Intro and Question

bluebird0521 · July 2014

Hello!

I am a FTM mom and second grade teacher. I am going back to work in two weeks. DS will be 7 weeks old. I can't take any more time off because I have been out of work since the beginning of April. I had a high-risk pregnancy and was put on bed rest. Luckily I was able to keep DS in until 36 weeks. I wasn't going to return to work at first, I was going to be a SAHM but that has since changed.

Now for the question part...how do I get my son on a schedule? I don't need him on an exact, to the minute schedule. More of a predictable routine. I am EBF and I feed on demand. He is typically eating about every 2 hours and then at night every 3 (sometimes 4) hours. The only problem is that this is not consistent. I recently got him to switch his days/nights but then they switch back and forth. I don't know what to do! Why does he keep switching them? Plus he is super extra fussy this past week and it is killing me. I can't imagine dealing with a fussy baby all night, getting 2-3 hours of sleep max and then heading into work with 2nd graders.

At night I do stick with a routine of feeding him, bathing, swaddling, reading a story, finish feeding (I offer the other breast), then singing to him and laying him down. This seems to work but the problem is he pops awake after 3 hours and wants to play...

I really need some advice, tips, tricks, whatever you can throw at me! I only have two weeks to get my guy on a consistent daytime/bedtime routine.

jlaOK · July 2014

I wouldn't necessarily worry about getting him on a schedule. Starting daycare usually messes up baby's schedule (especially sleep) anyway so you'll probably have to make adjustments once he starts anyway.

I would just make sure that he is able to nap well in a crib because napping well at daycare will be key to having a happy baby.

With both of mine, 6-8 weeks was a huge turning point of babies settling into a more consistent routine so hopefully he'll get there before you start work.

Welcome and good luck!

jtmomma13 · July 2014

I would try not to stress so much about a fixed schedule at this point. We didn't fall into an actual schedule until after 4 months and even then it wasn't exact. I would try and keep your nighttime routine the same and consistent. I am a big believer in night time consistency but it doesn't always help your LO one sleep - we've been consistent and at almost a year- we have and still have bad nights and sometimes many in a row...like the past 4 weeks.

I am a FTM and this year has been trying with work and feeling awake. But you'll push through it.

My advice and I am no expert at all would be that when LO wakes up in the middle of the night don't make eye contact and don't talk to LO. I would and still do always comfort LO and rock him but I keep the lights off and only put a small night light on when doing a diaper change and I don't let him play. When LO was that little sometimes I would have to put him in the swing to get him back to sleep but I would do that with no talking and no eye contact as well.

Good luck!

emberlee3 · July 2014

Babies change constantly at that age. Every week is a new challenge/adventure.

I went back to work when DS was 6 weeks old. I worked 80 hrs week, on a crazy, unpredictable residency schedule. What worked for me was bedsharing to maximize sleep. He slept better, and I could fall asleep while nursing, although this gets much easier as baby gets bigger. When I wasn't working, I focused on nursing DS and sleeping. I pretty much left everything else to DH. Or just let it go entirely.

The first few weeks (months, really) will be tough. You will be sleep deprived. That's parenting. Maybe you can catch a late afternoon nap with LO to help you survive.

BabyHope2013 · July 2014

Completely agree with previous posters. Just enjoy these next few weeks. But do what you can to get your LO used to sleeping in a crib/pack and play and not just in your arms. When my DS went to daycare our provider really got all the credit for putting him on more of a schedule.

Are you pumping yet? Often I would feed DS at 9 p.m. or so, then I would go to bed. DH would feed DS around midnight and then go to bed. So that come around 4 in the morning I could wake up feed DS, put him back to sleep and then get myself up and ready for work beginning at 5 a.m. This schedule worked out amazingly well until DS was able to sleep until 5-6 a.m. Then I was able to sleep in a little bit longer before getting up and out the door.

Maybride2 · July 2014

Any good daycare will understand and not expect an infant to be on a schedule. They will follow your son's cues and feed him on demand, put him down for nap on demand, engage him when he wants to be engaged.......that's what they do. And that 7-9 week time is SO hard, if you believe at all in the research on Wonder Weeks, 8 weeks is a big leap where infants typically do sleep less/eat more/become more inconsolable. Just know that it gets better.

TheBorg7of9 · July 2014

I don't think a schedule is possible at this point. But I found that feeding often during the day let them sleep more at night. Also, I try to start the day at about the same time everyday. And put him down for a nap after he's been up a certain amount of time, I can't remember what time that would be though at that age. Overall, just enjoy the remainder of your time off. You can figure out everything as you go along. It's impossible to plan for going back to work. I mean you never know what issues you'll even have, if any.

bluebird0521 · July 2014

BabyHope2013 said:

Completely agree with previous posters. Just enjoy these next few weeks. But do what you can to get your LO used to sleeping in a crib/pack and play and not just in your arms. When my DS went to daycare our provider really got all the credit for putting him on more of a schedule.

Are you pumping yet? Often I would feed DS at 9 p.m. or so, then I would go to bed. DH would feed DS around midnight and then go to bed. So that come around 4 in the morning I could wake up feed DS, put him back to sleep and then get myself up and ready for work beginning at 5 a.m. This schedule worked out amazingly well until DS was able to sleep until 5-6 a.m. Then I was able to sleep in a little bit longer before getting up and out the door.

@BabyHope2013 Yes I am pumping. I am freezing my milk, and occasionally I have DH feed him a fresh bottle to get him used to bottles.

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