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Original poster

2 week old - too early for a routine?

19 replies

BrightonMum2Be · 03/12/2010 16:21

My two week old DD (my first child) is really good, feeding and sleeping regularly. She sleeps in 3-4 hour blocks at night which means I'm tired but not hysterical.

However she does sleep a LOT during the day and is impossible to rouse, so is wide awake from about 7pm to midnight. I foolishly picked up and read Gina Ford's Contented Little Baby Book today and now feel like I'm a crap mother for not having her in more of a routine. I've been just going with the flow but am now thinking should I be getting her into some sort of pattern?

Any advice would be great. Did you just go with it at first, letting the baby dictate what happened when, and if so for how long? Or did you adhere to a routine from a very young age? How did either tactic affect your baby's sleeping patterns?

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Lulumaam · 03/12/2010 16:23

I had no routine for either and bth find their own way fairly quickly

some will swear by a routine

if you are happy with how things are going, do what you were doing, respond to your baby's needs, they won't be the same day in , day out

illness, growth spurts, learning something new will make their routine change , so you might fidn you get sorted, then something happens and things are up in the air

at 2 weeks old, she barely knows she is seperate from you !

go with the flow, reposnd to her needs , cuddler her and feed her lots and rest when you can

BookcaseFullofBooks · 03/12/2010 16:25

Step away from the book! ;)
I cuddled my DD for the first 4 weeks. She is 4 months now and we have just started working on a bedtime routine.
Don't let anyone make you feel bad for doing what feels right for you and your baby.
Congratulations too!

festivefriedawhingesagain · 03/12/2010 16:25

You can try. I wouldn't recommend it though.

They need to have milk very frequently, sleep on and off at this stage. By all means start introducing a pattern at bedtime for example, maybe of bath, milk, bed. But at this stage I think its fairly pointless as they change all the time.

Just go with the flow, you will find a pattern that suits you and your baby over the next few months.

And congratulations on your new baby, they are so tiny and scrummy at that age

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SilveryMoon · 03/12/2010 16:31

I have never read a GF book, although have heard alot about them.
I am by nature a huge lover of routine and am a bit of a control freak, but tbh, I didn't try to routine my baby until weaning stage.
Both my boys needs changed so frequently as babies that it'd have been impossible to do anyway.
Instead, I structured and routined everything apart from the baby in order to keep some sort of sense of control of my life.

I really wouldn;t worry about it for now, just go with the flow, catch up with your sleep during the day when she sleeps, and in about 8 weeks you could maybe start introducing routines little by little.

NinkyNonker · 03/12/2010 18:12

NOPE from me, dd is 4 months and we have a good bedtime routine but that's it. We just go with the flow during the day, I find it better ad she is ebf and very greedy so a strict routine wouldn't work for us. I am working on encouraging naps in the day, not at set timed but I think she needs more sleep. Posted rough tidings on the other routine thread.

wannabeglam · 03/12/2010 20:05

Your baby's routine sounds very normal for her age. Most babies fall into a routine themselves that mirrors Gina Ford's (that's why she can say she's so good).

wannabeglam · 03/12/2010 20:06

Can't remember when mine stopped being nocturnal, but they did (even though they were screamers).

goodlifemummy · 04/12/2010 06:09

My twins were in a four hour routine when they came out of hospital, they were 6 weeks early and were in scbu for 2 weeks. Feeding was regimented there so really helped us when we got them home. Now 38 weeks with dc3 and hoping to have some kind of routine, well, going to have to, twins are at school now, but never dealt with one baby before, so all bets are off!

nickytwotimes · 04/12/2010 06:12

Far, far, far too young to worry about routine! Emjoy cuddling and being with your wee baby. Get your feet up when poss.

CountBapula · 04/12/2010 07:21

My DS was like this at 2 weeks - really dopey during the day, big feeding frenzies in the evenings, 3-4 hour stretches at night. I just went with it, really, fed and cuddled on demand - he was far too random and I was too knackered from the birth to think about routines. Remember the evening cluster feeding to be particularly weird and intense - snuggle up in bed with chocolate and a DVD box set and get your DP to bring you things!

DS was so sleepy, we spent the first couple of weeks congratulating ourselves on our good fortune, then he suddenly seemed to wake up and all hell broke loose. At that point I started following not so much a routine but a pattern that I'd read about on MN - feed, nappy change/play/sleep, trying to ensure he wasn't awake for more than 1.5hrs at a time to stop him getting overtired. Repeat in 2-3 cycles throughout the day. This is only just bedding in now at 10 wks but has been a good structure to aim for. We've just started doing early bedtime, bath etc this week and am expecting that to take a good month or so to establish.

Go with the baby for now and you'll soon find a routine/pattern that works for you. Enjoy these first few sleepy, cuddly weeks!

CountBapula · 04/12/2010 07:24

I mean feed, nappy change/play, sleep, in 2-3 hour cycles. Sorry - knackered this morning

lukewarmcupofmulledwine · 04/12/2010 07:34

I'm a slight fan of gf (at least of taking the bits that suit you anyway), but in answer to your op, yes, 2 weeks is way too young to worry about this.

I did gf with both mine and it really helped me anticipate their needs, but a routine as such didn't really settle down till about 6 weeks or later with dd2. The most you should aim for really, if anything, is a vague get up/go to bed time, and making sure they get regular naps if possible so they don't go screamy tired. But if you don't want to, then ignore the book - it's only one persons way of doing stuff! I wish I'd realised that!

lukewarmcupofmulledwine · 04/12/2010 07:38

By the way, at 2 weeks they do just sleep where they fall and it's hard to try to wake them, don't worry, it won't last long! They suddenly wake up around the 2 week point and that's when people usually start panicking! Enjoy it while it lasts....

Original poster

BrightonMum2Be · 05/12/2010 03:07

Thank you everyone for your helpful advice. I'm chilling out now and just taking each day as it comes, letting the baby call the shots for now and enjoying her while she's so small and lovely. I feel much better, thanks :-)

OP posts:

BaggedandTagged · 05/12/2010 03:32

Hi Brighton

Personally I found having too much of a daytime routine more hassle than not having one, because unless all your friends with bubs are in the same routine, you can never meet up or do anything and you end up thinking ridiculous things like "well I'd love to go for a walk now but I cant because he'll fall asleep in the pram and it's not time for him to sleep yet".

However, i do think there are a couple of things that are worth doing.

Don't let them go more than 3 hrs between daytime feeds (7am to 7pm- I also wake for a 10pm feed). This stops them developing the habit of sleeping their long stretch in the day and also maximises the amount of milk they take in the day so they're less likely to want to feed all night.

I think a bedtime routine is a really good idea, as, even if it doesnt really work to start with, it's another cue to help separate "day" from "night" and a lot of babies love baths so it's just a nice thing to do anyway.

As DS got older (from about 6 wks) I did start to try to keep him awake after 4.30pm and then have him in bed in his room at 6.30 after a bath and a feed. At that time, I turned the lights off and if he woke up, didnt get him up/ let him play, I just re-settled.

chaleyannscott · 05/12/2010 05:22

Personally I LOATHE routines, especially for babies. Horrible for them and horrible for you. Just set you all up for failure and ignores the babies needs IMO.

earwicga · 05/12/2010 05:23

Babies set the schedule. Mine did anyways, they still are 8 years later but that's another story.

pallymama · 05/12/2010 07:12

Congratulations!

I personally loved the GF routines. That said, they do need to be taken with a pinch of salt. I used them as guidelines to help anticipate DDs needs, but never as a routine that had to be forced.

We were pretty much matching the GF routine at 2 weeks, but it suited DD. For us, it definately improved her sleeping as it helped us fit in enough feeds between 7am-7pm. I found it made life much easier, and I could plan social things so visitors could actually meet her when she was awake. :)

However, I don't think routines work for everyone. You just need to do whatever you feel is best for you both. If you want to follow a routine, then go for it, juust don't be too harsh on yourself over it. If you don't want a routine, and the book is making you feel bad, throw it in the bin!

MoonFaceMamaaaaargh · 05/12/2010 09:00

DOn't ever feel you should have a routine...

Ds is 9m and I've never implemented a routine. We just get on with life and he sleeps when tired, is fed when hungry and plays when active...that is his routine! It has changed and grown with him as he has!

Yes occasionally he has gotten over tired, normally my fault because I've mis-read...but I'd take that over trying to rock a lively baby to sleep or not feeding him cause it isn't time yet!

It sounds like you have been happy till stumbling upon gf..I say walk away and carry on!

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