Awake time?

AbbySeiden

Right now my 2 week old baby is an angel and during the day just sleeps and eats and I usually have to wake him to eat after 3 hours. However at night he's fussier and doesn't like to sleep between feedings and wakes up after 2 hours. How to I help the day night confusion? Awake time during the day? Should I be waking him for activity?

Avion22

During the day, keep him in a well-lit room (preferably the main room of your house, like a living room), and keep everything at a normal volume.  Go outside for short walks if you can, or even just sit outside for a few minutes to get some fresh air.   Dress him in "real" clothes (like pants and a onesie). Interact when he's awake (make faces, read a story, sing a song).   

Designmate a time that is going to be "night time."  We picked 7pm, because it was convenient for us, but LO will pretty quickly set his own bedtime.   At whatever time you pick, go to whichever room he sleeps in for the night, change diaper, put on jammies, turn the lights down, and keep everything quiet.  You might want to use white noise or lullaby music on an iPod or something like that.  Read a story, do a short baby massage, nurse, then put to sleep.  This sounds harsh, but try not to interact.  Avoid talking to him or around him (whisper if you have to), avoid prolonged eye contact.

The key is daytime = light, sound, activity, interaction.  Night time = dark, quiet, calm.