We are starting to lose our minds--newborn sleeping and eating

Okay so now he is up at night every 2 hours. I up'd his food from 4oz to 5oz and still up every 2 hours for bottle.

I also think he has his nights and days confused.

PLEASE TELL ME THERE IS SOMETHING I CAN DO HERE

I can't be up every 2 hours for bottles.

Re: We are starting to lose our minds--newborn sleeping and eating

gotta ride it out....my ds was like that until about 6 weeks or so, how old is your ds?

Re: We are starting to lose our minds--newborn sleeping and eating

When you feed him at night, do you keep everything dark and quiet?
During the day, everything should be bright and noisy, even when he is sleeping.
Have you tried giving him a pacifier instead of a bottle? I was feeding every 3 hours at that age, but I was breastfeeding. I'm not sure what is normal for FF.

Re: We are starting to lose our minds--newborn sleeping and eating

Posted by pinkandblue

gotta ride it out....my ds was like that until about 6 weeks or so, how old is your ds?

Re: We are starting to lose our minds--newborn sleeping and eating

Posted by jxnoscar

Posted by pinkandblue

gotta ride it out....my ds was like that until about 6 weeks or so, how old is your ds?

4wks tomorrow
Been doing this for almost a week
I try to keep him up during the day but no shot

Re: We are starting to lose our minds--newborn sleeping and eating

First of all hang in there. This won't last long.

At night keep it as dark as you can and as quiet as you can. I fed and changed, and rocked DD by nightlight and didn't make a peep.

During the day keep it bright, animated, playful and have music or other sounds going.

DH and I would take turns at night. I EBF'd so it was a little harder on me but he'd try to let me sleep from 9pm until 1 am and give DD a pumped bottle before he went to bed. I handled any wakings after 1am and I slept during the day whenever DD did in the beginning.

Again, this will end so quickly in the matter of a few months you'll barely remember it.

Re: We are starting to lose our minds--newborn sleeping and eating

Posted by patti08

First of all hang in there. This won't last long.

Again, this will end so quickly in the matter of a few months you'll barely remember it.

Re: We are starting to lose our minds--newborn sleeping and eating

Oh man...have I been where you are now. Everyone will say, it will get better in time. That's the last thing you want to hear, but it's the truth. Newborns are so darn cute, but they can bring an adult to their knees in tears from exhaustion.

Hang in there...you'll survive. And accept help whenever it is offered! And if it's not offered...ASK for help!

Re: We are starting to lose our minds--newborn sleeping and eating

At 4 weeks that's totally normal. Sorry. Hang in there.

Re: We are starting to lose our minds--newborn sleeping and eating

Posted by patti08

First of all hang in there. This won't last long.

At night keep it as dark as you can and as quiet as you can. I fed and changed, and rocked DD by nightlight and didn't make a peep.

During the day keep it bright, animated, playful and have music or other sounds going.

DH and I would take turns at night. I EBF'd so it was a little harder on me but he'd try to let me sleep from 9pm until 1 am and give DD a pumped bottle before he went to bed. I handled any wakings after 1am and I slept during the day whenever DD did in the beginning.

Again, this will end so quickly in the matter of a few months you'll barely remember it.

Re: We are starting to lose our minds--newborn sleeping and eating

you SHOULD let your baby nap. newborns that don't nap well usually don't sleep well at night. they should never be up more than 2 hours at a time. but this is normal for this age and it definitely will get better. at 6 weeks DS slept 5-6 hours and then 8 weeks he slept 7-8 hours and now at 3 months he sleeps 8-10 hours. you'll get there!

Re: We are starting to lose our minds--newborn sleeping and eating

Re: We are starting to lose our minds--newborn sleeping and eating

5 oz every 2 hours sounds like a lot for a 4 week old. DS was eating like that a few weeks ago and we decided to stop feeding on demand. He was gaining weight like crazy and it just was too much for us to be feeding him all the time. We fed him every 3 hours no matter what. Eventually he started going longer at night. In between feedings, if he fussed, we gave him the pacifier. He loves to suck, and usually that gets him to calm down. We also found bouncing him in his bouncer would calm him and get him to go to sleep.

Now at 8 weeks old, he eats 5 oz six times a day.


ETS: Do you feed him every two hours during the day too? I might have read your post wrong.

For the night, how long do you let him fuss before feeding him? We don't feed him until he cries at night. He grunts and fusses periodically, but he falls back to sleep

Message edited 1/19/2010 8:55:07 AM.

Re: We are starting to lose our minds--newborn sleeping and eating

My DS is 4 mo. and he is still inconsistent. The last few nights he goes down around 10:30 and wakes up around 3:30 and 6:30 for a bottle. But when he was your DS's age he was up every 2 hours for a bottle

Re: We are starting to lose our minds--newborn sleeping and eating

Ds was up every 2-3 hours at that age, so even though I can understand he frustration and exhaustion, what you're dealing with is pretty normal.

Re: We are starting to lose our minds--newborn sleeping and eating

Posted by nferrandi

Ds was up every 2-3 hours at that age, so even though I can understand he frustration and exhaustion, what you're dealing with is pretty normal.

Re: We are starting to lose our minds--newborn sleeping and eating

I just want to send


the first 6 weeks of Sophia's life were really tough for us. she was a "colicy" baby, diagnosed with AR and she didnt really "nap" during the day like most newborns. she was VERY alert from birth and didnt want to miss anything. as great as that is, it made sleep hard to come by. at that age she was only eating 3oz/feeding if we were lucky which just meant she was eating every 1.5-2 hours during the day and every 3 hours at night. luckily she never had days/nights confused and slept a little better at night.

i agree that you have to keep them stimulated during the day (lights, noise, etc.) and try to wind them down at night -- then NO stimulation as you try to get them off to sleep. that was hard for me too. she LOVES to be sung to and snuggled.

at that age you just have to go with the flow. if they need to eat every 2 or 3 hours then feed them! but first, make sure theyre not wet or too hot/cold, etc. i remeber feeling like those days dragged, but now at 4 months i hardly remember those days. it WILL get better. i remember hating to hear that because it feels like it wont BUT it will.

try to have friends/family come over to help you during the day so you can sleep. its the BEST thing you can do for yourself!

Re: We are starting to lose our minds--newborn sleeping and eating

I have no advise...i just wanted to let you know that I feel your pain! Im going through the same thing right now

My dc eats 4 ounces every 3 hours but last night he woke up to eat at 12 then would not go back to sleep. He would cry and I would rock his bassinet and it would seem like he fell asleep but the second I stopped rocking him he would cry again. He was up until he was due for his next bottle at 3am...I was so tired that I started crying. Thank god he fell asleep after his 3am bottle but only sleep for 2 hours. Some days are better than others (last night was NOT a good one) but I really can't wait until he starts sleeping at night for a decent amount of time!

Re: We are starting to lose our minds--newborn sleeping and eating

I wouldnt necessary try to keep him UP during the day

he still needs his naps...Sleep Begets Sleep....however, let him nap but have the tv, lights, noise going or take him for walks if it is nice out

I kept the house nice and bright during the day and ery dark at night

Do you swaddle him? He could be waking due to startle reflex

Re: We are starting to lose our minds--newborn sleeping and eating

I agree with what everyone else has already said. At this age, they SHOULD be up every 2-3 hours to eat, and newborns sleep ALL THE TIME. Trying to keep him up more during the day is not going to make him sleep more at night, in fact, it may backfire.

Hang in there... it gets easier.

Re: We are starting to lose our minds--newborn sleeping and eating

DS is 3 weeks and I'm going thru the same thing. I am keeping hope that "this too shall pass" sooner rather than later". however I will say the past 2 days he is getting better. Last night he slept almost 5 hours, b/c I sorta kept him up during the day (went for a walk and to visit DH's aunt)

Re: We are starting to lose our minds--newborn sleeping and eating

just wanted to add -- have you tried the 5 S's???




The 5 S's
There are 5 components to this method which, when used together, work amazingly well to calm your crying baby and in many cases help your baby go to sleep with no fuss.
Using cross-cultural techniques combined with his own research, Dr. Karp has developed the "five S's system". Some babies will need all five, others just a few to help induce what he calls the "calming reflex."


•Swaddling - Tight swaddling provides the continuous touching and support the fetus experienced while still in Mom's womb.

•Side/stomach position - You place your baby, while holding her, either on her left side to assist in digestion, or on her stomach to provide reassuring support. Once your baby is happily asleep, you can safely put her in her crib, on her back.

•Shushing Sounds - These sounds imitate the continual whooshing sound made by the blood flowing through arteries near the womb. This white noise can be in the form of a vacuum cleaner, a hair dryer, a fan and so on. The good news is that you can easily save the motors on your household appliances and get a white noise CD which can be played over and over again with no worries.

•Swinging - Newborns are used to the swinging motions that were present when they were still in Mom's womb. Every step mom took, every movement caused a swinging motion for your baby. After your baby is born, this calming motion, which was so comforting and familiar, is abruptly taken away. Your baby misses the motion and has a difficult time getting used to it not being there. "It's disorienting and unnatural," says Karp. Rocking, car rides, and other swinging movements all can help.

•Sucking - "Sucking has its effects deep within the nervous system," notes Karp, "and triggers the calming reflex and releases natural chemicals within the brain." This "S" can be accomplished with breast, bottle, pacifier or even a finger.