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Working Moms
twoitalians
member
Don't know how I'm gonna do it
twoitalians
member
in Working Moms
I go back to work in a few weeks and I keep having it in my head to start getting up earlier like when I go back to work. I work at 7 so I usually left my house by 6 because of the commute. I normally woke up just before 5 and this was going to bed by 9pm. DS's last night feed is usually around 330 or 4. Makes sense to stay awake and get ready when he goes back down, right? I'm so exhausted at that hour though that I fall back asleep too. And sometimes DS doesn't go back to sleep right away. DH can't help much cuz he works most nights from 5pm til around 4am and gets home around 430. So I'm on my own most nights to care for DS. I understand that sleep deprivation comes with having a baby but I'm feeling like I care for DS 24/7 and then I'm gonna have to go back to work? At least it's part time for now.
Sorry for the rant but I just don't know how I'm going to make it work. I'm stressed just thinking about it.
Sorry for the rant but I just don't know how I'm going to make it work. I'm stressed just thinking about it.
This discussion has been closed.
Re: Don't know how I'm gonna do it
If you don't want to go back to sleep, can you shift your hours so that you get in a bit earlier and leave a bit earlier?
Or, can you do more at night to cut down on your "getting ready" time in the morning? That way, you could go back to sleep for an hour or more after the last feeding. I could be out the door in 30-40 mins, even with showering in the morning, if I have my bag packed, breakfast and lunch ready to go, clothes laid out, etc. If I showered at night, I could be even faster, but I need the shower to wake up. That's without getting the kid ready to go - we have a nanny.
The sleep stuff will get better, and you'll get used to being back at work. It's exhausting for a while, but you'll get through it!
I think for me, it would be hard to go back to sleep for .5-1 hr and then get up again. If DH is getting home around the time LO finishes the first feed, could he help get LO back to sleep (or changed/dressed) while you get ready for work and get through the morning routine?
If I were in your shoes, I'd go to bed as soon as LO went to bed, and save some of the getting ready stuff for the am, since it sounds like that's when you'll have more time.
Is there anything DH can do before he leaves for work that could help you out? Maybe make dinner and you can just warm it up or get LO's bottles for the next day prepped and in the fridge so you don't have to at night?
Good luck! Hopefully LO starts sleeping longer soon!
I would try to get everything ready the night before. Including showering. Go to bed by 9.
Do you BF? If so, nurse in bed so you can snooze.
I would try to sleep until 5. Throw on clothes, makeup, easy breakfast, out the door. Your DH should be home by then to take care of LO if he's awake.
Don't try to practice while on leave. Just rest as much as you can.
I have almost the exact same schedule as you (minus the commute - mine is only 30 minutes, but I do daycare dropoff in the morning, so it turns into more like 45 minutes if you include that). I also wake up at 5, and my DH also works evenings, so I'm on my own after work with DS.
For a LONG time (months), DS was waking between 3 and 4 for a bottle. I just stayed up and got ready after feeding him. He was waking 3-6 times a night until he was 8.5 months old, and I was VERY tired. The cool thing is that your body kind of adjusts - yeah, you'll feel tired, but you will be able to function. I was going to bed as soon as possible, some nights as early as 7:30. DH was on baby duty while I was getting ready for work, but DS was usually asleep then.
Once we sleep trained DS at 8.5 months, he started STTN. Now the routine is a breeze! I enjoy my evenings with DS.
I had a lot of anxiety about the morning, too. I am a planner and wanted it all figured out, but it's hard to know what will happen until you start doing it.
My DS has been waking up around 3-4 many nights. He will go back to sleep eventually, but knowing I have to get up at 5, it's hard to go back to sleep, but I always do. That hour is always nice!
Also, go to bed as early as possible. I try to be in bed by 9:15 - 9:30. If I am, that means a good 6 hour stretch before DS starts his nuk replacement game at 3.
Boy/girl twins born at 37w1d and 37w2d