wouldn't personally let her cry it out at this stage.

    Ruby would never sleep on her back either and so against all recommendations, she went to sleep on her side.

    Don't get me wrong, this method was by no means easy and really an only resort and in hindsight, I LOVED having her sleep in bed with me for the first 6 weeks! I just knew it would cause longer term sleep problems if it continued.
    As it was, we really had sleep problems up until this month (she is now six and a half months old) and sometimes still have to let her cry herself to sleep, although now it is easy as I know her cries and what means what and if she is just 'playing up' or overtired I know she will go to sleep after a few minutes.
    Anyway, sorry for the long post, I do know what you are going through though and wanted to let you know I have been there!
    P.S We still rocked her to sleep in our arms before putting her in the basket until about 5 months!!

    P.P.S Just talking to oh, saying that we remember what it was like and although at the time it is knackering, in hindsight, the cuddling back then was such a special time.
    xxx
  • all great advice i dont know what to do for the best! my mw said swaddling wasn't done much anymore dure to SIDS as it traps too much heat close to baby. we were told to roll a towel up into a sausage and bend it over her head and down her sides to make her feel more secure. we've had no luck obviosuly! i agree that leaving her to cry at this age is not the answer. i think she just hates the moses basket full stop so we might be better trying her in her cot, but wont be tonight as need to wash the bedding as caught the cat sleeping in the cot after he sneaked into the nursery! thanks for the advice xxx
  • Hi Rachel,

    we had the same problem with our little one as well but one of our friends recommended The First Years Lullaby Player (http://www.mothercare.com/The-First-Years-Lullaby-player/dp/B000M5GE26/sr=1-32/qid=1234395945/ref=sr_1_32/203-8557150-2879935?_encoding=UTF8&m=A2LBKNDJ2KZUGQ&n=44387031&mcb=core)

    It hangs on the side of the basket or cot and has a noise detector and as soon as they move or make a noise, it makes a heartbeat noise which settles them back down. It worked a treat for our little girl (especially as she hated being swaddled!)

    Might be worth a try?

    Good luck! xx
  • Hiya,

    We swaddle my little boy and have done since birth. As far as i know swaddling doesn't contribute to SIDS as long as you swaddle them correctly with a safe blanket and remember that swaddling increases tog values x3 so reduce the amount of blankets that you put over them to avoid overheating. My HV knows we swaddle my son and is happy with it as it means we all sleep! We use a miracle blanket (http://www.miracleblanket.com) and it has honestly been a godsend x
  • Hi

    Were having same prob with Jaimi-Lee... Shes only 12 days old but we needed to nip it in the bud, so my health visitor explained to me what's happening...
    When we cuddle her in and soothe/sshhh her to sleep she is happy & content in mummy and daddys arms, but then when we put her in her moses basket she wakes up and gets a fright as she cant see mummy and daddy anymore and doesnt know where she is. So the health visitor suggested we put her up to bed in her moses basket alone and awake so she learns to settle herself. We 1st did this 2 nights ago at 9pm and it broke my heart watching her on monitor crying, but she only cried for about 10mins then slept until 2am!! yay!
    We did it again last night and she slept til 3am!! image

    So, so far it is working and she seems much happier in her moses basket now. Also, she suggested we put her to sleep through the day in her pram and leave moses for bed time so she can associate basket with night time and pram as day time, she did explain she may not learn much until about 6 weeks, but we are trying now to get her used to it.

    Hope that helps
    Sharon xx
    http://m1.lilypie.com/pQPd0/.png

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