Day time sleeps - a nightmare!

Hi all,
I know this may be a common problem, but our 7 and a half week old is having a lot of trouble settling into her naps during the day. I put her down in her cot as soon as I see the tired signs, yaws, clenched fists, jerky movements etc., after humming a lullaby and darkening the room. She will sometimes start crying as soon as she is put down, other times she is quiet for a few minutes before staring to cry. We let her cry for around 10 mins (very hard to handle). We then go in and give her a pat, (sooner that 10 mins if she is really revving up), but because she is on her back, I can really only pat the side of her tummy as she doesn't seem to like being placed on her side, and so this doesn't settle her down. We leave again for a few minutes and her crying usually really revs up, so we go in after around 5 mins, pick her up (crying stops), put her down again, and as soon as her head touches the sheet she starts again! At this stage, we have been using the dummy, as it seems to calm her instantly, and she usually falls asleep with this, but sometimes needs us to put it back in once or twice early on if it falls out.
Does this sound familiar? We would ideally love our little one to be able to settle herself, and so we are trying to do what we think is right, but it is so hard! Any ideas / experiences would really be appreciated.
Jane, Brisbane

he jane,
i cant offer much advise, but i can tell you my 6 1/2 week old is doing the same! so at least you arent alone! i dont know if it is part of their development or that they need to be taught to self settle, but all i know is that what you are doing is the same as me, and other people in other posts say that is what sleep clinics say. so i think it is just peserverence and consistency and fingers crossed that they get it! how does your little one sleep at night?

Hey jane,
I know exactly how you feel! My bub was (and sometimes still is) like that. I remember holding her and rocking her at night thinking surely I'm going to fall asleep standing up!!! Have you tried wrapping bub? That used to work really well for me. Also wondering do you give her her dummy before she starts to cry or after? We usually give bub her dummy when I can see she's starting to get tired, cause I know that sometimes if you try and give it to them once they're worked up they just wont take it.

If you need any extra help or just wanna talk my e-mail address is lapislazuli333@hotmail.com

Wish you all the best!

Firstly let me say that we are all trying to do what is best for our babies and obviously love them to bits!

I have a DD the same age as your baby. She has reflux so has been sleeping very badly. During the day she sleeps anywhere from 20 min to 3 hrs at a time. To settle her I rock and pat in my arms until she is basically asleep and put her down. If she wakes, which she sometimes does after 5 minutes, I try rocking and patting in the cot which usually works. If not I pick her up and try again.

Babies have an inate need at this age to be around their parents. Back in the dark ages it was actually a survival technique to keep them safe from preditors. They are not designed to be by themselves. As for bad habits, Im afraid babies dont think like adults, they can not at this age reason cause and effect ie I get a cuddle if I cry, so do what you have to do. If it upsets you to hear them cry then trust your instincts and dont let them cry! I have tried not to let DD2 cry (hard with a 2 yr old to attend to as well but doable) and she is a very placid baby. No arsnic hour thank goodness.

After having an atrotious sleeper in DD1 ( she only started sleeping through at 20mths) and trying everything the "experts" suggest I have come to the conclusion that you cannot change a babies sleeping habits, they will do what they want to do so just sit back and enjoy what you can.