Worried: sleepy baby

[worm79]

Newborn ds, 2 weeks, sleeps almost all day/night. He does rouse for feeds (bf) every 3 hours approx but then will just go back to sleep. He manages about 10-15 mins eyes open alert wakefulness about twice a day. I am so anxious about him. Medical obs are fine as is nappy output so midwives weren’t concerned. I just feel something isn’t right. How does this sound to other people?

I wouldn't be worried about that at 2 weeks old. It's hard work being born. They tend to be sleepy until about 6 weeks.

Congratulations on your new born... welcome to the world of worrying about everything... every.tiny.little.thing.

Hmm 10-15 mins isn’t that much even for a 2 week old. Has he been checked for jaundice etc? I would be getting a doctor to look at him as midwives are not as medically qualified as doctors and can miss things (personal experience)

I’ll go to the dr tomorrow. He’s been examined by a paediatrician in the last week who wasn’t concerned about anything - I hadn’t mentioned the sleepiness at that point. He has been slightly jaundiced though not requiring treatment and that seems to be resolved.

Have you been googling ? I wonder why you are concerned ? Really Sleepy babies can be a worry but equally he could be fine . It's probably best to get him checked and do trust your instincts .

I don’t actually know what I’m worried it is. I haven’t been googling. He responds physically - flinches when light changes/noises/touch but doesn’t often get as far as actually waking up.

My daughter slept for 21 hours every day until she was 6 weeks old - I couldn't believe it, especially after having a non-sleeper the first time around! Some babies are just sleepy.

Was he born before his due date? My dd was 3 weeks early so not technically prem but was really sleepy for 3 weeks til around her due date when she became more aware

I don’t know what to think.
You say your daughter slept 21 hrs @Nix32 but he’s not even awake that long. Maybe 5 mins if that at the beginning of a feed and the odd 10 minutes a couple of times a day.

I don't want to worry you more than you already are and as I said above some babies can be sleepy but it can also be a sign of something so it's really best to go back to the doctors and get him checked ( although you may not know until he is much older anyway) . My son was very sleepy and I was dismissed as paranoid and anxious ( I'm not ) !

And what was the outcome @pigpoglet

If you're worried get him reviewed

I don't want to worry you more but my instincts were correct and my son has special needs .
Please don't panic though as there may be a myriad of reasons why he is sleepy and they could easily be sorted but it isn't normal for a baby to be sooo sleepy . He may well become less sleepy as time goes on but all newborn babies I had come across where very alert regularly during a 24 hour period so trust your instincts as I knew it didn't feel right for my son .
Maybe keep a record of exactly times he is awake and asleep in 24 hours so you have exact information to show doctors etc .

Two of my three were that sleepy, it didn't last more than 2 and a half weeks though, both here overdue and induced. Even DS1 who was a screamer was barely awake for the first 10 days.

But get him checked if you're worried.

Had him looked at and all observations are normal. In fact he was awake and alert while being checked out. Sod’s law. There’s nothing for them to see other than me reporting his sleepiness. I’m going to keep a record today.

@pigpoglet at what stage did something become detectable with your son?

When he didn't hit his milestones .

He is a super boy though so it's not all bad , just not what I signed up for .

I bet he is @pigpoglet
Was he behind on milestones from the start or was it as he got older?

From the start , he was under consultant paediatric care and they still said it was my paranoia( which doesn't exist ) 🙄...

@worm79 .. how has he been ?

He’s been alert a lot more in the later part of the afternoon yesterday and today - looking around and behaving a lot more in the way I’d expect. I had him checked out by a neonatal paediatrician who was happy that all his responses etc were as expected. How does this compare with your experience @pigpoglet ?

It could be jaundice, my first was very jaundice (admitted to hospital for urgent treatment and bordering on transfusion) but by 8 weeks he 'looked' fine but was still lethargic but would wake to be fed every few hours on the dot but then only stay awake long enough to feed (initially he didn't even stay awake to feed and had to be forced to stay awake)

My dd was 3 weeks early and she barely opened her eyes until her actual due date. Stayed all curled up too! One thing to say though- if you are taking certain pain (or other) meds which are officially ok for breastfeeding they can still have a big effect on a newborn.

He’s had a bit of jaundice but that’s largely resolved now so I wouldn’t have thought it was that. Today he slept apart from feeds from a period of wakefulness at 9-10 am ish through to about 4 pm. He’s been a lot more alert on and off since then.

He sounds absolutely fine, he’s feeding well and having wet/dirty nappies, he’s responsive and all his obs were normal. He sounds perfect! Babies do sleep loads to start with, enjoy it.