My baby wakes when transferred to bed

There will be times when you are unable to avoid your baby falling asleep in the car or the pram or on you.

What can you do to help alleviate the issue of your baby falling asleep somewhere else and waking when you try to transfer them to bed?

It isn’t necessarily the end of the world for your baby to fall asleep outside their bed on the odd occasion. Ideally they are placed to sleep in their bed more often than not.

This enables them to have a solid and restful sleep as well as develop good sleep practices.

If your baby wakes when you try to transfer them into their bed if may be they are not soundly asleep.

A baby will take approximately 20 minutes to be in a deep sleep. If you attempt to transfer your baby to bed and they wake this may be the primary cause.

Alternatively, if it is not a common occurrence and it is safe to do so you may consider leaving them where they have fallen asleep.

This depends on where they have fallen to sleep and the remainder of the day (ie: your baby has fallen asleep in the pram when out for a walk and you can supervise their sleeping in the pram.  If they are in a safe place and they will be supervised in their sleeping with enough ventilation and support then they are fine to be left.

It is important though to try not to get into a routine of this occurring.

If you find that this type of sleeping cycle seems to be happening then we recommend making note of the time of day, the lead up to, etc to see if there is a trigger or routine time this occurs.

Then it is a matter of ‘catching’ them before they fall asleep to ensure they sleep in their bed more often.

• If you have to move them then it is more about ensuring you have something they are comfortable with near to help in getting them back to sleep and transferring them as quickly as possible and they may be able to remain asleep.
• The success will depend on how long they have been asleep and how smooth the transfer is. There is no guaranteed way to transfer a baby from one sleep spot to their bed effectively.
• Be alert to the signs of tiredness. If a baby becomes overtire then their sleep will most likely become distributed in some way. This may be in waking when moved or not sleeping very long.
• Develop a sleep routine. This is also relevant for the day time naps. Having an established routine will assist your baby in understanding the indicators that sleep is coming.
• Have good sleep practices. A safe sleep environment including cot, firm mattress, appropriate bedding, etc.
• Swaddle. Some babies respond better to being swaddled to enable them to have a good sleep. Newborns have the startle reflex so this may trigger them to wake when moved and swaddling can help.
• Sleeping bag. A sleeping bag can provide a sleep association for the baby. Sleeping bag on means going to bed.