Originally Posted by Unregistered:
Have you ever cared for a baby that cries through most of two naptimes every single day because he never sleeps alone at home?
Yes, I have. I have cared for multiple babies and children who fit that description. Even my own son was that way.
It is an adjustment for the child and as with most things, adjustments take time. There is no quick fix. Strapping a child into a swing or bouncy chair to calm them is something I have done. It works like a charm. But once they fall asleep, I move them to the playpen. Most of the time they wake up and get angry again.
And it is ok for babies to cry. I have never heard of a baby dying from crying. I have heard of babies who have died from positional asphyxia, being shaken by their caregiver, or from being unattended when they sleep (in a crib or elsewhere).
So yes, babies cry for a lot of reasons. We as professional caregivers need to teach ourselves that crying is ok. Crying means the child is breathing. Crying means life. A child who is strapped into a carseat, swing, or boucy chair is easily forgotten (look at how many PARENTS forget their own children in the car on a hot summer day) because they are quiet and put into a small space. It is so easy to assume that a quiet baby is sleeping. It is too easy to be comfortable with that silence. We as caregivers must never be comfortable with silence. We must be diligent in checking on sleeping babies, toddlers, and children.
So yes, I mean it when I say that a crying baby is ok with me. A crying baby means while the baby may be sad or angry, that baby is alive and kicking. And that is what I want.