A three week old baby refuses to sleep in his crib

Question

We have a 3 week old sweet baby boy. We got used that for the first few months there is very little order in his feeding/sleep time, but during night time, he wakes up to eat (my wife's breastfeeding him), after food time he sleeps very well if he is on a nice and comfortable pillow (the pillow on my knees).

But if we put him in his crib after 2 minutes he is crying and wants to eat again. Almost like something is bothering him on the crib, we tried to put him on the pillow in the crib and he slept well. But the problem is when he sleeps on the crib mattress.

Did anyone experience something like that? How can we make him sleep in his crib? Would love some advice.

Answer 1

Some ideas you could consider (these are all based on personal experience):

• prewarm the crib with a warm hot water bottle

• get the baby to sleep in a sling-type carrier, and when it's time to transfer to the crib, bend over and undo the carrier at the shoulder, so you can gently set the baby and the sling down on the crib together.

• noise machine or radio tuned to static -- or noisy fan not pointed at the baby

• jiggling the baby or the crib can help with falling asleep

• for a daytime nap, you and the baby can sleep together (not too close to each other) on the big bed. Lie on your side. Your breathing will help the baby regulate himself and be comfortable within himself.

• don't be afraid to give the baby "dessert" a few minutes after he has eaten his "mail meal" -- this is called cluster feeding. The baby may wake up 15 minutes after nursing crying for more, and if this happens, feed the baby!

Note that at three weeks, your baby is still a newborn. A baby often needs to grow to a more substantial size before it can start spacing out its night-time feedings.

Amazingly, the less housework the mother does, and the more rest she gets with the baby close by, the better in sync they will get with each other.

By the way, please don't put the pillow in the crib, for safety's sake.

Answer 2

At this age, a smaller bassinet with close sides might feel more comfortable than a giant crib.

Answer 3

When my baby was that little, we got her to sleep in the crib using a travel co-sleeper. It's like a bassinet without legs, and is intended for putting in the parent's bed between the parents so that you have a safe place to put the baby during trips. We put the co-sleeper directly in the crib, so she would be used to the crib itself, but still have the security of the close walls. Once she outgrew it, we just took the co-sleeper out of the crib, and she was already used to the crib, so no problems with the transition. The model we got also had a vibration/nightlight/music box unit on it.

Answer 4

I have 2 girls. Neither one slept in the crib. I spent 4 years sleeping in their bed with them.

About the best advise I can give on the subject is that you know how much sleep you need to not die behind the wheel. If you're willing to keep fighting a crib then I believe persistence will eventually lead to your baby taking to a crib. Eventually they will realize you're there and be more comfortable. At 3 months, I think a bassinet might be easier for you to deal with since there's less awkwardness when bending over to get or place your baby in the sleeping area. Mine always woke up when I tried to get them down into the pit of the crib. But the bassinet was just shallow enough to not cause an issue transitioning.

However, the flip side... if you're like me and want to die as soon as your sleep is destroyed, then even a little time fighting the crib of vast meaninglessness is far too much for the payoff that only others can see. As far as I'm concerned, the crib offers no security that couldn't be accomplished by a huge mattress on the floor where they cant fall. So that's what I did. And I did the whole co-sleep thing. When it was time to transition back into reality they handled it perfectly fine. Now they sleep with regular routine.

I personally don't see the overall purpose of a crib. To me a crib is like a bike. Everyone I know who has crib experience tells stories of escaping the crib. Some to safety, some to falls. Just like everyone I know who has rode a bike at some point got hit by a car. Some things in life I just don't understand what the purpose of adopting are. Is it a fantasy of what a nursery is supposed to be? Are they used as containment utilities and not strictly just for sleep? A societal convention? I not only believe, but have lived the scenario that proves cribs are unnecessary, and rather burdensome.