Need tips on getting baby to sleep longer at night.

[Sonoran Silkies]

Absolutely agree. Cereal is almost always inappropriate for a one month old. Eating every 2-3 hours is what they need at this particular age in their development. Bringing baby to bed will make feeding less invasive on your sleep.

Round the clock feedings do not really last long in the grand scheme of life. Think about some of the things you put up with for that long or longer: a car that is on its last legs, and you wait several months until the next year model comes out, the search for, purchase of and closing on a new home, the nine month incubation period for your daughter. All of those endure longer than the 2 hour round the clock feedings.

Try to time the last feeding before going to bed. Wake the baby up and feed her if necessary. That way you'll be woken for the next feeding in 2-3 hours, not an hour after going to sleep.

 

[English Chick]

I agree with the other posters that at one month rice should not be given, their stomachs and bowels are not ready for it...... nor are they ready to sleep all night...... be patient ...... sleepless nights are what being anew parent is all about, hence the exhaustion ... it does not last long ..... your babies well being is what is important, not your sleep at the moment, I am not trying to sound harsh ..... but hang on in there...... putting her on rice will only cause nasty stomach gripes and then you really will not be able to sleep...... ... good luck and many congrats on the arrival of your beautiful child............ just don't rush things.......

 

[Eggs4Sale]

Sudafed????

OKAY, OKAY. NO Sudafed.

Oooo, oooooo, TURKEY!

Algebra homework?

Federal 10-40 tax form?

Merck's Manual?

 

[Judy]

Quote:
Wise words. Did you really think you would be able to sleep all night for the first few months? Try 6 month colic, if you think this is difficult....

 

[Ewe Mama2]

Please do not give your baby rice cereal! It can lead to awful allergies for the rest of her life.

Babies' tummies are too small to go for long without eating. They need small, frequent meals. Yes, that means not getting much sleep at night. Welcome to parenting a newborn. Enjoy her. Trying to rush the sleeping through the night process will only frustrate you and could physically harm her (acid reflux, allergies, etc).

Congratulations on your new little bundle of joy.

 

[kagedgoddess]

Quote:
ive done this with all my kids, But it is my exp that babies tend to wake up every 2-4hrs to eat. ds woke up every hour when i had him in his bassinet, but the problem was i could hear EVERY little sound he made and would wake up. sometimes babies will fuss and go right back to sleep. give yours a minute or two Beofre getting up. he slept better in my bed cuz i stopped twichting at every sound. i am SO afraid when they sleep by themselves that they will stop breathing. i have one side of my bed against the wall, the baby sleeps there with a rolled up recieving blanket against her side so she doesnt roll anywhere. then I sleep next to her, dh has squished ME at night theres NO way the babies sleep near him! i move the kids around 8mos to a matress on the floor next to the bed.
sorry to say, you just might have to wait it out.

 

[rainplace]

Quote:
ive done this with all my kids, But it is my exp that babies tend to wake up every 2-4hrs to eat. ds woke up every hour when i had him in his bassinet, but the problem was i could hear EVERY little sound he made and would wake up. sometimes babies will fuss and go right back to sleep. give yours a minute or two Beofre getting up. he slept better in my bed cuz i stopped twichting at every sound. i am SO afraid when they sleep by themselves that they will stop breathing. i have one side of my bed against the wall, the baby sleeps there with a rolled up recieving blanket against her side so she doesnt roll anywhere. then I sleep next to her, dh has squished ME at night theres NO way the babies sleep near him! i move the kids around 8mos to a matress on the floor next to the bed.
sorry to say, you just might have to wait it out.

I miss those days so much. Since I rarely fully woke up, it was almost like fully sharing this planet with another human being... baby being just an extension of myself. I could never stand my babies being away from me sleeping, I also had the same fear of their breathing stopping.

To the OP, I agree with others about not giving the rice. Introducing food early can cause severe food allergies later on in life. If you all aren't breastfeeding, then try to have everything next to baby ready to go so that getting up to feed isn't as big of a deal. You can keep warm water in a thermos or something so that mixing the formula doesn't require a trip to the kitchen. Or you can use room temp canned (I had a neighbor that did that). I really like the idea of you two taking turns so that each of you get at least 4 hours of uninterrupted sleep.

It can be daunting at first. I imagine that right about now it feels like it's never going to end. It will... all too soon.

 

[Clay in MS]

We appreciate all of your comments. Thank you. We realize our little one is not going to sleep all night for some time. That is not our goal at this point. We are looking for what some of you might suggest as "helpful hints" for getting her to sleep more than 2 hours at a time. Three hours of continuous rest would make a big difference. We just added the rice cereal to the formula for late night feeding after consulting our doctors (wife works for pediatric group of doctors). Dr's gave the ok. Had they been opposed to the idea, we would not be trying the rice cereal this soon. Your comments have been helpful. We know we are blessed and this is a minor "inconvenience" that will soon pass. Thank you all for responding.

 

[newchickenfamily]

Quote:
Yep, this is the gist of it... I personally would NOT do the rice cereal at one month. I've had 3 kiddos myself and this is about how it works! Hang in there and enjoy it, sleepless nights and all!

 

[phoenixmama]

I agree with *most* of the other posters. Babies wake up at night for a reason, for milk/comfort...these things are NEEDS, and are a part of the responsibilities of having a child. Yes, it's frustrating sometimes but you'll get through it. If your wife is feeding baby formula, then she gets the benefit of a morning cup (or two...or six) of coffee.

Co-sleeping is a great way to ensure you all get a reasonable amount of sleep at night. It takes away the amount of time it takes to get baby back in their bed. My third was/is formula fed...I kept all the bottles I'd need by the bedside along with one of those formula dispenser things. He'd wake up, I'd dump the formula in the bottle that already contained water, shake, while laying on my side hold him on my arm allowing the bottle to be held by the crook of my neck. I'd be back asleep within 30 seconds. The only time that co-sleeping isn't a good idea is if you are under the influence of drugs or alcohol.

Another thing, I often say that our kids' pediatrician is used for medical advice...not parenting advice. When it comes to the parenting stuff go with your instincts, even if it goes against what the grandparents or your pediatrician is saying. They don't have that primal, "mama bear" connection with your child.