6 week old will not sleep in bassinet

knottieb4a91f7158c6de82

Hello all,

My daughter is 6 weeks old and does not sleep in her bassinet (or crib)- only in my arms. I realize that this is somewhat normal, as she was in my body for nine months, the whole “4th Trimester” thing, and I love cuddling with her... but I feel like it’s just downright dangerous at night when I’m dead tired and she’s sleeping on my chest. I moved out of the master bedroom and into the nursery where there is a bed to make it safer (one less person in the bed). She sleeps on my chest (still wakes up every 1.5-2 hours to eat (sidenote, is that still normal at this point????) but we at least get some sleep, whereas if I put her down (I’ve tried drowsy but awake, totally knocked out, and everything in between) she will wake within 0-20 minutes crying. Putting a hand on her and patting her or shushing doesn’t work. I have to physically pick her up and bounce her, walk her, etc. She will, occasionally, during the day sleep 1-2 hours in her rock n play but not consistently. Anyway, any suggestions are greatly appreciated! What do I do????? Thanks all

rachelpersad

My son is now 7 weeks old and he does the same. We can’t get him to sleep in the bassinet but only in our arms. We tried all sorts of tricks to get him down but he wakes up immediately or within minutes. Our doctor advised to leave him wherever he is comfortable as the more important thing right now is for him to transition into the real world comfortably while going through this crucial growth and development period. Sleep training is not for newborns. In time, he will feel confident to gradually sleep on his own. Whilst it sounds dangerous, we sleep lightly with a lot of pillows around us to ensure he is relatively safe and he gets his comfortable sleep as that is priority. We ensure we keep our arms wrapped around him throughout his naps. Your daughter feels safe with your warmth so give it to her. It will mean more sleepless or interrupted sleep nights for you but just remember, it is only for a time and it’s for her comfort. It will get better. I look at it as he is only this small once so I’m enjoying the cuddles.