How can I get my 2 week old baby girl on a day schedule?

Shelby - posted on 08/23/2011

2 weeks not too early. Read Baby Wise, it was a God send to us. The key is to keep them up for at least 5 minutes after feeding so the do not associate feeding with sleeping. We have a 23 mo and 11 mo and they were both sleeping through the night between 6 and 8 weeks.

Holly - posted on 08/19/2011

I have a three week old. I totally agree you can not change his schedule. However you can still get some sleep. I put him in the swing on almost high with the timer on, grab a blanket and sleep on the couch. Our swing had 5 point harness so he cannot fall or slip out. You can also buy bassinets, usually travel style, that have music and vibrating options that work well. Remember to keep it dark at night and light with a reasonable amount of noise during the day. Good luck!

Amy - posted on 05/24/2009

two weeks is pretty early to have a good schedule.at that age both of my daughters pretty much ate and slept. it was hard to keep them up to tire them out for night time. we gave them a bath at night. even if it was the last night feeding at ten o'clock. it seemed to keep them up a little longer. i was very tired and didn't feel like doing it most of the time but when they got used to it, it seemed to work. i was told also to keep the schedule the same as much as possible throughout the day so that they got used to it (unless they were asleep. we never woke them to eat). eventually the got more interested in being awake and fell into a nice pattern. my first daughter was sleeping through the night after a month or so. my second daughter took about three months. hope this helps.

Jenny - posted on 05/24/2009

Hi, I know alot of ppl are saying it's too early to start a routine, I don't belive that's true. As long as you don't control her habbits like stopping her from sleeping when she whants to sleep. Just make sure you feed her on demand. You may need to change the atmospher she's in. My friend gave me the best advice ever and I did this from day one. And so far seems to be settled nicely. She said make day time light and with activity ie do your normal daily things like have tv or music on etc and make night time dark and quiet. Your baby will find it easier to settle. Also I bath Kacey on a night about 1hr to 2hr after her afternoon feed, she seems to like this and enjoy's the water, with no crying. Then by the time you've bathed, dried, changed and dressed her she'll be ready for her evening feed and hopefully drop off to sleep. My little girl has her evening feed between 10 and 11pm then wakes once in the night for a feed between 1 and 2 ten her morning feed is anything from 5 till 7am. Sometimes she goes as long as 6 hrs naturally before she's hungry again. Good Luck and i hope this has helpped.

Jennifer - posted on 05/24/2009

Yeah, two weeks is a bit early to start that thing. She is still getting use to the whole idea of not being snug inside your womb and sleeping actually can help her grow and help you get some sleep in before she does stay awake during the day. My son is 4 months and for about a month we have had a good schedual going on.

Leslie - posted on 05/24/2009

My son is going to be 4 weeks old. And of course its normal for babies to be that way because they were soothed by the movements in the womb, and of course most of us would move alot during the day, and at night there is nothing so thats when they move alot. Just as stated above from other moms...

And well now what I do to get him in some type of routine is keep him out in the daylight... even if he is sleeping. We keep him in a bassinet in the living room because its a very bright room. Of course we don't want to keep him in direct sunlight, but a bright room will work to get them used to day and night. Obviously we feed him every 3-4 hours when he wakes... and once he wakes up around 9 or 10pm we feed him and try and keep him up with a rattle or talking to him... whatever we can. Now he sleeps 12am-4am on good days... on very good nights he sleeps 12am-7am. It is hard work keeping up with him because he sleeps alot during the day but any little progress we get means alot. The main thing I think that will help is bright room during the day... and dark (dim) room during the night.

Julia - posted on 05/24/2009

If you want to get her into a routine I would feed her every 3 hours during the day (I would wake her during the day to feed her if her feed is due...exception is after her last feed at night eg 11pm I would let her wake up for her feed and encourage the longer sleep patterns at night) I would make sure you start the day at the same time every day eg 8am. Once you have the feedings settled and her metabolisim stabalize her sleep patterns will naturally fall into place along with the up times. She is not too young at all to get her into a routine....but make sure you allow for the growth spurts.

All the best...you can do it!

Melinda - posted on 05/23/2009

It's never too early...it's even possible to help them make sleep adjustments while they are in the womb.....Think about it, when you're pregnant and moving throughout the day, they're relatively at peace with just a few active moments a day, your movement lulls them to sleep (this is why they have swaying/vibrating/swinging items for babies - movement comforts them) and once you relax to go to sleep at night - they're wide awake kicking and hiccuping and everything else. This is why they get their days and nights mixed up. So, pregnant moms - take a nap or two during the day and wake up early in the morning...this helps them make the adjustment. I know this from personal experience, my daughter was sleeping through the night before she was 3 weeks old. As for you, Rebecca, she will make the adjustment in time...let her sleep during the day for now, even if it means you taking a nap during the day with her and begin making minor changes - the sun tends to energize us so maybe you can feed her or play with her in the sunshine, maybe take her for a walk, and I'd definitely recommend doing bathtime in the evening - baths relax and soothe little ones and if you do it consistently, she'll figure out the pattern "bath,pajamas,bottle, sleep". I hope this helps encourage you and hopefully she'll adjust soon so you can get a decent nights' sleep.

Melinda - posted on 05/23/2009

It's never too early...it's even possible to help them make sleep adjustments while they are in the womb.....Think about it, when you're pregnant and moving throughout the day, they're relatively at peace with just a few active moments a day, your movement lulls them to sleep (this is why they have swaying/vibrating/swinging items for babies - movement comforts them) and once you relax to go to sleep at night - they're wide awake kicking and hiccuping and everything else. This is why they get their days and nights mixed up. So, pregnant moms - take a nap or two during the day and wake up early in the morning...this helps them make the adjustment. I know this from personal experience, my daughter was sleeping through the night before she was 3 weeks old. As for you, Rebecca, she will make the adjustment in time...let her sleep during the day for now, even if it means you taking a nap during the day with her and begin making minor changes - the sun tends to energize us so maybe you can feed her or play with her in the sunshine, maybe take her for a walk, and I'd definitely recommend doing bathtime in the evening - baths relax and soothe little ones and if you do it consistently, she'll figure out the pattern "bath,pajamas,bottle, sleep". I hope this helps encourage you and hopefully she'll adjust soon so you can get a decent nights' sleep.

Victoria - posted on 05/23/2009

she will like to sleep all day. most babies have their night and days mixed up. newbnorns pretty much sleep all the time and are hungry about every three hours. so there's not much to do. by 3 months you can start a schedule. That's when you factor in when she wakes up, eats, bathes, rakes naps and plays. don't forget to give her tummy time. even now. the more she spends time on her belly, the more she learns her large motor skills easier.

Monica - posted on 05/23/2009

i agree with the other moms..2 weeks is way to young to get on a schedule. your baby will start to develop a schedule, you just need to hang in there. my son is only 5 weeks old now and he started to get on a schedule probably around 4 weeks old. now that he is more alert i can play with him and interact more during the day and we started a bedtime routine of bath, feeding, cuddle time and then bed. he is still only sleeping 3-4 hours at a time during the night but he wakes for feeding and then right back to sleep. you have to remember your baby is still adjusting to like outside the womb. hang in there, it will get better trust me.

Emily - posted on 05/23/2009

waaay too young for a schedule.

Ashley - posted on 05/23/2009

When the time is ready this is how i did it...(around 2-3 months)
I recorded when she woke slept and fed for a couple of weeks adn then you can look back and kinda see a pattern. then just try to work around that. now my daughter takes a nap during the day and sleeps 10-12 hrs at night. it really worked. they kinda get into there own schedule without you realizing it.

Ally - posted on 05/23/2009

2 weeks is really too young for a schedule unfortunately...Try the baby sleep sleep book by dr. sears ...it has great advice and coping strategies and a whole chapter on getting dad very involved in nightime parenting :)

Joy - posted on 05/23/2009

I didnt start my son on a routine until he was 5 weeks old and he has been on it ever since, he is now nearly 9 months old. I got a lot of info on routines etc from a book called Save our Sleep by Tizzie Hall and modified it to suit my son. Worked a charm and was easy to implement. I would suggest just gathering as much as info as you can on different ideas from friends or books and finding whats right for you and baby but maybe give it a few more weeks or so

Danielle - posted on 05/23/2009

bummer i was hoping someone would have an answer, lol my 12 day old girl is the same, well at least it doesn't last forever, guess i have to learn to nap

Sarah - posted on 05/22/2009

Cut her sleep time down during the day. She is little but there are still things you can do. Keep the time she sleeps between feedings shorter. Try to keep her awake as long as possible, or wake her up early. You need to cut down the time she sleeps during the day, so she will sleep more at night. She will still wake about every 2-3 hrs or so to feed at night (some more and some less). But what you are wanting is for her to then fall to sleep after a feeding at night. Keep the lights dim and it as quite as possible at night. The more simulation the more likely they are going to stay awake. Night is when I fed without interacting/talking and as little light as possible. Often times days and nights are mixed up because that is how they were in the womb. You walked during the day and rocked them to sleep. During the night you were still and they were awake. So now you are retraining them. Also nap when you can. You are still not going to get much sleep even with the days and nights back in order.

Brittany - posted on 05/22/2009

I'm sorry. There's nothing you can really do right now. I tried. My daughter's 4 weeks and I still haven't been able to get her on a schedule. She'll go a couple of days where I think she has and then she completely changes. I know what you mean. At first I was like this is easy I can do this, then it started wearing me down around 2 weeks and now i am constantly tired. I'm a zombie during nighttime feedings and she always ends up sleeping in the bed with me because i fall asleep feeding her.

Kelly - posted on 05/22/2009

I feel for you.....It's exhausting. Just know that this is only a stage, it gets much better. Let the house go, let your friends help if you can, and just try to sleep. My little girl took forever to get on a schedule. I chose to sleep with her (something I NEVER thought I would consider), That allowed me to relax and sleep more often. Co-sleeping isn't for everyone, but it saved me.

Ashley - posted on 05/22/2009

2 weeks is really to young...my daughter is 4 months and is only now in a full routine...give ur child some time to get used to everything..they will fall into a routine all by themselves..but all babies r different. good luck

Erin - posted on 05/22/2009

Some babies have their days and nights mixed up for the first few weeks - my nephew did. They do grow out of it as they begin to adapt to being on the outside. In the meantime all you can really do is make the differences between night and day as stark as possible, ie, lots of light and noise and activity during the day and keep it quiet and low-key at night. Don't try and keep her awake when she obviously wants to sleep, as all this will do is create an overtired baby who won't be able to sleep at all. I would suggest maybe changing her bath to night time as this may help in relaxing her and serving as a cue that it's bed time. As for a schedule or routine, I agree she is far too young for that. The best advice I was given was that newborns need a 'grace period' of 6-8 weeks before trying to enforce some sort of routine. In that time follow your baby's lead and you will see her natural patterns emerge. Then once she is old enough you can try and mould that to suit your family. But don't panic! She won't be like it much longer - my nephew grew out of it by about 4 weeks and now sleeps 10pm-8am at 10 weeks old.

Katie - posted on 05/22/2009

she is too young for you to try to control the situation, but i emphasize to you to nap when she naps, ask for help when you need it, and by 2-4 months old you will be able to have some sort of schedule.