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Babies: 0 - 3 Months
mags507
member
DD needs to sleep, and so do I...
mags507
member
My DD does not sleep well at all. She cat-naps during the daytime, except for a longer nap in the afternoon. At night, she is awake and fussy/just wants to be held for hours. She will usually drift off about 2-3am and sleep for several hours in her cradle. Right now, she sleeps in her cradle next to our bed, but VERY often ends up our bed. We do not want to bedshare for many reasons, mainly neither of us sleeps well when she is in our bed and our bed isn't very safe for a baby. She is also a loud sleeper and keeps me up.
We are going to go ahead and move her into her crib in her room. She is usually really relaxed after a bath and sleeps better (although not great), so I may start giving her a bath every night...even just a warm water bath (no soap) to avoid drying out her skin. I also BF, but my supply sucks at night, so I might start giving her a bottle of formula at her 8ish feeding. I think part of the problem is that she gets so hungry and ends up feeding for several hours. I've tried to keep her feeding to build up my supply but we both get so frustrated. Do these plans sound reasonable?
I know that she is too young for sleep training, but does anyone have any recs for sleep books so I can be well-read and prepared for when that time comes. Also any suggestions/advice for now would be appreciated.
I don't expect her to sleep through the night right now, I just want her to sleep AT night. My DH does help tremendously, but next week he will be back at work full time and I may not be able to get as many naps during the day as I have been.
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Re: DD needs to sleep, and so do I...
The first few weeks with my LO were also like that, she had her days and nights mixed up. She would take a long nap during the day and then wouldn't sleep at night. To help her learn the difference I made it very quiet ad dark at night. During the day I took her for a walk so she could see the sun (I'e heard this helps) and also kept the house bright and noisy. I did not put her in crib at first when she napped. I also played with ther a lot when she was awake during the day. At night, don't make eye contact, don't change her diaper unless you absolutely need to. It will take a few weeks but eventually she will get the picture.
We also put her in her crib from the beginning because she is loud and it would keep me up, I also don't use a monitor because I would tense up for every little sound and then go in there and I think I ended up waking her up more often when really she was just making noises while she slept!
Are you sure that your supply is low in the evening? Maybe she is just comfort nursing - you could try to offer her a pacifer. I personally would not give her formula in the evening just because then your body won't know to produce BM then and it might effect your supply, esp this early when your supply is still regulating. My LO nursed for a long time when she was 3 weeks but has gotten more proficient.
I would say if a bath helps her relax and sleep, then go for it! You can make it part of your bed time routine.
GL - the first few weeks are really rough but I promise it will get better! Hang in there ...
Olivia Kate is almost 4!
Diagnosed with autism this year and doing great!