Sleep Troubles

I had the same problem, I was told not to elevate the mattress, they make a pad that is like a mini mattress that is elevated, I used it, my son is 8 months now and he sits and rolls everywere, so I dont use it as much. I got it off Target.com, good luck

M.,
My daughter also has reflux... serious spitter and reflux medicated. Just read a book called Colic Solved by a very respected GI doctor...it is mostly about reflux. Highly recommend it.. anyway my point is, in the book he actually says tummy sleeping is better for reflux kids because the food in their stomach pools away from the LES muscle which triggers the reflux. He still recommends starting them on their back to prevent sids, but if they are mature enough to tummy sleep that is actually better for the reflux. Anyway, worth a read if you get a chance!

Also, fyi he mentions wedges may or may not help... no conclusive evidence. Found it made no difference in my daughter, and was more of a sids risk than anything. (Just my opinion :) Best of luck!!

My daughter is 7 months old so we recently went through this, too. For a few weeks it would take her 45 minutes to wind down and go to sleep at naptime! I didn't want her to associate bed with play so I tried a couple different things. I let her play about 10 minutes and then went and put her on her back and gave her her lovey. Of course that didn't work. I tried being calm and rocking with her while reading a book for about 10 minutes before I put her in bed so she'd calm down. That helped a little bit. What helped the most, though, is when I put her in bed and kept my hand on her tummy so she couldn't roll over. I stayed there until she looked pretty drowsy. Something in there worked because now she'll play and scoot around for 5-10 minutes and then go to sleep. Now she's starting to pull up so I'm sure we'll go through it all again! Good luck!

My daughter stared rolling at 2.5 months. I was very worried becasue of SIDS. My doctor said that if they roll on their own, than they can get out of a precarious position. Of course I checked on her a hundred times a night for the first month and no matter how many times I put her on her back, she rolled right back to her stomach! Eventually, I just stopped worrying. She is now 7 months and as healthy as can be! I did not use a sleep positioner, because it is my understanding that once they start rolling, they can roll with it, and get trapped. That really really worried me.

Since every baby is different, I would call the doctor. They usually have triage lines where a nurse well versed in these types of questions can give you an answer, especially since your baby has acid reflux.

Good luck!

Hi M.,

I would suggest treating your sons acid reflux. There are several things that would cause it at that age. I am a chiropractor and I treat infants for refulx on a regular basis. It can be caused by enzyme deficiencies, the digestive tract being off due to previous antibiotic use, allergies to formula/breast milk or food, or it can be structural. When areas in the spine are out of alignment, it can put pressure on the nerves in the back that innervate the digestive tract. This pressure can result in reflux. An adjustment helps to take the pressure off of the nerves so the digestive tract can function optimally. The great thing is that kids respond very quickly to chiropractic care! My daughter loves to get adjusted. If you have any questions, please don't hesitate to call me at ###-###-####. Thanks! Dr. Sandra S.

I have 3 boys all had severe reflux and my Dr. told me that when they are able to roll over just let them roll over. 5 month is a little old to have the positioner in the crib. you don't want them to have the air obstructed by the positioner if they roll over. My first son slept in his car seat until he was 5 months and able to roll both ways on his own and my 2nd son slept on his tummy from the age of 2 weeks because his reflux was so severe he could not lay on his back or he would choke. so I let my 3rd son sleep on his tummy also. but they were all healthy and i would keep the room tempretaure at about 74 degrees because the colder the air and the more air movement in the room the less likely carbon monoxide can build up in there crib area and decrease the good air for breathing. all 3 boys were an Prevacid and the 2nd son was also on Bethanecol (sp?) for the reflux. Zantac did not work for us. My Dr said if in doubt and you baby will sleep in the car seat then that is a safe place as long as it is belted in and positioned so it can not roll over onto any surface that is soft and pose a smothering risk if the car seat rolled over. One of our sons also slept in his swing after a surgery when he was 4 months and his bouncy for a while. Good luck, A. J

Unfortunately, once they can roll over on their own...there is not a whole lot that you can do about it! I do understand the need to have him elevated, but is there a reason why you are opposed to him stomach sleeping at this point? I know that I prefer to sleep on my stomach - my two pregnanices almost killed me because of theis exact reason - I couldn't sleep on my back! Good luck!

We had the same problem. My pedi told us not to worry about it, and that the AAP recommendation of back-sleeping doesn't apply to babies with reflux. They actually do much better on their tummies. We lowered his mattress at this point and let him sleep on his tummy and he was more comfortable and the reflux didn't get better or worse - he just slept better. Hope that helps!

Hi M.,
I can't address the acid refulx, but when my children were able to roll over by themselves, my doctor said that there is really nothing you can do to keep them on their back and it should be okay. The primary problem when they can't roll over is their head can move and they can suffocate when on their tummies. So...once they can turn over by themselves, it becomes less of a problem. I worried, but there was really nothing I could do to stop them...so we just lived with it. If you are truly worried, they do make an alarm to put on the bed that is like a mattress pad. If it does not feel movement in a given period of time the alarm goes off. I didn't get one, but it may make you feel better.
Good luck, A.