"They have to get used to sleeping around noise"

[Tway]

Really?

I can't count how many people have inferred that DD needs to learn to sleep through noise of any kind. I've heard all their good-baby stories: "I vacuumed while my baby slept" / "We could walk around and talk all we wanted" / "A hurricane couldn't wake our kid".

But unless DD is in a truly deep sleep (which I'm guessing she comes in and out of through naps and during the night), she's pretty easily roused. I know what floorboards to avoid, and we whisper for a good hour after she goes down, just in case. I even find myself ready to shush people at the supermarket, even if DD isn't with me. It's become a habit to keep baby asleep using any means possible!

Are some babies just light sleepers? Anyone else annoyed by the implication that your kid is weird or you're overprotective if you just want things quiet in the house?

[LadyCatherine185]

We tried the "keep the noise/lights on" thing while DS napped.. his naps were about 15 minutes long and it was a HUGE struggle to get him to sleep. After a few months of this I started rocking/nursing him in the DARK (as in, pitch black with blackout curtains) with white-noise going and he went to sleep much faster and started staying asleep MUCH longer.

Some babies are definitely lighter sleepers than others. My DS is one of them. It has nothing to do with what you "train" them to sleep through, they either will or won't be deep sleepers.

Also, WHY would we want them to learn to sleep with noise? How many people do you know sleep at night with noise going? I personally like it quiet at night while I am sleeping, or at least only white-noise going. I do know a few people who have to sleep with the TV on, and THAT is a bad habit to get into, IMO. I wonder if she always had to sleep with lots of noise around her and that is why she needs the TV on to sleep at night?

[Nicole730]

My mom always says that to me! I just say that making noise doesn't work for my children. She also doesn't understand that kids frequently have 30 minute sleep cycles and that's why if there is noise at the 'wake up' point, there's a good chance they will stay awake.

I always slept to music as a young kid and now I can fall asleep with or without noise around me. DH cannot fall asleep with the tv on, he needs complete silence and that bugs me because sometimes I want to stay up later than him.

[treeoflife3]

My mom would tell me how she used to vacuum UNDER MY CRIB while I was napping.

but then would yell at me if I made ANY noise after she went to bed and before she got up.

hypocrites, the lot of 'em.

[Quaniliaz]

That's what parents of kids with good sleepers say....

[Tway]

Originally Posted by treeoflife3

My mom would tell me how she used to vacuum UNDER MY CRIB while I was napping.

but then would yell at me if I made ANY noise after she went to bed and before she got up.

hypocrites, the lot of 'em.

[Irishmommy]

Originally Posted by Quaniliaz

That's what parents of kids with good sleepers say....

Yeah, but are they good sleepers because they are used to noise, or is there noise because they are good sleepers.

Dh works with someone who won't even shower at home if his kid is sleeping anywhere in the house. That's just ludicrous. We always made a point of not being silent, and we have awesome sleepers.

[MommaKitten21]

ds is a light sleeper.... we have to be quiet, turn the doorknob to our bedroom ever so quietly, or he will wake up.

However, dd (only a week old so who knows if it will stay like this) will sleep through anything, and cant sleep if it's completely silent (probably due to her 2 yr old brother constantly causing a racket downstairs!)

[Quaniliaz]

Yeah, but are they good sleepers because they are used to noise, or is there noise because they are good sleepers.

I think babies just come out a certain way (I guess with a range of possibilities).

I could make any sort of noise around DD1 - and she'd never wake up. DD2 wakes up to whispering. There was certainly less noise around when dd1 was a baby than with dd2. My sister and I are the exact same way. I'm the oldest, and can sleep through anything. My sister goes from asleep to wide awake at the drop of a pin.

[Tway]

Originally Posted by Quaniliaz

My sister and I are the exact same way. I'm the oldest, and can sleep through anything. My sister goes from asleep to wide awake at the drop of a pin.

I've always been a horribly light sleeper, and DH can sleep anywhere, anyhow, anytime. So I wondered if DD took after me. (Although my MIL says DH never slept more than 20 minutes at a time until he was FOUR! I guess he learned to sleep... or he's making up for lost time.)

[Honey693]

We could make all the noise we wanted when DD was sleeping until she was a few months old. The day she came home from the hospital our neighbors were getting a new roof. I couldn't nap, but DD passed out. Now we try to keep it kinda quiet since she's older.

[LCBMAX]

Originally Posted by Irishmommy

Dh works with someone who won't even shower at home if his kid is sleeping anywhere in the house. That's just ludicrous.

We are the Ludicrous Family who doesn't flush the toilet if our son is sleeping. It's just not worth the wake-up.

[treeoflife3]

I really think this whole 'they have to learn to sleep through anything' bit is just what people tell themselves to excuse their belief that babies aren't like other humans and have their own preferences and sensitivities.

I mean, of course some babies sleep better than others. Of course some can handle an earthquake and others can't handle you breathing. Aren't kids and adults the same way?

It frustrates me to no end when people just expect babies to conform to whomever they are around completely rather than respecting the individual that baby is.

[confustication]

We have three kids, and a pretty open floor plan. My youngest child's nap spot is a pack and play in the kitchen. I do have a white noise machine in there nearby, but regular household noise goes on during his naps... we don't allow loud screeching/yelling etc at that time, but conversation/regular household tasks etc- absolutely. He won't tolerate being where he can't hear the sounds of daily life for naps.

His older brother prefers (and has since he was tiny) to nap in the bedroom with the door closed.

Interestingly, if i want to take a nap during the day, I gravitate to the couch- I rest better when I can hear everything going on around me while my husband prefers to go to the bedroom and close the door.

[MeepyCat]

I live at an intersection that's on the quickest route between the local fire station and the main road. In fact, I'm right on the main road. The fire trucks have to stop RIGHT OUTSIDE my house and make sure the intersection is clear before they can go away.

Also, the intersection sucks. There's 3-4 accidents a month there.

So yes, my kids need to be able to sleep with noise. As do we all. It's just a function of where we live.

Plus, what's the point of me tiptoeing around and waiting to flush the toilet when I know that any minute, three firetrucks will come by with their sirens blaring?

And as it happens, my kids *do* sleep through anything. I feel very fortunate.

[widemouthedfrog]

LOL about the fire trucks. I think that we would have had to move. I grew up near an intersection like that.

Dd was a wretched sleeper as a baby and is still a light sleeper. She got to sleep using white noise, rocking, blackout blinds, complete silence other than the white noise, and my constant presence. The sleep was worth it. Around 1 1/2, I could finally leave the room during her naps and at 2 1/2 I could leave the room after she went to bed. Before that, the noise and movement of me leaving would wake her.

Yeah, it was ridiculous, but desperate times....

[TCMoulton]

Originally Posted by Irishmommy

Dh works with someone who won't even shower at home if his kid is sleeping anywhere in the house. That's just ludicrous. We always made a point of not being silent, and we have awesome sleepers.

We did the same - didn't go out of our way to rid the house of noise from the moment we brought our girls home and from very young they could nap anywhere and everywhere which was a blessing! I had a friend that kept the house silent during naps from the moment her DD was born and because of that they had to disconnect their doorbell and turn off the phone ringers whenever she napped for the first year of her life (she also would watch TV on mute and would read the captioning). If there was ANY noise at al her DD would immediately wake up. That little girl was motivation to get my kids used to noise at an early age.

[WindyCityMom]

Just a side note (you've already received good replies!)...

I have read that babies are like eyes.. when a light is overstimulated (ie bright lights) it shuts itself to protect it. When a baby is overstimulated, they sleep. So in my belief, it is quite common that babies will sleep through noise or houseguests... etc.

With that said we went on with our daily lives onces we had children. We didn;t make a tremendous amount of noise if we didnt have to though.

[Maela]

Originally Posted by treeoflife3

My mom would tell me how she used to vacuum UNDER MY CRIB while I was napping.

My mom told me this too. And now I am a very light sleeper. I think it's a great idea to not try to be too quiet while the baby is sleeping in hopes that they'll sleep through noise better, BUT vacuuming in their room?! I think that's just rude. Being reasonably quiet when someone is sleeping is just a respectful thing to do IMHO.

My dd was a very light sleeper until just a year ago. And everyone always told me it was because I was quiet while she slept. NO, I started being quiet because she woke so often from every little noise.

[WindyCityMom]

Originally Posted by Maela

My mom told me this too. And now I am a very light sleeper. I think it's a great idea to not try to be too quiet while the baby is sleeping in hopes that they'll sleep through noise better, BUT vacuuming in their room?! I think that's just rude. Being reasonably quiet when someone is sleeping is just a respectful thing to do IMHO.

Yep Babies are people too