Community› The Bump Local Boards› South Florida Babies
South Florida Babies
New Discussion

Mommy's with infants come in!!!

RNjackRNjack
in South Florida Babies

Hi girls, how is everyone? As you can see by my siggy I am at the 1-month milestone with julian. I had a few questions regarding what I should be doing at this point. Any feedback is greatly appreciated...

1) Ok he is nowhere near close to sttn...not even pass 3 hours will he sleep. When we first go to sleep is when he sleeps the longest, usually 2-3 hours. After that he's up every hour wanting to feed. Did anyone start a routine with their baby this early..like bath, then nurse, then music, etc...? It gets me very frustrated at night because im exhauted and all he wants to do is eat.

2) I am EBF, and for the first time yesterday I pumped and gave him a bottle right before bed. First off he hated the bottle, but I kinda pushed him to finish it. second, he took a whole 3 ounces. For some reason I think thats alot for his age. How much did your baby take at this age? Should I be giving him more? My whole intention is to fill him up so maybe he will sleep a little longer...

Ay, this is very hard and i am very frustrated. I really want to keep breastfeeding for as long as i can but the 'feeding every hour' is driving me insane. And another thing: he won't fall asleep unless someone is holding him. And then if he is asleep and I put him down in the bassinet, he is awake within 30 minutes. Whereas if I stay holding him he will sleep for 2 hours. Any way to wean him off this cycle?

Thanks girls,

-j

Report Reply to Post

Re: Mommy's with infants come in!!!

  • GenaAndJoshGenaAndJosh

    OK, I'm going to try to help you as much as I can. Spencer is not a BF'd baby, but has the same sleeping issues at a month old as well.  At that time, we finally watched the Happiest Baby on the Block DVD (https://www.thehappiestbaby.com/excerpts_book.html).  At a month old, Spencer would eat anywhere from 2-4oz a feeding, which was occuring every 2-3 hours.  After watching the DVD (mainly the swaddling portion, Spencer slept at least an additional hour at a time.  By 6 weeks old, I would make sure that his latest feeding (anywhere from 10 pm - 12 am) was 4oz and he would sleep at least 5 hours. 

    I def recommend the DVD & book.  Many of the bumpies/nesties did to me, and I only regret not watching it sooner.  HTH!


    image
    Photo courtesy of www.yaporiginals.com
    Lilypie Third Birthday tickers
    Lilypie First Birthday tickers
    It's Beshert
    Report Reply
  • Loading the player...
  • MariMMariM

    I know you are frustrated. Trust me. I NEED my sleep and the first few weeks of mommyhood were very very very difficult for me. I am going to tell you about Nadia and what worked for us- but you have to keep in mind that Nadia is strictly formula fed and that is completely different than breastfeeding (from what I've read and heard)...

    1- I started a bedtime routine around 3 weeks. A lot of people on here thought it was nuts, but I needed some order in my life. The routine finally started really working at around 5 weeks... that's when I think she finally understood it was time to wind down.

    This is what I do- at about 8pm (this is NOW), when I started this whole thing I was doing it around 11-12pm back then- I turn down the lights in my entire house (it's a small place). I turn on the white noise in her room (we use the ocean, and at that time I was turning on white noise in our room because that's where she was sleeping). I bathe her, dress her in the dark and give her a bottle in the dark while rocking her. During that feeding she would fall asleep and I would lay her down... At first it wouldn't go so smooth- sometimes she would wake an hour later and I would have to go back, give her a little more bottle, rock her some more until she fell asleep. Little by little though- it seemed to click! And now she knows bath, bottle, bedtime and she rarely gives me a hard time. 

    Little by little I moved the routine earlier and earlier (which is how we are at 8pm today)

    I am a big believer in routines. Honestly- it did not work for the first few weeks and then it finally clicked. I just stuck with it.

    2- Nadia is a big eater, at about a month old she was drinking between 4-5 ounces a feeding.

    Like Gena, we watched the Happiest Baby video and I read the book- Nadia hated the swaddle from day one. She sleeps with her arms raised above her head and will fight until she gets them out. We do although follow most of the other s's- White noise (shhhing), I rock her (swinging), bottle before bed (sucking), and the other one is side/stomach which we don't do but I know it works for some babies. The video is really helpful. I'd be happy to let you borrow mine if you'd like.

    Hang in there- I know it doesn't feel like it, but it will get better very very very soon!!!!

    Report Reply
  • futurevelezfuturevelez
    My daughter was the same the first two months she wouldnt sleep at night all she wanted to do was to have my nipple in her mouth. It got to a point that thats the only way she would sleep at night. I always BF her and FF, she would drink 15 minutes on each breast and 4 oz of milk (just because I thought she was staying hungry but she would drink it all so I guess she was). At two months i stop BF her because I was getting very frustarted because thats all she wanted, she did not take a pacifier and had to be on top of me the whole entire time. Once I stopped BF she took her pacifier, I started giving her 6 ounces of milk with rice cereal and she would sleep the whole night. BF is very good for them but you have to be very patient.
    Report Reply
  • TayLynnTayLynn member

    It's hard because exclusively BF babies stomachs empty out every 1.5-2 hours so they need to eat.  It's more common for them to need to eat every 2-3 hours than it is to STTN at that age.  Believe me at one month I was asking the same question on the 0-6 month board!  Even at Andrew's 2 month appt the paperwork said he should still be eating every 2-4 hours. 

    We have the Happiest Baby on the Block dvd too.  Our hospital discouraged swaddling unless you have a colicky baby.  So we stopped swaddling at day 2! 

    Around 7-8 weeks Andrew started giving me a few longer stretches like 4-6 hours.  I could never count on it though.  Some nights it would be back to every 2-3.  We were doing a routine at night nurse, play, bath, and then nurse again. He likes white noise at night.   Around then he started growing out of the need to be held while sleeping too. 

    You can try to cluster feed him in the evening.  Every 2 hours from the start of the last feed offer him the breast to try to get as much as possible in him before going down.

    What has really helped us is to co sleep.  I never intended to do it but it's so much easier when BFing.  I can do a quick dreamfeed or two and get a nice long stretch of about 8 hours.

    As far as ounces, BF babies only average approx 25 ounces a day from one month to 6 months.  That excludes growth spurts where the number of ounces increases.  Some babies need over 30 ounces though so you have to figure out what your little one needs.  Andrew still only drinks 3-4 ounces at a time.

    Here's a way to estimate how much to put in a bottle and then you add more until you figure your baby's needs out.

    https://www.kellymom.com/bf/pumping/milkcalc.html

    Hang in there.  I know everyone says it but it does get easier.

    Warning No formatter is installed for the format bbhtml
    Report Reply
  • taxbridetaxbride

    Cedric didn't sleep through the night (and I use the term loosely) till he was 2 1/2 months old.  I would not expect it from a 4 week old. 

    I would try to lengthen the time between feedings to at least 2 hours, though, for your own sake.  I nursed exclusively as well until 6 months when we introduced solids.  At that age (1 month) with Cedric, if he started fussing after only an hour, I would swaddle him, hold him in the football hold, let him use a pacifier and shush him until he either settled down or the hour was over and I would nurse him again.

    Tania

    Report Reply
  • MrsVictoriaBMrsVictoriaB

    Jake was just like that, he''d sleep at the most 2-3 hour stretches and would often wake up every hour to BF. Suddenly at 8 weeks he slept all night. He literally went from waking up all night to STTN it wasn't gradual or anything. So hang in there, I thought it would never end and I'd never sleep but it will suddenly happen when he is ready.

     Jake drinks a lot when I give him a bottle, I think it's because they don't know they are full yet when drinking from a bottle because the flow is much faster then bfing. He usually ends up spitting some of it back up

     The only way I got Jake to sleep and stay asleep in his bassinet was by swaddling him with the miracle blanket and putting a white noise machine IN it by his ear (didn't work next to his bed) and putting the rain noise on

    Hang in there! I spent many a day and night in tears from sleep deprivation and bfing woes but it will get better!

    sig.jpg

    My blog
    mybutton.jpg
    iRLjm4.png
    xxE9m4.png?4D9C4JG0

    Report Reply
  • RNjackRNjack

    Thanks everyone. Slowly I am seeing a light at the end of the tunnel. I know its early but i guess im just desperate at this point. Unfortunately this one does not like to be swaddled. As tight as I wrap him, he will find a way to get his hands out and sleep with his arms above his head. Problem is that he wakes himself up later, lol. This morning he fell asleep on my chest so I managed to put him to sleep on his tummy in the bed next to me and he slept for about 1-1/2 hours, which was pretty good. I have a bf'ing class tomorrow and they sell the Happiest Baby DVD there so im going to get that. Thank you for all your feedback, I will report to you all on our progress in a few weeks, lol

    -j

    Report Reply
This discussion has been closed.
Choose Another Board
Search Boards
"
"