is it too late to start a routine for 15 week old..if not where do i start??

[PipIsOutNow]

i started out not wanting to have to stick to a strict routine and to just let my ds sleep and eat when he wanted to in the hope that it would be easier for both of us (my partner works nights so im alone most of the time).

i posted on a thread last week as my ds had been particularly horrendous at night and is waking every 1-2 hours, not necessarily for food, not really sure why, maybe teething as he's dribbling a lot?? dont know.

was wondering if maybe a routine would help him settle and if so where do i start? i am totally clueless!! he usually gets tired in the evenings around 7-7:30pm. Should i make sure he has a bath about half 6, give hime a bottle and put him up to bed? I know he's prob not likely to stay there but was wondering if any of you have any experience of starting a routine so late??

im so tired and i need some help and advice!! is it also worth trying bonjela or ashton and parsons powders to see if they help? hes chewing his fist and his dummy and teat quite a lot too, do u think he could be teething??

thanks in advance for any responses!!

We found a routine helped with DD, we started with the bath/bed/bottle like you suggest, about half an hour before she usually got tired.

It took a few weeks to get settled into it, but it helped me and DH too, as we knew there was a definite 'end' to the day IYSWIM? Any wakings after bedtime are treated as a night waking so the lights stay low/off and we tend to just cuddle DD back to sleep if she needs it, or give her her dummy in her cot.

I'd give the teething stuff a go - it's a case of finding what works for your DS - with DD it's Dentinox but for others Bonjela or Calgel might work better. I think DD was about 15 weeks when the incessant dribbling started...she's now 7mo and is still soggy, but nowhere near as much as she was at first!

Follow DS's cues and you'll be ok!

thanks for reply!! bumping this up for hopefully more advice!!

I think it's a good age to start a routine. No point, in my opinion, in the early weeks. It depends on the baby, some thrive on routine, others don't need it so much. It sounds like it might work well for your ds. We started our first ds on a routine at about four months, after floundering desperately, and it was almost as if it was what he desperately needed. Changed into a much happier, settled baby really quickly.

It wasn't a strict routine, but we basically made sure that he had all of his feeds/meals at roughly the same time each day, and made sure that he had his naps, and put him to bed at the same times each day too.

Incidently, our next two children really didn't need a routine. They're all different.

We started doing bath/bottle/bed at around that age, don't think you have left it too late at all. It took a while for DD to 'get' it, but now it is brilliant, such a strong sleep cue for her, she calms right down as soon as we start undressing her for her bath.

I also started putting her down during the day relaxed but awake, to encourage her to settle at about this time. Took a while (I always picked her up as soon as she cried at all) but she learnt to self settle within a couple of weeks, and now can get herself off at night and during the day. Her nighttime sleep improved a lot.

Def worth trying teething gel/calpol too.

where did u put her down during the day haapygilmore ? any tips on getting the routine started...im finding the thought of it quite daunting!! im always picking up ds when he cries...

sorry happygilmore

Oh I always picked her up when she cries too, I definitely think that's the right thing to do. I put her in her cot during the day, I found it very daunting too! Before then she had to be rocked in her pram to go to sleep, it was exhausting but I think she just grew out of it. Why not try it, but be prepared it might take a few nights.

Have you got any sleeping bags? She goes in one of those at night and I started using that for day time naps too, she seems to associate it with sleep now. Also I only give her a dummy for nap times, and also use some wave music too.

Good luck :)

It is not late to start a routine! It's a good time actually. I think starting with bedtime routine is a good idea start with bath, nice cuddle, a little baby book maybe milk and bed.
A good idea is to write down when he eats/is tired/sleep during the day, and after two or three days of writing it down you might see that he already has a natural routine. You reinforce it and might come to some form of routine that you can stick to and encourage longer sleep at night.

having a kind of routine is great but it always goes out the window if child is not well, when you start on solids, when they have problems eating, have a cold, etc...

thank you so much everyone for the replies and advice...

i bathed him at 6:30, gave him a bottle and he's just gone up to bed so fingers crossed!! hope this is what he needs to sort him out. i wait with baited breath...

oh and he had a massage :o

I forgot to say, we massage DD every night as well (just a bit of baby lotion but it does the trick nicely)

Fingers crossed for you!

The nights will be the 4 month sleep regression, not anything to with routine or lack of IMO.

Babies' brains are really busy working on a huge developmental spurt which happens at around 19 weeks.

There is a great book explaining it called The Wonder Weeks by two scientists who researched all the developmental spurts up to 13 months.

They say "Your baby may not settle down well at night now. It may be more difficult to get her to bed in the evenings, or she may lie awake at night. She may want a night feeding again, or she may even demand to be fed several times a night. She may also wake up much earlier in the morning."

The good news is that is passes on its own ? and isn?t a sign of babies needing to start solids either.

There?s useful information on the sleep regression here, here, here and here.

It's only around 4 months that many babies' biological clocks are mature enough to start doing things at roughly the same time. It takes longer for others. It was 7 months before my DS got tired at predictable times (I always did feeding on demand so that wasn't an issue).

angeldog i think u are right. he did not settle at all last night...i ended up bringing him back downstairs coz he was getting so upset and i didnt want to force it. he's never usually as bad as he's been the past few nights. so hopefully il just ride it out and hope that it will get better. i havent got changed out of my pyjamas or left the house in 4 days, im just too exhausted!!

Pip Is there anyone who can come and give you a hand whilst you have an hour's sleep?

If it's any consolation, the 4 month thing improved for us after about two weeks. I hope it gets better for you soon.

Hope it passes for you soon. DS just sorted himself out after the regression with no help from me.