How to Move Baby to Their Own Bed
Will your baby only sleep if he/she is in your bed with you? If you co-sleep and want to keep it that way, go for it. Remember, you’re the boss! I’m not here to tell you what to do.
Ready to Move Baby?
However, if you are co-sleeping but you’re ready to move your baby to his/her own bed, here’s how:
Start small. Practice putting them in a pack n play/crib next to your bed a few times throughout the day to get used to the new environment. Just 5 minute increments will make a big difference!
Place them in their own bed (next to yours) for bedtime. Hopefully they’ve had a long wake window and are tired/ready to sleep. You can lay next to their crib and put your hand in there on their tummy or something if you need to. The idea is to get them used to being in their own space.⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀
Slowly increase the time you leave them in their bed each night. If they sleep for 10-15 minutes in there, consider it a win! That’s 10-15 minutes longer than they ever have. The next night, shoot for 20-30 minutes. ⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀
Once they are sleeping better on their own next to your bed, slowly scoot their bed a little further from yours. Continue this until you’re ready to move them into their own room!
If you’d rather just go cold turkey, put them in their own room in their own bed and apply the modified cry it out outlined in my e-book. This way is a lot faster than the above method, but do what you feel is best!
And as always, if you are looking for help, I am here for you!
Jessalyn
Photo credit: @simplicity.portraits