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when to get baby on schedule
So I know I probably read this somewhere, but when and how exactly do you get the baby on a schedule? Baby is only 2.5 weeks, is it too early to try a schedule? Any tips on how to make it as easy as possible? Thanks!
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Re: when to get baby on schedule
We had DS on a bedtime routine at 6 weeks when he started STTN. Knowing I was going back to work, when he was ready for bed, we would do bathtime, pajamas, and nursing/rocking to sleep and backed it up a few minutes each week until it was at a reasonable hour. He was usually out by 10 and now we have it backed up to 8pm so we still have an hour of "adult time" before we go to bed. I get up at 3 am for work so I need all the sleep I can get in order to function.
At 2.5 weeks, I didn't know whether I was coming or going. I guess about 4-5 weeks is when it started actually getting easier to figure things out.
Congratulations on your baby.
We started following a bedtime routine (for us, stories, prayers and nursing) around eight weeks, just to get DS and us into the habit. He wasn't sleeping through the night at that point (or for a long time), but he was getting to a point where he usually started his longest stretch of sleep around 10:00.
I'm a nurse on demand kinnd of girl, so he didn't have any kind of eating schedule until he was regularly eating solids. (Even then, the schedule was just for solids. He nursed on demand until we limited him to nursing only in the morning and at nap time sometime after he turned one.)
Whenever we have a second baby, I will probably work more on sleep routines and getting naps on a good routine early. The sleep book I will probably read again is Healthy Sleep Habits Happy Baby. I don't think I could ever do the full extinction method described in the book for sleep training, but the book has a lot of great info. about sleep patterns, routines, etc. The book has recommendations on things you can do early to establish good habits that aren't sleep training, just good routines.
This is good to know, especially since you get up at 3. I figure I'll have to be getting up at 4 when I go back in order to get us both out the door by 5. I guess I'll give me a few more weeks and then start that process. My biggest concern was getting him on some type of "reasonable" schedule given the 4 am wake up.
My DD#2 just turned 4 weeks old yesterday and I'm starting a schedule today. We follow the Babywise guidelines so I will be doing 2.5 hour intervals of eating, awake time, and then sleep time. We did this with DD#1 and it worked wonderfully and got her STTN around 8 weeks. To this day, she is a really great sleeper. I also have a number of friend who also did the plan and it worked well for them.
Babywise says you can start a loose schedule around 2 weeks so if you are interested in learning more about the plan, it may be a good time to pick up the book and start reading it (it should be available at the library). If you get it, make sure to get the 2006 version because apparently the earlier versions had some information in it that they later changed.
We followed the EASY routine as soon as things started to settle down (probably around 2 weeks or so). There was still no set schedule (and if you nurse, I don't know how you could!), but at least we had a fairly predictable pattern of events. That still didn't guarantee pesky things like naps, though.
C started to set his own bedtime at about a month old - conking out for the night at 7:30, and that stuck.
Another Babywise mom here--it was a life saver for us and Warner really thrived on the routine it suggests. We started it around 8 weeks and with our next baby I'll probably start it sooner. It is NOT a strict scheduling system at all. Anyone who says as much has not read the book :-) It is a great routine that is flexible and can give your days some structure, if that's what you want. A lot of moms are very against any kind of schedule or routine for babies, but it's just a personality difference, IMO, and I think babies do fine either way. Happy baby = happy mommy :-)
I think that the Baby Whisperer is the same philosophy without the author having a fundie Christian background. (ftr, I'm a long way off from being any kind of fundie Christian and the moms who recommended the book to me are not really religious at all)
The thing to remember with ANY parenting book, is to read it, see if it makes sense for you and your family and do what you think is best. Every book out there is going to claim they their philosophy is best and WILL work for you--they are trying to sell books! But you don't have to do every single thing that the books suggest.
And good luck, I know that it's hard right now...it really, really will get easier!!
The first edition of Babywise has been out of print for around 20 years, there is virtually no chance someone could buy a new copy of it. And honestly, the reason that it was controversial is because people are dumb. I mean, really, you have to be a special kind of idiot not to feed your baby when he/she is hungry.
This for us, too. EASY is Baby Whisperer - eat, activity, sleep, you - that worked for us. DS was on a 3 hour schedule until between 10-11 weeks when he started having a longer stretch of sleep from 9 pm - 3 am.
I don't think a book is necessary to get on a schedule. If you follow your baby's eating and sleeping cues, they are usually pretty predictable around 8-10 weeks. Every baby is different. I personally think that trying to follow a structured schedule (excluding multiples) could lead to more frustration on the parent's if their baby needs to eat more often or needs more cuddles than sleep.
My DD nursed on demand every 90 minutes to 2 hours around the clock until she was 9 months old. She also had a very predictable nap and sleep schedule very early on that she stayed on for the first year, then dropped to one nap but at the same time. My DS could care less about eating and goes 3 to 4 hours nursing on demand. I offer it starting at 2 hours but he just doesn't need to eat that often. He is still growing at above the 90th percentile like DD. I can easily tell when he's sleepy but he doesn't nap at the same time every day.
The first 6 weeks are tough and you just have to survive on the sleep that you can get. Good Luck!
TTC #1 Cycle 14 - IUI#1=BFN, IUI#2=BFP | TTC #2 Cycle 8=BFP!!
Ditto for us, except I only have one DD!
We started a 3 hour rotation around 2 weeks old and never looked back. She STTN at 5 weeks old and started 12 hour stretches at 12 weeks old. Just in the past month, she started dropping to 11-11.5 hours through the night. I am beyond spoiled but I really believe Babywise works for us!