3 week old will not stay asleep once asleep...please help

[NewMamaMia]

ds has started to sleep typically about 10hours per day, and works himself up so much that he is hardly sleeping at night. It takes not only ages for him to get to sleep(I try everything from rocking,sling,singing,feeding when hes hungry etc), and if he is moved anywhere(even if its from my breast to the side of me in bed because i have now given up on him going in his moses basket)he wakes up. I start to move him when i think he is in a deep sleep, i do it slowly, i re-assure him if he stirs but he is having none of it.
He is my first and im finding this really hard, I just do not know what else to do

NewMamaMia

Congratulations on the birth of your son.

It is very early days yet.

You might have to resign yourself to having broken nights for a while longer, but, as he is your first, why not sleep in the daytime, when he does.

I promise you that this will pass

Take care

Does he wake much in the day? DD3 is now 4 weeks old - in the first week or so she would sleep for ages in the day if we let her - I used to wake her up to feed her in the day if she was getting close to 3 hours. She still obviously wakes at night, but it's beginning to push towards only waking every 3 hours (which is good as it was every 1.5 to 2 hours at first!) We have had 4 hours twice in the last week - bliss! (but not last night, unfortunately)

The books say that babies should be put down to sleep when just drifting but not in deep sleep, else they wake and then want you to settle them again. This worked with one of mine, worked sometimes with DD2 though not often - she learned to suck her thumb at 3 months and settled herself then pretty well. DD3 is hardest - need to put her down when she's actually asleep more often than not. It does get easier - early days with a baby are great to look back on, but can feel like hell when you're in them.

I hate to be the bearer of bad news... my DD is 13 months old and she has never slept a whole night since she was born.

What you are experiencing is incredibly normal, and such early days. I believe that its is normal to expect that a bay doesnt sleep well until they are over 12 weeks, althogh I cant remember the exact time suggested as it came and went for us. DD wakes 1-2 times a night now, which is very bareable, when I think that until only a few months ago, she was waking anything from 3 -5 times a night.
I did everything you could think of. read many many books, and eventually resigned myself to the fact that it is just the way she is.

I'll repeat though, that is is very early days for you I know how awfull the tiredness is, and how much it gets you down. It DOES get better, I promise you. mainly because you get used to it

As for him not settling anywhere but on you, I did manage to crakc that one fairly early on.. I out my top that I was wearing, into her basket/pram or where ever I wanted her to be 'asleep' . It created a little warmth for her when put down, and also the smell of me, made her feel more secure I think. Its worth a try though?

Sorry not much more help, but i did find that when i was told by other mums at the same time that it was normal and I was not hte only person going through it, somehow it really helped!
good luck

• put the top I was wearing ... ( sorry... typo. )

Also, the general best advise is also to not always put them down whilst asleep, but nearly asleep. Its best to try to do this as early from the start as possible, as much easier in a tiny young baby than a say 10 month old. I did make sure of this, and have to say, it stood us in good stead.

It means they are finishing the last bit of settling to sleep, by them selves.If you are always settling them, yourself, then they don't learn how to, and when they wake, they dont go back to sleep unaided, and alwways need what got them to sleep in the first place. i.e. you, and your boob / bottle/ dads rocking / car/ pram... you get the idea!

some good books out there. The best one for us, which helped with the worst of it, was this one

thanks to all!!Its good to know its normal(its hard to remember that though at ridiculous o'clock!but u get my drift!)and i will try the suggestion about putting him to sleep when hes dozing!!!
Oooooh and thanks for the book...im onto amazon now!!
Fingers crossed for an easier to settle baby and a baby who stays asleep at least 2 hours(especially at night!)!!

Congratulation on the birth of your son. Before I start it will pass eventually it took my ds a year to get his sleeping right. Have you tried swaddling baby sometimes they like being snuggled up I did it with both of mine it worth a try.

While you are on amazon, get some stuff by the baby whisperer - shes ace at this kind of stuff.

Hi newmamamia
Dont stress it will all settle. My girl is 6 months now and from when i brought her home i put her into a routine straight away. I wakened her every 4 hours to feed and her last feed was normally at 10.30pm and then she was up at 4am and that was her til maybe 9/10am. SHe started to sleep thru at 10weeks. I do believe a routine works for them and us! Have you tried bathing at night to see if that would settle any better. Its still early days dont worry.

Oh, flashbacks to my ds! I used to feed him with him lying on a blanket then transfer him with blanket into cot (that didn't really work!) - we used to spend hours trying get him to lie down on his own!

We found swaddling brilliant. Also, try feeding him lying on your side with him beside you in bed, so he just has to unlatch and stays asleep.

In time, ds just got better - he's now 2 and sleeps 12 hours every night plus a 2 hour nap in the day.

Congrats btw

Swaddling swaddling swaddling! My DD was about 7 weeks old when I finally cottoned on to it - it used to take ages to get her to sleep, and very often she would wake up very shortly after because she would sort of jerk in her sleep, arms flailing etc and wake herself up - once we started swaddling she was fine (OK, still not so easy to get to sleep - rocking etc until she just about to nod off - but at least she would stay asleep!) Good luck - it does get better!

Its really early days and will get better, try some of the techniques/books suggested and try to get some sleep during day while DS asleep.
Swaddling worked really well with DS but was too late for DD (first child) and much like you couldnt settle her at all, spent many a night with her asleep on my chest! In the end she learnt to settle herself at night but learnt how to do it during the day first IYSWIM, used to try and leave her during the day (depending on the level of the cry) and this just spilled over to night.
Just keep telling yourself this will get easier!