Healthy sleep patterns

[Munchkinmommy]

My 6 week old baby has started being a lot more interested in her surroundings in the last week. But as a result I can't get her to nap during the day. I would love to hear tips from anyone who has been in the same position. I am worried that some options like letting her sleep on me will cause sleep problems later.
I have tried putting her in her pram and walking with her, this worked a treat only a week ago, but that doesn't work any more. She will close her eyes and I think she is going to sleep but then will wake up. She is ok up to about 3, just looking around or crying when she wants feeding. Once we get to 3/4 pm she will get really grumpy, cry a lot. She is obviously exhausted but won't sleep because she's over tired. She will drop off if I cuddle her and let her sleep on me. But as soon as I put her down she wakes up; she is asleep right now on my shoulder.
Thankfully she seems to be sleeping ok at night. She will sleep from 9 pm to 2 am then again to about 4:30 ish then thought to 7 am, sometimes 8 am. I am worried that anything I do could interfere with her night sleep. I don't know what to do for the best. I would prefer her to sleep at night if I have to choose!
In the day she will feed every 2-3 hours and will have anything from between 60 and 150 ml.
Thanks ladies!

have you tried those rocking baby 'chairs'? Can't remember name of a good one, but even the basic ones were good, used to be able to strap DS into it then rock it gently with my foot and he would go off a treat, then we would often move him to his crib if he was deeply asleep and he would have an hour or more..... aaaaaah the days when they sleep during the day are gone for us (DS now 2 and a half, hasnt napped during the day since about 15m, if he falls asleep during any travel times during the day then he really resists bedtime!! :)) blackout blinds were good in the bedroom too. also some people use those sun covers on a pram to get little ones off to sleep on a walk in bright sunshine? of course my DS used to fall asleep on me sometimes but I tried not to make it a thing that he 'had' to do in order to get off to sleep, I was worried about it becoming the only way he would sleep, he selfsettled really easily and quite young so that was good. he likes a cuddle still tho!

Sounds like the perfect baby really - why do you want her to sleep during the day? If she is sleeping well at night I'd not worry too much. Ours was like this - she started to sleep through the night at 6 weeks but would not be put down at all during the day! Small babies need constant comfort and cuddles though and if you are breastfeeding you'll know it really is a constat all-day long job. But this is why she's sleeping well at night if she is wake al lot in the day time. It's a good thing really. They change a lot in the first few months and no nap routine really gets going for ages so you have to go with the flow really till she establishes some kind of pattern. Just enjoy the good sleep you get at night! If you haven't got one already, I'd suggest getting a sling or baby (front) carrier. They're really, really useful as you are bascially able to hold the baby all the time and yet leave your hands free to get on with a few things. I vaccuumed the house and washed up whilst wearing LO in her sling and it was really the only way I coudl do anything at all in the first month or so, as she always cried immediately when put down. With many designs, you can even breastfeed baby whilst wearing them, so you dont even have to stop whatever you're doing except maybe to get them latched on!

Just realised you may not be BF-ing but I still cant reccommend a baby sling/front carrier highly enough - it's such a useful bit of kit. You may find your baby will fall asleep easier in a sling too, becasue they find it comforting to be held and cuddled close all the time!

Thanks both, helps a lot to know other babies have been the same. Gourd you have a great point! The reason I worry is because in the books I read it says the babies that don't nap in the day will eventually struggle to sleep at night. Also by the time we get to 4pm she is so tired but won't sleep and then cries and cries bless her. Want to avoid her getting so over tired but am worried about creating bad habits! I have a friend who has offered to lend me a swing chair so I will give it a try I think. Sling does sound like a good idea. I have been putting of both the solutions as I don't want her to depend on it to sleep at night too. But sounds like neither of you had that problem so maybe I am worrying for nothing! Thanks :-)

Yes a swing chair maybe useful too. We were given a swing chair which we found useful for mealtimes - LO would sit in it on the table in front of us so she could see us whilst we ate and was quite happy there, eventually nodding off in it and it meant could eat in peace! Ours had twinkly coloured lights in a canopy above the seat which she also loved looking at till she nodded off. However I'd try to get one given to you (as we did) or buy second hand rather than buying new, as they are really expensive and have extremely limited lifespan - grown out of very quickly. Our sling on the other hand we forked out for a new one, but we then used it every day for 8 months till LO was too heavy for it. After that we bought a child back carrier instead, which we still use for walks.

Using the swing for meal times is a great idea! We seem to be eating later and later! We seem to be going from one extreme to the other. Yesterday she slept loads, probably 6 hours. She still had a mad hour of crying and eventually we got her to sleep at 9. She slept though to 3 then woke up for a feed. After that she just lay there kicking and gurgling for 2.5hrs. No crying be really noisy, keeping me awake. Any ideas why? Could it be that she had too much sleep? I have read that if they are growing or going through something developmentally they will do this. She does seem to like to be swaddled but she wriggles out of it do have got her a swaddle pod. See how we get on :-)

The swaddle pod worked a treat! She loved it. She had her crying hour and after her bath and bottle I put in the pod and she stopped crying straight away and fell asleep. She went to sleep at 9pm and slept through to 4am then through to 7! Best night we have had yet. She seems a lot happier this morning and has gone down for her morning nap with ease.
Could be that the growth spurt she was having is coming to an end and she would have slept like this anyway but the pod def calmed her down :-)

Oh OP I hear you! I tried EVERYTHING!! Blackout blind, swaddling, rocking, music-result unhappy babies fighting sleep and unhappy mother spending seemingly endless days trying to get baby to sleep. We turned a corner when I just gave up! Seriously. They sleep so well at night just like your baby that I thought why worry? They now quite happily kip on and off in bouncers, car seats, pushchair etc happy and smiling at the world. Just one last tip though what about a baby carrier? That way you can take her everywhere and carry on with what you need to do even if shes awake.

I think you're right. I am worrying too much about getting her into a sleep routine. My HV said not to worry, cuddle when she needs it let her nap if she needs to and if she won't and then gets over tired later in the day just to accept that she will cry, comfort her and to try swaddling. So far that is working. Husband is picking up a sling for us today for those days when she won't be put down. Think half the battle has been to just go with it, stop worrying about creating bad habits and accept that her patterns will change. I am such a control freak and have probably read too many books! Lol :-). Thanks everyone for your advice!

Im a control freak too but babies are maybe the one thing we cant control eh? I just concentrate on trying to control everything else instead (poor dh..). I definately advocate 'go with it' after well meaning advice from friends to routine my twins just stressed me out. Though I am a fan of a bedtime routine. I need that time at the end of the day to recharge. I didnt start till they were 9 weeks though. Good luck with the sling they are really good! :)