Keeping Infant Warm at Night

I am also a mother of two boys ages 9 and 5. They both slept on their bellies, we used a blanket with both of them and sometimes the little nightgown looking sleepers. They didn't have no problem sleeping with either one. I hope this helps you out some.

We love the blanket sleepers. If you don't think it's enough you can always put socks and a onesie underneath. My daughter doesn't like a blanket so she gets the blanket sleepers and loves them.

I don't have a belly sleeper, well actually he has been sleeping on it ever since he learned how to roll over at 5 months, but anyway, we use a space heater in his room. We both like to be cold at night and this keeps his room cozy and not need for more than a fleece sleeper.

J.,
First of all, good for you for trusting your instincts. That said, try putting a nice mattress pad under the sheet and or using flannel sheets on the crib. Make the bed itself warm instead of trying to bundle up the baby. Good luck!

I always put the boys in something that has feet in it, otherwise, they get cold. However, I have always permitted my children to sleep with a blanket. I had read that it was okay to do so, as long as it was a light blanket and tucked in. My oldest really, still doesn't like to be covered and even if I put him in the flannel pj's with feet, he will unzip it in the middle of the night, get undressed, then climb back in bed with no blanket. My other 2 though, they don't like to go to sleep without something soft and warm touching them. The one always sucks his thumb and pulls the blanket so it's touching his face, but not over it. The other one, just likes to make sure it is where he can hold it. Both always have the blanket tucked underneath them and under their arms. also, because they move such, the one likes to hide under the blanket at times and then laughs hysterically thinking it is funny, that he is covered. However, we always check on them several times and especially one last time before we go to bed, to make sure they have not accidently covered their faces. The blankets are afghans so many holes, but very warm too.

Also, once a child moves around, it is difficult to keep them on their backs or even their stomachs, they will always go to a position they find comfortable to sleep.

Do what works for you and your family. If they truly knew what causes sids, it would not be called sids, it would have a name that describes the actual problem.

Good luck

Hi J.. Don't beat yourself up about your baby sleeping on her belly. I'm sure there are plenty of other parents out there, me included, that decides that is best but most don't talk about it because it is such a 'no-no'. If it means that everyone is getting more sleep then do it I say!! Anyway, my 8 month old was a belly sleeper (until she figured out how to roll over!) and we used the sleep sacks and she was fine. It never bunched around her head as when she moved, she scooched upwards so she was always comfortable. Hope this helps :)

J.,
Although our daughter was not a belly sleeper, she did not want to have covers on. No swaddling here!! At 2 1/2 years old she's still that way. So in an effort to keep her warm my husband & I bought a small heater for her room. It is a 360 degree heater, with a thermastat to set so it only runs when it needs to, it also has childproof knobs so your children cannot mess with the settings. It does get warm when on but not hot, so if you're older child does happen to touch it she won't get burnt. Since my daughter has pretty much had one of these around since she was 4 months old she doesn't think anything of it and she NEVER touchs it! But that little heater has done the trick. We actually have been through 2 heaters since she's been born and if we forget to turn her heater on at night she reminds us. Hope that this info helps!
~N.

well..I just put our baby girl in her onsie and zip up one piece sleeper...you know the kind with feet. That will keep her plenty warm...and we do also have a crochet (sp?) blanket in her crib...she really likes it and the large holes everywhere, I think, makes it a safe blanket...she couldn't smother herself with that.

My little one is a tummy sleeper as well. The sleep sacks have worked great for us. He is a very active tummy sleeper (traveling the entire crib since 2 wks). Maybe just try to make sure the sleep sack isn't too big.

You could try a onsie and socks, then a cotton sleeper, then a fleece sleeper. Sort of the same thing as a sleep sack.

Hi J.,
I totally understand... my son was the same way as an infant and same is true today... he loves his belly. We used the sleeper-sacks when he was little, and just made sure nothing was blocking his airway when sleeping. (especially not a lot of items in his crib) I felt the same way as you, but you need to do what works while being cautious. He's almost 2 now, and since he's very active, we bought a similiar type item from OneStepAhead.com. It's like a sleeper-sack, only it has legs and it's not as bunchy. It's perfect for him because he can still walk around with it (opposed to the sleeper-sacks that are like a dress). I put him in warm PJs, but I also put this sleeper-sack (for legs) over it. It's been perfect for our situation. I hope this helps, and good luck!

J., my first baby was also a belly sleeper and I have many friends who have slept all their babies on their tummy's. Don't feel guilty! My second baby will not keep blankets on at all and we live in Cleveland so it gets pretty cold at night. I put on a Onesie, then put on the tight fitting long sleeve/long legged jammies from Gap or Old Navy, even the Gerber ones from Walmart or Target would work but they tend to run small so buy big, then I put socks on him and then a heavy blanket sleeper with the arms and legs. I still put blankets over him, a few since he is almost 2, but if I ever check on him at night he has no blankets on him at all and he never wakes up cold or uncomfortable. Hope this helps.

Have you considered putting her in p.j.'s that are comfy for her but adding a small kid friendly space heater. We used and still use one for our 16 month old son. You can buy ones with a thermastat (i think i spelled that wrong) on the heater so that you dont toast the room or over heat her. This has worked great for me and my son he is always comfortably warm.

J.,
No lecture here! Our first son had colic so bad he ended up a belly sleeper for the first 4 months. We had the same concerns, everyone saying what was best. It made me paranoid. I am sure you're dilligent about making sure your baby is ok every night.
For our son, since also a preemie, warmth was a concern and we used the blanket sleepers and sleep sacks, we never had an issue with them bunching up around his face. We also used one of those sleep positioners, originally meant to keep him on side or back, but it fits snuggly around sides and adds warnth. If you get one that has air vents through it like we had it reduces some of the risk of babies face being blocked by it if she scoots down.
That said, have you tried a side laying position? It was our sons second best sleeping position, maybe worth a try for you to appease the doctor and yourself a little, at least put your mind to ease a little.
I have heard that the colicy babies usually prefer alternate sleep positions.
Good luck!

My son was a belly sleeper - no matter what I tried he ALWAYS ended up on his face, behind in the air, arms tucked under him. I just finally decided to always put him in a heavy sleeper and turn the heat up a bit so I was comfortable in just pajamas and no blankets and he slept soundly that way for YEARS. Course with energy prices significantly higher than they were just five years ago.....it was a hit on the energy bill at the time but not like it would be now, especially if you have gas heat like we did....

Good luck!!!

both of my children are and were belly sleepers too. actually i still used a light blanket with both and had no problems other than them kicking their blankets off when moving around. other than that no issues.

My daughter was so stubborn she absolutely wouldn't sleep on her back - she could stay awake for up to 16 hours at a strech when she was 2 mos. old!

As for keeping her warm - I obsessed - first and only child. Onesie with a heavy fleece sleeper that I'd adjust the zipper on half a dozen times to let her "breathe" or keep her warmer, whichever seemed best. I'm sure her little feet roasted, some I even poked "air holes" in the feet of... Don't be a nut like me and I'm sure your baby will sleep... like a baby!

Hi J.:
It's so crazy about the belly sleeping awareness "movement." When I left the hospital with my baby, they even gave us a onesie that said "This Side Up" on the front! Anyway, to answer your question, Target sells these one-piece long underwear sets for babies and my daugther lived in those last winter. I'd put her in that, then a fleece sleep sack - you know, it has arms but the bottom is a zip bag instead of footsies and that seemed to work really well. Good luck!

My daughter also would only sleep on her belly, on me :) So, dont worry, no lectures here! My daughter loved the sleep sacks. You can get them just about anywhere. I got a few of mine at Once Upon a Child. I think I used them for the whole first year! I would just put her in a onsie, with the zippered sleep sack and it worked great!

I have belly sleepers too. I was also told the same thing about the back to sleep thing and SIDS. But I went against everyone else because my Mother almost lost me to SIDS because she tried doing what the doctor said about laying us on our backs to sleep. After that problem my mother always either laid us on our bellies or our sides and had no more problems. To keep a belly sleeper warm I used to either put my babies in a heavy sleeper or wrapped them like I was going to take them out. It seemed to keep them warm. But I also took them to bed with me and snuggled up with them on my arm to keep them warm on very cold nights. Good Luck.

Just keep the baby is warm sleepers at night and you can always turn them on their side just put something behine them to support their back. That is what I did with my three children who all slept on their stomach.

I had 2 belly sleepers here too so no lecture from me. That's was the ONLY way either would sleep at all so I did what was best for us.
Mine were both born in August so were 4 months around this time. I did heavy fleece footy pajamas, then a light blanket covering the lower half of the body only. I myself don't see anything wrong with a light blanket in there, if they baby can't roll over yet or "flail" around, you don't have to worry about them covering their face..and if they can, they are big enough to get the blanket off if it bothers them.

JMO, feel free to email with any questions.

First of all do not be too hard on yourself for being a rule breaker. I was one as well, I think sometimes that SIDS is just such an unknown still that they are trying to find something to pin it on. However there are moms, one I know of personally, that her daughter was not a belly sleeper and passed of SIDS, the best thing you can do for your children is do what is right for them, and sleep is the best thing for a baby. But anywho on to your question... We just dressed our daughter in warm sleepers and that worked for her. She is a hot box though so that helps as well.

if your baby can roll over on her own she should be fine to sleep on her belly.... once my 2 learned that there was no getting then to sleep on their backs i remember with my first waking up ever hour or so and rolling her back over (that lasted all of 3 nights) then my doctor told me as long as she was the one rolling it was fine.... anyway will my first belly sleeper i used the sleep sacks and i used a bit of a small size so it didnt get bunched up in her face... with the 2nd one we just used a blanket... good luck!

i always layed my baby on his back. and from the time he could roll which was like at 3-4 months he has been sleeping on his stomach. and we just put warm sleepers on and he has always been fine. he is 20 months. i feel for you on the lectures my four year old would only sleep in his carseat ( he is an out of sync child) i was lectured from one end to another how horrible it is. but hey he slept and i actually got a couple of hours of sleep

Both of my babies were belly sleepers, too, and so I totally get it! What I ended up doing that solved both the "keeping them warm" as well as the "possible SIDS" issue was to just (another rule breaking thing, according to some) bring them to bed with me. We were breastfeeding anyway, so it was more convenient and I *always* knew if she was breathing or not. Heck, I woke up seconds before she even began to squirm for food or a diaper change, and I was very aware of her breathing but in a way that allowed me to get really good rest. We made sure that our bed was safe for an infant (firm surface, no heavy blankets or pillows, no crevices around bed to get trapped in, enough room for all of us so not cramped) and if there were nights when we were particularly over-tired (from illness or an unusually busy few days) then we would put them in the crib for that night (which was in our room). When the babies were older, we had no problem transitioning them to their own bed and their own room.

So, don't know if that's helpful for you, but that was our experience w/ belly sleepers. :)

J....hey you won't get an argument from me. i have one that is almost 28 yrs old. you know, when he was a baby, they recommended they sleep ON their STOMACHS!!!!!!. by the time i had my last one 8 yrs ago, it was opposite! go figure..lol. but all FIVE of my kids slept better on their stomachs. i never had a problem. with keeping them warm, i just had to use those blanket sleepers, the heavier sleepers that i think u mentioned. best of luck and happy near year to you and your family!!! write anytime.

C.

I am the proud mommy of 3 and one is 2 months old.. yes i know.. no belly sleeping.. well all 3 of mine were belly sleepers.. but whats funny is when I had my oldest daughter who is almost 7, they said put them on thier belly to prevent sids, when i had my son they said put them on thier sides to prevent sids and with this baby its the back to sleep campaign so honestly i dont think they have a clue.. my children all preferred thier belly and so it was.. with all my babies i put them in one piece jammies that had feet.. also on exceptionally cold nights, i put a blanket on them, half way up, and tuck it on both sides of the bed, also the babies bed is right next to mine, I slide it over so its touching my bed.. and I have been ok so far

J.,

My son is and was a belly sleeper. That's how he has ALWAYS slept best. We just used those "blanket" sleepers that zip up or snapped up the front and he always seemed warm enough. Sometimes when it was REALLY cold and he was only a couple months old we'd use a brand new heater in his room just on a low-med temp to keep the room temperature comfortable for him. Sorry I'm not too much help.

My son sleeps on his tummy as well, it was the only way he would sleep through the night after 4 months. We use a blanket even though I know we are not supposed to but I lay it below his chest and he moves so much at night it usually ends up at the bottom of the bed. If you are not comfortable with using a blanket try using a space heater in her room with a set temperature to ensure she is warm. The blanket footie sleepers are great as well.