How do you get a newborn to sleep through the nights?

Chantel - posted on 04/02/2009

Quoting Brandy:

I have three healthy little girls and I had ALL of them sleeping through the night by the time they were 2 weeks old. I spoon fed them cereal every night at their last feeding and then gave them their bottle and they have all slept through the night and are still very good sleepers.

I know that this worked for you, but feeding any form of solid foods, even cereal, to a newborn or any baby under 4 months old is contraindicated and can cause very serious health issues!  This should never, ever, ever be done!

Technically a 2 week old should not sleep for longer than 4 hours at a stretch.  Their systems are not mature enough to prevent breathing issues, low blood sugar and hypothermia. 

Babies are not meant to sleep through the night.  An newborn who sleeps longer than 4 hours at a time is at increased risk for SIDS.

We parents are supposed to fit into our babies lives, not our babies fit into our lives, which means giving of ourselves and sacrificing our comfort and sleep when necessary.

Amy - posted on 04/02/2009

All 4 of mine slept through (8 hours or more) consistantly by the time they were 6-8 weeks old. For me, this was their schedule, I demand fed, but they were all bottle fed. They would eat every 3-4 hours all day and as evening approached they would eat every 2 hours with the last bottle (10-11pm) usually being only one hour after their previous feed. From there they would sleep until about 7 the next morning. It worked great for us.

Brandy - posted on 04/02/2009

I have three healthy little girls and I had ALL of them sleeping through the night by the time they were 2 weeks old. I spoon fed them cereal every night at their last feeding and then gave them their bottle and they have all slept through the night and are still very good sleepers.

Jenny - posted on 04/02/2009

Quoting Julianne:

All my babies sleep through at about 9 weeks.  So it is along road till that time.  The key is sticking to a routine so there little bodies get into a habbit.  I feed 3 hourly for the first few months and then move it out to four over time.  I woke them for feeds if need be and did not wake them after the 10pm feed and over time then stoped waking. Once they do it once you know that it is just around the corner till they do it frequently.  My last baby is almost 7 months and he is just about going 7 till 7 with a few nights of not in there.

 

My dd was 10 weeks when she "slept through the night", but it took her the entire first month to gain back her birth weight of 6.8. I believe her low weight set her back a little, as far as sleeping goes.

At our newborn assessment appointment the nurse (who was a wonderful 70ish grandma type) said newborn babies needs a little light, sound and warmth to sleep well. We put a nightlight and sound machine (makes rain, white noise or etc.) in her room. We filled tube socks with rice and warmed them in the microwave and wraped them around her. I've always put her in her bed when I saw she was tired and kept a flexible schedule. I can count on one hand the nights I got up with her more than one time. Like I said she hasn't woken up at all in the middle of the night since she was 10 weeks and she is now 16 months.

Chantel - posted on 04/01/2009

Newborns do not have a sleeping schedule, they have an eating schedule.  Even a formula fed baby will wake every 2-4 hours for the first four to six weeks of life before extending our his/her feedings.

Newborns don't "sleep" longer, they go longer without eating/food.  The best thing you can do is allow your baby to eat when hungry, catch his/her cues before they become cries (my babies did not cry unless they were hurt or sick and even then we did everything we could). 

One mistake many parents make is that they assume that if the baby wakes up, then the baby is awake so they turn on lights, turn on noise and then wonder why the baby has a hard time settling. 

During the day, noise and light are wonderful stimulation (although sometimes a baby needs a nice dark, quiet place if overstimulated).  However at night for feeding the room should be kept as dark as possible, a small lamp or night light if necessary.  Keep words and sounds to a minimum.  Change baby quietly and nurse or feed baby in quiet.  No bright lights, no tv or other sounds.  This will help baby to stay quiet and settled and allow him/her to fall back to sleep quicker.

Also, babies sleep best when in the same room as the mother, if possible in a cosleeper by the side of the bed, and if safe in bed cosleeping.

This does two things...it allows you to meet baby's needs quicker, and baby hears your breathing patterns and assimilates. 

Statistically, a baby who wakes at night to eat is at a lower risk for SIDS (when other risk factors such as parental smoking is removed) and breastfeeding lowers the risk even more.

So, while you are tired, and we have all been there...my youngest did not sleep through the night until he weaned at 3 years old, and was up every 1-2 hours the first 6 months of his life....it is only a very short period of time, and it is what your baby needs.

Succumb completely to your baby's needs and you will both be happier and healthier in the end!

Jessica - posted on 03/31/2009

You don't! They still need to eat so frequently to keep up with their growing little bodies.

Ally - posted on 03/31/2009

I totally agree with the previous post. newborns are not designed to sleep through the night. frequent night wakings are a protective measure built into babies to keep moms milk supply up and ensure their survival. also sleeping through the night is considered to be 5 hours at a time (not what we think of through the night as!) we co-sleep and i am still nursing a 12 month old 2 times a night but i usually dont even have to open my eyes since shes right there next to me and we all get plenty of sleep!

Teresa - posted on 03/31/2009

You don't.  Newborns are not designed to sleep through the night.  Once they hit around 13 pounds they are physically capable of sleeping 6+ hours w/out eating, but it can be dangerous to try and get them to do it before then.  I don't consider it 'sleeping through the night' unless they are sleeping 11-12 hours straight.  My girls were able to do this at 6 months, but started waking again after a month and I went back to nursing them 1-2 times a night until the were 14 months old.  My son (just turned one) has never slept longer than 8.5 hours in a row.  I could probably get him to do it, but our circumstances are different this time around and I'm ok w/ the way things are.

Julie - posted on 03/31/2009

It is a gradual thing. When they are very newborn, they have to eat every couple of hours. But as you notice that he is able to stretch out his feedings, don't get up immediately when you hear him at night. Give him a minute or two to see if he will go back to sleep on his own; or try to just give him a pacifier or a hug and put him back down (my son wakes up every now and then and just wants a hug and he puts himself back to sleep, he is 6 months old; he's been sleeping through the night since he was 3 months).

Marsha - posted on 03/31/2009

you don't if its your only child i can recommend letting the baby sleep next to you so you don't have to get up every time you have to feed also if you bottle feed make the tea before put it in the warmer or keep it at the bedside ensure it is made hot so by the time the baby awakes you can feed him or her and go right back to sleep you can teach them to sleep through the night by feeding them at a specific time of the night good luck

Rebekah - posted on 03/31/2009

I got my baby to sleep through the night by the time he was 3 weeks old.  I truly believe every baby is different, but I started reading "Good Night, Sleep Tight" while I was pregnant and put some of the methods to practice when he was born - I didn't agree with all of them, for I like to use pacifiers and rock my baby to sleep.  But I set a routine for wake up and for the end of the day.  I protected his sleep - it's very important as newborns to get 16-18 hours of sleep in a 24-hour period.

If you are breastfeeding though, sleeping through the night is not ideal for you right now.  You really need to establish your milk supply and feed within 2-3 hours, but no longer than 4 hours.  Once your milk is established you can try to stop night feedings.

I was only able to breastfeed for the first 3 weeks, then my milk supply couldn't keep up with my little one, so I had to supplement with formula up until I went back to work.  I felt guilty about it, but once I saw how full and happy he was, I was fine with it.

Sia - posted on 03/31/2009

It will happen in time.  My lil one was awake every hour at night.  Then every 2 hours, now he sleeps for 4 hours at night before waking to eat.  He is currently 9 weeks old.

Now kids are different for my older sone was awake every 2 hours until he turned 2.  Even if he wasn't drinking he just woke up, was walked back to his bed, fell asleep and in 2 hrs did it again.  With both kids I did night routines.  My older one got into the habit of putting himself to sleep @ about 6 months.  after a bath or massage and food I would put him in his crib and he lay there until he fell asleep.  My lil one right now will only sleep for 4 hours after we have a lot of cuddle time.  It does take time.

Carolee - posted on 03/30/2009

Quoting Karen:

How do you get a newborn to sleep through the nights?

i didn't get any of my babies to sleep all  through the night . I have four ! they wanted me my warmth they wanted to nurse and be held. i tried the  baby wise system and realized about half way through that i was getting frustrated because everything wasn't going as planned . I asked God for wisdom and he reminded me that children bring chaos and to not forget the reason i had them in the first place [pleasure] the same pleasure God gets from us and our not so perfect lives. you will get sleep in about 4 years lol .

Julianne - posted on 03/30/2009

All my babies sleep through at about 9 weeks.  So it is along road till that time.  The key is sticking to a routine so there little bodies get into a habbit.  I feed 3 hourly for the first few months and then move it out to four over time.  I woke them for feeds if need be and did not wake them after the 10pm feed and over time then stoped waking. Once they do it once you know that it is just around the corner till they do it frequently.  My last baby is almost 7 months and he is just about going 7 till 7 with a few nights of not in there.