Sleepless baby!! Help!

Lisa - posted on 02/05/2011

thanks tiffany, i will find that cd, i finally got the music working on my swing (blown speaker) and she loves it, also loves music boxes, but i have to keep going in to wind it up. I will try the cd thing.

Tiffany - posted on 02/04/2011

Some soothing music...My son LOVES it and I put him to bed EVERY night since he was probably about 3 months old. He is now 19 months old and still using it to sleep. He'll fall asleep instantly to it and I would too. Actually have the lullaby cd by Jewel...beautiful beautiful beautiful (found it at walmart for $10!)

Lisa - posted on 02/03/2011

thanks samantha for the tip, although i would love to put her by the dryer, i am out in the country and my washer dryer is in a crappy/cold part of the house. I will try the mattress thing.

Samantha - posted on 02/02/2011

When my son was little, i also had to put a matress on the floor in the living room and sleep on that for nap time ( no blankets or pillows ) but i did get some rest

Samantha - posted on 02/02/2011

Try bringing her for a walk in the stroller. or a drive in the car.
I also found the dryer helps ( white noise ) so if u can move her bassinet by the dryer for naps, that may help

Lisa - posted on 02/02/2011

thanks everyone, it is alot more settling to me knowing that i am not doing something wrong or not tending to what my daughter might need. Unfortunately ever since 3 weeks of age she hates her arms being pinned in, she wont even keep her arms in the towel after getting out of a bath, she screams, claws and kicks until she gets her arms out. I have tried the Co-sleeping but after my godmother told me not to.... i havnt (yes im guilty for the hour co sleep here and there just to get some rest on the couch). I am sleeping on the couch with her in one of those vibrating chairs beside me for now. Although she really doesnt seem to care where she sleeps, she will do it anywhere, just not for long!!

Jenni - posted on 02/02/2011

Nearly all new babies go through this. It's nothing you're doing or not doing. And there are no instant miracle cures. Babies are use to being in a tight cozy warm womb for 9 months so being outside the womb takes a long time to adjust. I imagine if you could see your baby when she was in uterio all the time you would see her catnapping for 10 mins here and there. It takes practice to learn to sleep.
I'd like to point out that she is far far too young to be using CIO. Ferber does not recommend using this method until at least 6 months. Also it is not recommended that you put your baby to sleep in any other position than on their back until they can roll onto their tummy on their own and well.
How I got through it... I put my babies in their crib tired but awake. If they fussed I picked them up shhhd them and pat their back and then laid them back down. For as long as I could handle doing it. When I was really desperate for sleep and they were especially fussy I co slept (please read about co-sleeping safety before attempting to do so) I also co-napped. But I was continually practicing getting them use to their crib. Swaddling is also very important until about 3 months of age.
Eventually they took to their crib. My son took about 6 months and my daughter took about 2 months.

Nicola - posted on 02/02/2011

Hi Hun, My daughter is just over 8 weeks old and has been exactly like this for about 2 weeks now! she has one good sleep during the day usually and then other than that she just has what i call powernaps!! She sleeps perfect at nights though going for anything from 6-8hours for her feed!! I have found that moving around with them seems to send my little one to sleep and the car is a gaurenteed way of settling her when she is kicking up a fuss because she is overtired!! x

Alison - posted on 02/02/2011

I agree this seems to be a phase...
The magic formula: 1) swaddling (make sure you do it nice and tight) 2) white noise or shushing (dryer, car, fan, radio static) 3) movement (baby swing, car, stroller, baby carrier).

If the magic formula does not work, there may be an underlying problem.

Sarh - posted on 02/02/2011

Silent reflux (no spitting up because they swallow it, but causes more pain/discomfort from swallowing it and the "tempra" wouldn't help with this pain)? Sorry, I'm not much help, didn't have trouble with either of mine and sleeping on a regular basis.

Jenna - posted on 02/01/2011

Hi Lisa,
I have a 7 week old son and I have found that in the last couple of weeks his sleeping pattern is the same as your little one. He sleeps very well at night - has even started going upto 5.5 hrs between waking to feed. But during the day he has just been catnapping. Being a first time mum I found it quite stressful, as previously he had slept for a few hours at a time and I wasn't sure what was wrong or how to fix it.

Since then I have spoken to some friends and the midwife at our local clinic and it seems that everyone has gone through the same phase of daytime napping around this age. It appears to me that it is a phase that they go through, and apparently he is currently in a big growth spurt stage that can put them out of sorts for a while too.

When I realised that it was 'normal' as such, and not something that I was doing wrong, my stress levels dropped and I have felt much better.

I have found that he sleeps great at night, in his cot no problems. But doesn't like his cot during the day. He sleeps better during the day in his bassinet in the living room, usually where I am watching tv or doing housework!

In the meantime I am just trying being thankful that he sleeps well during the night - I would rather deal with an unsettled baby at 2pm, rather than 2am any day!! :-)


I hope this helps you, even to know its not just you!!

Good Luck, Jen x