When baby rolls onto tummy to sleep
We all know the safe sleep guidelines (and in case you need reminding, you can find them below), and yet when your baby becomes a little more mobile, it can be harder to follow them exactly.
The biggest and most common example of this is the ‘back to sleep’ position. This can be hard to maintain once baby can roll- so what can we do about it?
Read on for some more information and advice on what to do when baby rolls onto their tummy to sleep.
Safe sleeping guidelines
The American Academy of Paediatrics has the following advice for parents to follow to ensure they are following safe sleeping guidelines:
- Always place baby on the back to sleep.
- Place baby’s feet to the foot of the crib so that she cannot move down underneath blankets.
- No loose bedding or toys in the crib.
- Baby should sleep in a separate crib in your room for at least the first six months.
- Don’t let baby get too hot.
- Consider using a pacifier during sleep time.
When baby rolls onto tummy during play
Always place your baby to sleep on her back for sleep- daytime and nighttime. This is the safest position for them, and studies have found a reduction in the cases of Sudden Infant Death Syndrom (SIDS) since this advice was rolled out. However, when baby hits five months or so, they may have other ideas!
When your baby first learns to become more mobile, the first major move they will learn is to roll over. Incidentally, this is when it is best to stop swaddling, too, so read my post on how to wean from the swaddle here. So when baby learns to roll, it is usually from back to front since she spends more time on her back than her front. Tummy time is important as it helps babies strengthen their arm and neck muscles in that position and will eventually help them learn how to roll back onto their back.
Until your baby can roll herself back onto her back, you must be on hand to help! When they are awake and you are supervising play, it’s ok to let her spend time on their front once they’ve rolled there, and you can encourage them to try and roll back again. Some babies will become frustrated quite quickly and want you to roll them back again straight away; others will be happy to spend more time on their tummies. During playtime, it’s ok to let your baby lead the way.
When baby rolls onto her tummy during sleep
If you find that baby is starting to roll onto her tummy during sleep, you can gently move her back again onto her back. You might find that you need to do this quite a lot if they prefer to sleep on their tummy rather than her back, and with that in mind…
- Accept that your baby is going to find their preferred position for sleep, just as you have yours.
- Once baby can roll back onto her back, you might find that they adopt lots of unusual and varied positions for sleep. This is normal!
- Accept that you cannot be there every minute of every sleep, and if they sleep on their tummy, you cannot always roll them back onto her back.
- Sleeping positions are just one way that you can help to prevent SIDS- make sure you are vigilant about the other safe sleeping guidelines too.
Once baby can roll over onto their tummy and can hold her head up in that position, they can position themselves for safe breathing. But sometimes baby can roll onto their tummy and become frustrated at not being able to roll back again…
When baby rolls onto tummy in sleep and wakes
If your baby is rolling and seems to get stuck on their tummy, much to her dislike, there is a very good chance they will cry! At this point, by all means, go into them and roll them back again- but be prepared for them to do it again and again. The best way to combat this is with lots of tummy time practice during the day. Let them explore their abilities and practice rolling back onto their back again from the tummy position. And when baby rolls onto their tummy at night (assuming they aren’t swaddled and can use her arms), give them a chance to roll back again by themself before you go in to help.