You mentioned that you have a 3 month old son who has learned to roll from his back to his tummy, but he can't go from his tummy to his back yet, and he changes position in the middle of the night, and wakes himself up, and gets into a frenzy, because he doesn't like the position he's in. And this is affecting everyone's ability to sleep, so I can understand your frustration, for sure. He's actually ahead of schedule, developmentally. Most babies haven't mastered the skill of rolling over until sometime between 4 and 7 months. And usually, they learn how to go from their stomach to their backs first, but every baby is different. Some do it in reverse, and that's okay. But know that, from a developmental standpoint, it might take him a little while to learn how to roll from his tummy to his back. Keep working with him on it during the day, and hopefully he'll master this skill soon and be able to help himself into comfortable positions at night.
Do keep in mind that the safest position for him to sleep in is on his back. This significantly helps to reduce the risk of SIDS, or sudden infant death syndrome. But that doesn't mean that, as a parent, you have to stand over him all night and make sure that he stays on his back. Just start him out on his back, and then if he changes positions into a more comfortable position during the night, that's okay. Just do your best to reduce SIDS in other ways, like keeping all extra soft fluffy things outside of his crib for the entire first year. Most cases of SIDS are due to strangulation, entrapment, and suffocation, so if you eliminate those risks, like keeping bumper pads, pillows, extra blankets and stuffed animals out of the crib, that will also reduce the risk.
I do also recommend talking with your pediatrician about the observations and concerns you have. Based on their knowledge of your son's development and overall well-being, they'll be able to talk to you about whether or not it's the appropriate time to sleep-train, or if you should wait a little bit longer. Once the pediatrician gives you the green light to sleep-train, then you can actually teach him how to self-soothe by either letting him "cry it out", and just letting him realize that he doesn't get what he wants most when he cries, which is you, or you can just try a more graduated approach where you just give him 5 or 10 minutes before you go in and respond to him. And then go in and help him assume a more comfortable position, or just gently touch his tummy, turn around and walk back out of the room, reassuring him that you're there, but also giving him an opportunity to learn how to self-soothe. And if he continues to cry, then incrementally and slowly increase the amount of time you wait till you go in and check on him again.
So the first time, you might wait 5 or 10 minutes, and then the next time, you wait 10 to 15, and the next time is 15 to 20, the next time is 30 minutes. And do this for as long as you're comfortable with doing it. And if you're persistent and consistent about it, and don't give in and pick him up or do whatever it is he wants you to do to comfort him in the middle of the night, if you stick with it for 4 to 7 nights, then he will learn how to self-soothe, and you'll all start sleeping better. But again, don't start this process until the pediatrician has given you the green light. If you have any other questions for me in the future, feel free to ask them on our Facebook page at [ Ссылка ], and recommend us to your friends and family too.
