Unsettled 8 week old. Help !

[LostMum2019]

I have a very unsettled 8 week old baby. He struggles to nap in the day time which can lead to him being overtired and very unsettled through out the day. By 5pm he is screaming until bedtime. We do a bath by 6.30pm ish milk then bed.

He can only be awake 45 minutes before getting tired. So I have to change nappy, milk & winding/ burping in this time.

He has struggled a great deal with bottom wind passing forceful wind up to 20-30 times in a morning (2/3 hour period) Preventing/ waking him up from sleeping which leads to overtiredness & lots of crying.

When he gets overtired often there is nothing I can do to help console him. He will often cry / wail whilst trying to go sleep for nap. This is in in spite of me attempting to soothe- hold/ rock/ walk around / tap bottom or placing him in the Moses or cot.

He likes to be in an upright position. He dislikes the pram, Moses/ cot and not great in the carseat- he will cry for most journeys.

Any help / advice appreciated. Is this normal? Any tips ?

Could be reflux if he likes to be upright. See Gp.

Ahhh sounds like my ds, what does he eat/drink? I found a soft sling was my saviour in those days he's actually nap in it and the more he napped the more he slept at night. I also didn't even try and get into a routine or to get him to sleep through until after three months when he's fallen into a natural listen that I capitalised on. I was told I spoiled him and hei's never learn, ignore it. DS now sleeps around eleven hours a night, naps in the day and is a happy little soul.

It's fairly normal. Babies that age do sleep pretty much as soon as they've fed and pooped. Don't try to keep him awake. See GP/HV to check for reflux. Give infacol/gripe water for wind. If using bottles, try MAM bottles (game changer for us, windy crying stopped at once)

Does sound like reflux.

And my DS hated the pram, moses basket and car seat, although he didn't have reflux. The pram situation go better when I moved from a the cot attachment to an upright seat and the car seat only got better when I used a baby sensory video (literally a red ball floating across the screen) and this was after trying toys, music, mirrors and lights. I figured that this image was far preferable to my DS than him screaming himself sick l. I also really limited my car trips. He's 2 now and fine in a car without a screen.

Oh yes and discuss with GP/HV the possibility of diary intolerance causing wind. If bf you may need to cut dairy out of your diet, if FF you may need special formula prescribed.

Oh, like ZippyBungleandGeorge, I didn't have a night routine until around four months. That consisted of a bath, feed and bed at the same times.

I am another one who says try out a sling or baby carrier. Some babies and toddlers prefer sleeping on another body.

Google sling libraries to see if there is one you can get to and hire a wrap until he's about 4/5 months.

We used to call 5pm-7pm the witching hour. Both DCs would be upset in that time every night. Putting them in a carrier or sling was about the only thing which worked reliably in the early days.

Could be trapped wind and/or reflux. Although I wouldn't be waking him up I'd follow his lead in regards to his sleep. Sleep promotes sleep

I also used to get in a warm bath with a towel and wet it drape it round baby and lie them on my chest with just candle light. Seemed to calm baby down quiet a bit.

I could have literally written your post word for word with my 8 week old dd. So following with interest! But I do find the sling to be a godsend!!!

Reflux definitely. But remember he’s still tiny. I didn’t have a routine with either of mine until later, and it was led by them.

Thank you everyone for the amazing response. I shall definitely invest in a sling or find the closest sling library. Sounds like it’s definitely worth a try.

The bath time is our only routine. We have another lb so we need to stop our baby screaming before we settle him for the night.

Yes, I tortally agree with sleep breads / promotes sleep. I just can’t get him to sleep/ stay asleep during the day.