Anyone Else Have a Baby That Seems to Need to Fuss Before Settling Down?

Oh yes! it is just a stage, my boys did it. It takes persistence on mum's end to keep it up. But eventually they understand that the love pats, kisses goodnight,stories read in bed, and lights dimmed means "go to sleep". It takes a while, but they will get it. It won't damage them! :) Good luck!

Hi BB - babies have personality types just like kids and adults do. Your little guy is sensitive to stimulation and he needs to vent a little in order to unwind. That doesnt make him a high needs baby - it's just who he is. He will probably always have this element to his personality so recognizing it now is going to be helpful for you in the future.

You know the sounds he makes and what is normal for him so unless he is ramping up with the crying which would indicate he has a problem, it's fine to let him work it out.

You might experiment with the music versus a very quiet white noise maker vs no noise to see if the music might be stimulating to him as well. I would also recommend turning off the tv/stereo etc. and turning down the house lights a bit an hour before bedtime to make sure he's not getting overdosed on stimulation right before bed. I posted about a month ago with a link for an article about keeping a "sensory diet" - it's great for kids who are prone to over-stimulation

Sounds like my 11 month old. He needs time to fuss and complain before he goes to sleep. It doesn't matter how tired he is or if it's a nap or bedtime. He just has to be put down so he can wind himself down. Your little guy is just being himself.

Totally normal. It's great that he can 'self soothe'. Our little guy right now "sings" himself to sleep. You can tell when he's about to fall asleep because he lets out this low moaning, "ahhhh" "ahhhh" "ahhh". We laugh!

Our older girls, the first would twirl her hair when she got tired and the second would simply say, "I go night night now".

Enjoy that you have a child who puts himself to sleep.

I think this is totally normal and you are doing the right thing by letting him teach himself to settle down. I made the mistake with one of my three kids of trying to help him settle and he still has sleeping issues at 10. Keep it up, you are doing the right thing.

Our son is almost 1 and he does the same thing. When he was about 3 months he would fuss like no other and have to be held with his head on my left shoulder and bounced. Few months later he had to be held with his head on my chest but rocked in our glider and would babble my ear off. Then he had to be cradled and rocked, and then facing outward (his back to my tummy) and rocked and cursed me out in baby talk lol Now we have to play his underwater projector with the lullabys playing. It gives him something to look at on the ceiling and he loves the music. We turn it on, give him kisses and say "We love you! Now it's time to go nite nite", leave the room, let him fuss and 15 minutes after the fussing has stopped we check on him to make sure he's covered up. This happens almost every single night. I have never thought of my son to be high needs, and I still don't think he is. He's a great sleeper and I will do what it takes to help him go to sleep comfortably (that means mommy and daddy get good sleep). It's just how he falls asleep, and the name of the game is adjusting.

Your son is fine, he just has a very active mind which is great! We got our underwater ceiling projector from Wal-Mart (you can choose to play lullabys or underwater/ocean sounds)... small investment with a big reward. I suggest also that you don't stay in the room until he falls asleep. Our son would keep checking to see if we were still there, so that didn't work for us. Give him love, play his lullabys and walk out. Hope this helps... Good Luck!!!

Its perfectly fine. That is the way some babies self-soothe and wind themselves down. Both my kids as babies did that too.
Its good actually... because this is THEIR "routine" and how they wind-down... on their own. Making noise before falling asleep is no biggie. A baby does not have to be "quiet" as they fall asleep. My son was actually very noisy as he fell asleep and drifted off... making all kinds of sounds. But it was not crying crying nor screaming... just him making sleepy sounds/whining and grunts as he drifted off. It was his way of self-soothing.
Let it be.
He has his own way.
He is NOT high needs.
He just has his own way.
All babies are different. Just like adults and how they sleep.
And yes ,when a baby IS tired, being interacted with can IRK them... so just go by his cues.
When my daughter was older and could talk... she told me that my rubbing her head (to sleep) actually irritated her. She just actually wanted NONE of that. So it was "me" that was actually making her fussier, when tired.
rubbing the forehead etc., is not necessarily relaxing nor wanted for some babies and even adults.

And yes, BOTH my kids as babies... took about 1/2 hour to fall asleep...
It was the way they were. And its perfectly normal.
BUT be thankful that your baby DOES have a way of self-soothing himself... and that this is his own unique "routine" of how he does it. I was glad my kids were like that as babies. My son, still sort of makes grunts as he drifts off. And he is 3.5 years old now. It his cute little quirks.

all the best,
Susan

Yes they seem to be fussy especially when they are over tired and they are over tired because they have a hard time learning that when you are sleepy it is ok to just go to sleep. It is hard but when you lay baby down you have to leave the room and not stay there until they fall asleep. They will cry. After a few minutes return check on baby, pat on back, leave the room. Keep repeating, be persistant in this routine and they will get the hang of this. I wish there was another way because us moms hate to hear the sound of our baby crying. But in the long run it's good for the baby and gives you some peace and relaxation. Lord knows us moms need it.

My two fussed a little, like a minute or so for the older one and a bit longer for the second if she isn't sleepy yet. If he does settle down after a while instead of getting more upset then I wouldn't worry too much.