Self-settling

No, my kids don't do it :) just a bit of a ramble.

I was reading an old book by the wonderful Penelope Leach where she was talking about sleep and mentioned putting your baby down awake. BUT she described doing all the parenting things, wrapping, rocking, cuddling, feeding, then putting your baby down before they were completely asleep, just enough so they know they've been moved. It's taken me two babies to realise that I do quite frequently put her down "awake." It's the little eye flutter as I kiss her, a bit of a roll when I put her down, the big sigh when I take my hand away.

But what scope for misinterpretation! If you just hear "put them down awake" what are you going to do? I'll bet 90% of parents try to just wrap them and put them down. No wonder none of us can get them to do it! I remember being on the phone to my Mum in tears because I thought I was doing the wrong thing. How many of us have been told we are creating a rod for our own backs? (Actually I've never had that one, and Mum did point out that 3 weeks might be a little bit young for self-settling.) I'm lucky I discovered feeding to sleep, and never had anyone tell me it was wrong. I then stopped trying to get Widget to self-settle and never bothered with Midget.

And now I find I've been doing it all along.