Baby Rolling In Crib Hitting Head: How To Avoid It?

Last Updated on March 14, 2023

Although it is important to keep an eye on your child, you can rest assured that a baby rolling in crib hitting head is normally not a reason for worry. What causes newborns to move about in their cribs and what you can do to keep them safe is discussed in detail in this blog article.

You’ll also learn how to remove some of the fallacies about babies rolling over in their cribs and banging their heads, allowing you to relax and enjoy this exciting new time in your child’s life.

Baby Rolling In Crib Hitting Head

How Old Are Babies When They Start Rolling Over?

Newborns often learn to roll over between the ages of four and seven months. When your baby engages in tummy time, the muscles in their core, arms, and neck develop and become stronger. As they practice movement, they will discover how and where to roll from front to back and back to act as they explore different positions.

What Causes Babies to Roll in Their Sleep?

As soon as your child realizes that they have power over how their body moves, they will naturally begin to move more. A crib or playpen may be an excellent place for your baby to learn to move around, and they will undoubtedly want to look for opportunities to practice their new ability.

When it comes to why it occurs during sleep and at night, it’s typically the exact reason adults shift positions when sleeping – to feel more comfortable. Even after your baby has fallen asleep, they may move about and wake up because they are in an unusual position.

What is a Head Banging?

What is a Head Banging

Typically, head banging and body shaking occur concurrently. They are regarded as rhythmic motions. They may include repeated whole-body shaking or head pounding.

Babies often head bang while they are face down, slamming their head against a cushion or mattress, or when they are upright, hitting their head against the wall. Humming or other vocal sounds may accompany these motions at times. Head banging normally ceases when your baby becomes preoccupied or falls asleep.

Also read: Cribs for twins in small spaces

Common Reasons for Head Banging

Up to 20 percent of toddlers beat their heads intentionally. Boys are more likely than girls to engage in this behavior. Head-banging is most frequently observed in children during the second part of their first year of life. The practice might persist for a few months to years. Toddlers frequently outgrow head pounding by the age of three.

Baby keeps hitting head on crib while sleeping for various reasons, such as:

  • Self-comfort. Most children who hit their heads do so to relax. The rhythmic motion makes them feel comfortable. They’ll typically do it when they’re falling asleep, when they get up at night, or sometimes when they’re asleep.
  • Pain alleviation. Is your infant battling from an ear infection or teething? They may hit their head to divert themselves from the agony.
  • Frustration. Toddlers typically haven’t learned how to convey their feelings via language. Instead, they could employ a bodily expression through head bashing. It is one method for children to self-soothe after a stressful situation.
  • Needs attention. If you witness your child doing anything self-destructive, this conduct will grab your attention for understandable reasons. Your child may begin to realize that you will come to them when they undertake this action. They could then utilize it as an excellent approach to gain your attention.

Also read: Baby stands up in crib and won’t sleep

What’s the Connection Between Head Banging, Body Rocking, and Head Rolling?

Repetitive movements such as head banging are not the only repetitive movements that can occur before and while sleeping. Other examples of rhythmic movements include the following:

  • Body rocking: When a youngster is on their hands and knees, they can rock their entire body back and forth, or just their torso if they are sitting.
  • Head rolling: It is a joint side-to-side head motion that usually occurs when a youngster is lying on their back.
  • Body or Leg Rolling: This is a side-to-side movement of the body or only the legs when resting on their back.
  • Leg Banging: This activity usually occurs when a kid is on their back and involves lifting their legs and then knocking them back into the bed.

The most prevalent of these rhythmic actions include head pounding, body rocking, and head rolling, to name a few. Children who demonstrate more than one of these actions simultaneously are known as multi-taskers.

Body rocking often begins earlier in infancy, with most cases starting around six months, whereas head-banging typically begins around nine months.

Also read: How to keep baby’s legs from getting stuck in crib

how to prevent baby from hitting head on crib?

What Can You Do To Help Your Child Avoid This Situation?

What can parents do about their baby rolling and hitting their head on the crib? This is a question that parents often ask, especially as it becomes increasingly more prevalent. Use these tactics to change your child’s attitude and keep them healthy and safe.

Give Them Attention

Remember to give your kid positive attention at all times, but avoid doing so when they are head-banging. If it appears that they are acting in this manner in order to divert your attention away from them, avoid drawing any conclusions from it.

Try not to respond too angrily because doing so might encourage the behavior and make them more inclined to continue doing it in the future. However, it would be preferable if you did not yell at or strongly scold your young child. They are too young to understand how serious the situation is. It might be preferable to ignore these habits and perhaps move on from them later.

Protect Them From Injury

Don’t worry about your baby rolling in crib hitting head. Checking your toddler’s crib for loose screws and bolts every month can make a difference in whether the crib is safe or not. Remember to inspect each screw and bolt on the crib at least once a month because they might become loose over time.

The addition of rubber casters to the crib legs may be quite beneficial in reducing noise and wear and strain on the floor. It will also minimize noise and protect the wall between your baby’s crib and the wall if you hang a soft cloth or blanket in between the crib and the wall. Please make sure there aren’t any pillows in his room since they might cause him to fall asleep on them, which could choke or suffocate him.

Divert their Attention with Other Activities.

If your baby keeps bumping head on crib or wall, you may be able to redirect their attention with other fun activities. One approach to accomplish this is to give many engaging toys and activities that will hold their interest.

It’s also a good idea to take them for a stroll or to the park so they can run around and burn off some energy. Remember to develop a strong relationship with them as well. It is essential to spend quality time together to prevent your child from being bored and seeking something to do independently.

Make a Relaxing Night-Time Routine.

Your child may pound their head to try to come down from the high that comes with being active after a long day at school. Create a regular and pleasant bedtime ritual for your kid to help them rest before bed. There are numerous benefits to having a warm bath, a soft rock on the lap and listening to a peaceful story or song.

Before sleep, it’s pretty uncommon for parents to touch their children’s foreheads or rub their backs; these actions have a highly soothing impact on youngsters and are thus acceptable. Nevertheless, how about some relaxing music in the bedroom? That may be incredibly comforting, and it may help keep your child asleep all night.

Provide Safety Outlets

Toddlers are inherently extroverted, and they may use head-bangs to release some of their pent-up frustration. It is normal, but the safety of the baby rolling in crib hitting their heads is still the priority.

Allowing your kid to release energy in healthy ways, such as spending enough time outside in the fresh air, having a well-stocked playroom with appropriate toys, and providing plenty of opportunities for exercise are all effective ways to help your child.

Keep in Mind That It’s Normal

It’s crucial to understand that some babies’ head pounding is considered typical behavior. When most children reach the age of three, they have outgrown it, and there is usually no reason to be concerned about it.

If your child is head-banging, try not to be alarmed and remember that it will most likely decrease on its own in due course.

Limit the Exposure to Potential Triggers.

If possible, attempt to keep your child’s exposure to circumstances that might lead to head pounding to a minimum. It might involve things like loud noises or a crowded atmosphere, among other things. Make every effort to provide a quiet and pleasant atmosphere for your child at home when out and about. It will assist them in feeling more in control and reduce their likelihood of banging their heads.

FAQs

Wrapping up:

Thanks for reading the complete guide about how to avoid a baby rolling in crib hitting head. We hope you’ve found this guide helpful and informative. If you have any questions, please leave a comment below. We’d love to reply.

And please share it with your friends and family so that they can also prevent this from happening with their baby.

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Dr. Leah Alexander

Dr. Leah Alexander is a board-certified general pediatrician and has been practicing pediatrics at Elizabeth Pediatric Group of New Jersey since 2000. Since 2005, she has been working as an independently contracted pediatrician with Medical Doctors Associates at Pediatricare Associates of New Jersey. She also enjoys cooking outside of the medical profession. Read more

6 thoughts on “Baby Rolling In Crib Hitting Head: How To Avoid It?”

  1. My daughter is a head banger…but not in the crib anymore. When she doesn’t get her way, she ALWAYS finds something to bang her head against in frustration. Sometimes though, she doesn’t actually bang it. She just pretends and cries. ??‍♀️

    Reply
  2. I was just talking to my husband about this the other day. Our baby girl does this as she is trying to put herself to sleep. It always worries me. This is a helpful article!

    Reply

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