Waking up in the middle of the night to eat and getting them back to sleep!

Sasha - posted on 03/06/2009

Could I suggest waking her around 11pm for a small feed, then the longer stretch of sleep will be when you sleep, then you don't have to get up at 4am. I put my daughter to bed every nights just after 7pm, then woke her at 10.30pm for a quiet feed in the dark and by three months of age she was sleeping from 11pm until 7am. Eventually, about six weeks of that, I slowly reduced the amount of milk I was giving her at 10.30pm (over about 10 days, about half an oz every two days) until she was only drinking about 1oz, then I dropped it completely and she's been sleeping from 7pm until 7am ever since!

I can recommend 'The Contended Little Baby Book' by Gina Ford. It's probably similar to Babywise (never read it or heard about it, but it's getting the same negative comments as Gina Ford books always get, but routines really work!!).

Gillian - posted on 03/06/2009

Nori, Congratulations. That is great for 6 weeks. It is amazing the difference you feel going from 2-3 wakings a night to 1! Another thing that I did was start the night later. And moved bedtime back as he was able to sleep longer. 10-6 was easier for me to handle than 8-4. Good luck.

Esther - posted on 03/05/2009

The time change! Forgot about that. Ugh. Odds are my sleeping through the night days are counted ;) Oh well.

Nori - posted on 03/05/2009

Esther, yes, I know this isn't something that will happen every night, but the fast that she is capable of it thrills us! I know that teething and sickness will for sure disrupt this habit... but i do know she can go back to it! Besides, us adults never sleep the same every night either! With the time change Sun, we are going to have to get blackout shades for her room to keep it dark! 

Esther - posted on 03/05/2009

You do what you have to do & you just keeping putting one foot in front of the other just like all of us working moms. It's a difficult balancing act but you'll be fine and so will your daughter. I hope she keeps up her new sleeping habits! Sometimes they have setbacks when they start teething or have a cold or something disrupts their normal schedule, but don't be discouraged. Sooner or later we'll all be sleeping normal nights again. (BTW - my son slept through the night last night as well - YAY!)

Nori - posted on 03/05/2009

She slept from 8-4am Mon, Tue and Wed. We are very proud of her but don't expect it to happen every night! Unfortunately, I don't have a choice about going back to work in a week... I only got 2 months paid leave. 

Leonie - posted on 03/04/2009

Please don't be offended but you are expecting way too much from a 6 wk old baby.  4 hrs is average. Maybe it's too early to go back to work.

Leonie - posted on 03/04/2009

Please don't be offended but you are expecting way too much from a 6 wk old baby.  4 hrs is average. Maybe it's too early to go back to work.

Esther - posted on 03/04/2009

Congratulations!

Nori - posted on 03/04/2009

I started a routine Mon night... play at 5:30, bath at 7, feeding at 7:30 and bed at 8. She went right to sleep Mon and slept till 3:30 and then last night did the same thing and slept till 4am! She slept through a few feedings, but she is capable of it even though i know it won't happen every night! She was in her crib for the first time last night! 

Gillian - posted on 03/04/2009

I know that there are some negative comments about Babywise, but it was great for my son. He thrived on a schedule and for his night feedings I was able to feed him, and put him right back down with no issues. We swaddled him too. You don't have to follow everything in Babywise, but there are many books that talk about the self soothing techniques. You may have a rough couple of days (you have to be consistent with the naps too) and nights at first listening to your baby cry (I cried along with my son), but it was so worth it, and he was sleeping through the night at about 10 weeks.

Krysta - posted on 03/03/2009

Have you spoke to your doctor about this? My youngest was around 7 weeks old when we figured out that colic and acid reflux were the problems.. Gripe water really helps to calm fussiness, because at that age gas is usually the problem. You will get through the sleepless nights...my youngest is now 11 months old and still not sleeping at night, I work full time as well. Your baby sounds exactly how Luke started out... Talk to your doctor and see if maybe she needs her formula changed..Good luck and remember your not alone!!!!

Carrie - posted on 03/03/2009

The swaddling definitely helped my baby.  We didn't use the Ferber Method until he was 6 months old.  I really like the book "Good Night, Sleep Tight".  It helps you create a routine.  However, the sleep lady shuffle didn't really work for us...but all of the other tips were very helpful.  Like I said, we used the Ferber Method.  Just remember...this difficulty is only temporary and it won't last forever.  As new challenges come about, I have to tell myself that.

Marlene - posted on 03/03/2009

You have to go to bed very early yourself.  Try 8 or 9pm.  Unless there is someone else to get up with your baby so you can sleep, you'll have to grab it when you can.  

Colleen - posted on 03/03/2009

I have to second the Miracle Blanket. My son was sleeping 5 hours at a time at 2 months old when he started to wriggled out of the regular blanket we were using to swaddle him. When he wasn't swaddled, he too would only fall asleep being held and would wake up scratching himself. The miracle blanket saved us! He slept 6-8 hours once we started using up up until about 4 months when he started to roll over.

Sara - posted on 03/03/2009

And some people may feel differently about this, but we used the Ferber method when she was about 3 months and it has worked well. But, my personal opinion is that 6 weeks is too young for her to self soothe. My daughter was the exact same way and we had to hold her to get her to sleep. But, we eventually started putting her in her carseat when she fell asleep and that seemed to work. Have you tried that?

Sara - posted on 03/03/2009

I know it's hard right now, but it sounds like your little girl is acting like most other 6 week old babies! Have you tried to set up some kind of routine in the evening? As soon as we could bathe my daughter we have done bath, bottle and bed even when she didn't go right to bed after! But, it has been a way to help let her know now (she's 5 months) when bedtime is. I think a routine is very helpful, even at this young age. For me, when my daughter hit about 7 weeks it was like somebody flipped a switch and she started sleeping for 5 to 6 hours stretches and then developed a regular routine from there. Before that, it took forever to get her to go to sleep, and even then she would only sleep for 3 to 4 hours I know that it's easy to freak out as the time to go back to work approaches, but everyone will settle into a routine before you know it and you'll get sleep again! Good luck!

Nori - posted on 03/03/2009

i have heard mixed things about babywise... 

Naomi - posted on 03/02/2009

The book that saved us was Babywise...it works...especially for working moms who need to get sleep.  We have twins and it's even more so.

Bascially it's about getting into a routine and sticking to it within reason.

Esther - posted on 03/02/2009

Here's another link - looks like they are cheaper from the manufacturer themselves: http://www.miracleblanket.com/index.htm

Esther - posted on 03/02/2009

BTW - have you tried swaddling her? My son didn't sleep for more than 30 mins at a stretch for the first 3 months. Then someone told me about the miracle blanket to swaddle him with (we had been trying with regular receiving blankets but he always wiggled his way out of those). It worked like a charm!!!!! The very first night we put him in it he slept for 6 hours straight. It was unbelievable. Of course you have to stop using them when they start rolling over (in our case about month later) but still. It also helps develop some more healthy sleep habits. I would recommend not using them during the day for naps however, so they also get some practice sleeping without it. However, at night it is a life saver. I gave one to my cousin as well because her baby wasn't sleeping either and he responded even better. Her son now sleeps 14 hours straight. I can't even imagine what that feels like. The other benefit is that if you leave her in it while nursing her at night, it makes it much easier to put her back down because the transition of being held to just lying there on her own is not as great. There is still the snugness. It's worth trying.



This is the blanket I'm talking about: http://www.amazon.com/Miracle-Baby-Swadd...

Esther - posted on 03/02/2009

lol - welcome to motherhood! The no-sleeping journey has only just begun! My son is now 14 months old and still not sleeping through the night. I have been back at work (full-time) since he was 12 weeks old. Granted, my son should REALLY be sleeping through the night by now, but at 6 weeks, I don't think you can expect much more from your baby yet.

Nori - posted on 03/02/2009

one of our hardest things right now is getting her to sleep on her own without holding her... she fusses in the swing and the boucny seat and wants to be picked up and held till she falls asleep, or gets droopy eyes, then when she gets the droopy eyes, we put her down and she wakes again and fusses... it is constant and such a hard thing to do getting them to self soothe... 

Kona - posted on 03/02/2009

For a 6 week old it is entirely natural for her to wake up in the night, and until she is 6 months old she should be getting at least 1 feeding through the night. The biggest thing is to teach her that it is still time to sleep during the night after she wakes up. Keep the lights low if on at all, and keep the volume as low as possible... don't talk to her if you don't need to. If you are going back to work soon, you may want to teaach her to fall asleep on her own now... put her down in the crib, rub her gently, add some shushing... if she cries when you go away let her cry for 5 minutes. If she's still awake and crying after 5 minutes go in and repeat the steps, then leave her for 10 minutes. It might take some work... it's hard on the nerves to let your little one cry, but this is how they learn and it's not hurting them. They know you're still there because you always come back...



Let us know how it goes.