Moving around in his sleep

My 6 months old baby woke up so many times these last three days because he moves a lot in his sleep. He has a big cot and he can move freely in it. He can already roll but at some point he is always cornered and can't move anymore. If that happens, he starts crying for help. Unfortunately, just releasing him for that corner is not enough to make him sleep again. I have to do his sleeping routine again (including breast feeding him for at least 15 minutes). This is very tiring for me. Any ideas?

There are two steps here:

- Moving around. Some babies do this. Nothing much you can do but unwedge them as you do. This still happens occasionally to my 2½ year old.


- Falling asleep again. Babies need to learn to fall back asleep on their own or you and they will never get any rest. The sooner the better. He wants attention (perfectly natural) and so cries. You should not give in so easily but at the same time he needs to know heis not abandoned. Perhaps just stand over the bed and stroke his head gently. Eventually he will fall asleep. After a few days, try just standing over the bed. Then after a few more days you can try just going in the room and saying "shhhh" gently, then walking out. The process can take weeks and can reoccur but eventually life will be much easier for both of you.


If you don't start being a bit tougher now, you'll never see the end of it. Babies are experts at manipulating their parents. Note that this is not "being mean". It is "making them more independent".