Stomach Sleeper

My son was and still is a tummy sleeper at 4. He was never comfortable on his back and his side was the only way I could get him to sleep when he was younger. He started rolling over at 3 months and would always roll onto his stomach when I laid him down, so I started leaving him alone at that point. If she is rolling herself into this position, then you really don't have anything to worry about.

My second child would only sleep on her stomach. On her back or her side, she would scream - not cry or whimper, but SHRIEK. So, we let her sleep however she was comfortable. She's 23 now. :)

yes my babies all did it by the time they were 6months on a regular basis...my oldest daughter turned over when she was 2 days old! & she would do it at least a couple of times a day! talk about freaked out! but at 7 months they are able to control their head so i wouldnt worry i always laid them on their back but if they turned themselves over at that age then i wouldnt disturb them...when my dd was an infant i would swaddle her so she couldnt turn over though lol i was a nervous wreck lol

Yes, my DD is 8 mo now but has rolled onto her tummy from 3 mo old. I used to use a sleep positioner to keep her on her back but she outgrew it / hated it. I think you just have to let her do it. I put my DD in a fuzzy sleep vest over her jammies versus giving her a blanket. Nothing in the crib and I use a video monitor to check on her. Good luck!

The was a research study done years ago that did autopsies on SIDS babies and in ever single baby there was a subluxation of the upper cervical spine (neck). Every baby that died of SIDS in this study had this. Chiropractors check and correct subluxations. If you are worried of SIDS, I urge you to have your daughter checked by a pediatric chiropractor. Check out icpa4kids.com to find one. My daughters have had chiropractic care since a few days after they were born and they are very healthy. Might be worth checking it outnif you are worried.

At 7 months, the risk is not really there They have the head control and are able to turn and roll over. Mine have always slept on their stomachs since birth. The back to sleep campaign makes SIDS sound like it was a 25% death rate or something. And although absolutely awful for those that happens to, the risk is so low. Prior to the back to seep campaign, the SIDS risk was .12%. Now it's .06%. Would you be as worried if the marketing campaign was - sleeping on your back decreases your risk of SIDS by .06%? Also the reduction of bumpers, blankets, pillows, smoking, etc. also reduces the risk. So the entire .06% reduction can't even be contributed to back sleeping alone.

as soon as my kids could roll over there was NO keeping them on their back. If you are concerned then there are sensor monitors that you can get to put under the mattress that detects motion and breathing.

My eight month old son is a stomach sleeper as well. I would recommend that you do not use any blankets and make sure everything is out of the crib. We use Halo's Sleep Sack, which is a wearable blanket that will never cover his face. At this age, there is not much you can do unless you choose to never sleep. Your daughter is comfortable sleeping like this and even if you get her to fall asleep on her back, she will most likely roll onto her stomach once she is in deep sleep. Your daughter has the ability to roll around and that should keep her safe.

You have to weigh the risks and benefits. Sleeping on their stomach increases the risk. OTOH, minimal bedding, sleeping in the same room and breastfeeding reduce the risk. Not to mention the benefits of good sleep for both mom and baby. In MY personal math I decided it was worth it to let him sleep on his tummy

Both my kids are stomach sleepers and have been since they started rolling over. I think it's just a natural comortable position for them - as if they are hugging something. We were worried with our first child as well until we read and our pediatrician said the same thing and saw he was okay - that once they start rolling over they can do as they please, just make sure everything else is out of the crib, like blankets and toys. There are new studies now about how SIDS seem to be more of an accidental cause of death where parents were not paying attention to how the child was sleeping, their environment, and other reasons other than stomach sleeping.

Once they can turn over independently they can sleep however they want.

Otherwise you must sit up all night and watch them to turn them back on to their back.

Once they can roll over by themselves, there is a lot less to worry about. I read that babies who have oscilating fans in their rooms have a much, much lower risk of SIDS because the air is constantly circulating, so that could help ease your mind. It doesn't have to be pointed near the crib, just moving so the room air is constantly moving. Also, as long as there are no blankets or bumpers right in her face it should be fine. My daughter was a stomach sleeper from about six months and it was so much easier to let her sleep that way once my pediatrician told me "if they can roll onto their stomachs by themselves, they can sleep there by themselves". Good luck and don't worry, she'll be fine.

My youngest daughter slept terribly for the first three weeks of life until she learned to roll over (yes, I'm serious) and then she slept fine...on her stomach. I watched her like a hawk, barely slept, but then I thought...why? For thousands of years, babies slept on their tummies. I personally believe that there are underlying factors with SIDS, and it isn't because they sleep on their tummies. The statistics don't really follow, either...when they say "twice as many die on their stomachs" what they mean is 2%, instead of 1%, which isn't nearly as scary as "TWICE AS MANY."

I was so paranoid with my first, she has a flat head in back. I would NEVER put her on her tummy, so then she hated it, in turn never spent any time on her tummy...sat late, crawled late, walked late. (Although she was talking to me before she could walk.) :)

npr did a news story on this. http://www.npr.org/2011/07/15/137859024/rethinking-sids-m...

also, once they can roll over it's not an issue. so, don't worry about it.

Hi J R All 3 of my children were stomach sleepers, and had blankets, my mom had 5 and were all stomach sleepers an had blankets. This thing about no blankets came outn 100's of years later after baby;s had been using blankets. When my now 24 year old son was a baby his ped told me that alot of times baby's stop breathing in their sleep, and although most babys start breath9ng again with no problems every so often one does not, but never once said it was related to blankets, bumper pads, stuffed animals or sleeping on their stomachs. My friends baby died of sids sleeping in her arms, I had a interview with onje mom for my daycare and she told me her first baby died of sids in daycare and he was in a playpen. It does not matter how or where they sleep it's just something that happens. In the 14 years I have done daycare the majority of my parents had their baby's sleepig on their stomachs, used bumpers and blankets with out issues. J.

YES! Our son is/was a total stomach sleeper. When he was a baby we didn't get a decent night sleep ever because he simply could not sleep on his back - would cry and cry and cry until he rolled over. We bought those little things that keep them propped up and on their back so they can't roll over and that helped A LITTLE. Luckily when he was 3 months old he had really really good neck control. he could totally lift his head and chest up on his own. When I talked to our pediatrician she said that it was probably okay to let him sleep on his tummy at that point so long as there wasn't anything else in the crib with him - no blanket (so we put him in foot pajamas) and no crib padding. We were still up a lot checking on him, but at least he started to get some decent sleep.

My daughter would sleep on her stomach. I would put her on her back or get a sleep positioner and put her on her side. But when they learn to roll over we don't really have control of it like before. I tried to keep with the sleep positioner but it started becoming a hazard because she'd push it away and it would end up near her face so I took it out. Her crib was in my room so I could be a little calmer but I worried about it. I didn't put anything in her crib and she slept in a blanket sleeper thing like a onesie sleeper. That seemed to come up the most during some SIDS research they were doing (a good portion previously labeled SIDS was actually accidental suffocation), but I understand it is scary to think about.