new mum struggling with lack of sleep

[larlemucker]

Hi all,
I'm new here and just hoping for some support and advice. My little boy is a week old, I am breast feeding but had problems with the amount of milk I am producing, hopefully I am starting to make more now after a couple of days of expressing and continuous feeding.
I am really struggling with the lack of sleep, my boy feeds and falls asleep on the cushion I use to feed him but 9 times out of 10 wakes up the minute he goes in his Moses basket. I'm terrified I'll fall asleep with him on the pillow which is wedged under my arm and propped up by my legs. I'm getting hardly any sleep .
We have tried warming his basket and putting clothes and things that smell of me in it but no improvement.

Any advice or support would be appreciated. I'm wondering how I'll survive this!

Adapt a cot into a bedside sleeper much more space and easier to transfer.

Learn to feed lying down in bed and sleep in day

look at isis website for safe sleeping guidance.

Do you swaddle? White noise or womb noise can help also. One of your t shirts in the Moses basket is worth a try. Warm the basket a little before putting him down. Use a sling in the day for naps, baby may be craving that closeness. Hold when you can. Create sleep associations early as possible which don't involve sucking to sleep, like the swaddle/womb noise. It gets better.

A lot of people rave about the dream sheep www.google.co.uk/shopping/product/18236055643323167411?q=ewan%20the%20dream%20sheep&ie=UTF-8&oe=UTF-8&hl=en&client=safari&sa=X&ei=mFHmUL_KFsjptQbLgIH4Dg&ved=0CDcQ8wIwAA#hsec:overview I personally have no experience.

I do sympathise though ds2 is 4 weeks on sat and is only just allowing me to put him down after feeds. My advice is sleep when baby sleeps. Even if that is at 2pm. Housework can wait.

Congratulations on your new baby!

Bugger try that link again ewan the dream sheep

Definitely try swaddling. And learn how to co sleep safely, even if just for a few weeks. It's a killer but it does get better (she says through gritted teeth while trying to get ds to burp at four bloody am. Burp you sod!)

Also here burping a newborn at four am too having put him diwn once only to hear protests. Disturbed nights are part of the deal! I'm also nervous about co sleeping with a newborn, basically I wouldn't sleep for worry. But lots manage it. The feeding issues may make it worse. Baby may be hungry a bit more than usual and want you constantly cose if you are trying to up supply. We had this With our first. Has anyone discussed domperidone with you?

Sorry typos it is the small hours!

swaddling saved me at this point - really improved how quickly he settled.

I used a co-sleeper - the arms reach co sleeper cot - although that didn't particularly help with the settling, just made it easier to lie next to him patting with one hand.

How do you feel about properly co-sleeping? you are more at risk of falling asleep on him if he is on your lap rather than lying in the nook of your arm with you next to him - you can keep his head on your arm and lie sideways.

My DS is two weeks old now and also disliked going into his basket. We worked out that he needed 5 to 10 minutes after his feed to just lie quietly on the pillow (same set up as OP) and settle into a deeper sleep before we could put him down, otherwise he'd wake again.

We also rolled a fleecy blanket into a sausage shape and used it as ahead support in the basket to help him feel held in place. He mostly settles really well now.

Congratulations and good luck!

Swaddling saved us too. I bought a summer infant swaddleme me which he couldn't break out of. We also relied on womb noise which seemed to help him settle. We used prince lionheart slumber bear but took the sound box out of the bear as the bear was too big to put in his basket.

Calories really help - take a tray to bed: flask of tea, peanut butter sandwiches, choc, malt loaf, bananas ...I found it helped me stay awake and you need it for your milk anyway. Bugger housework. Live in pjs. Easy meals. Sleep whenever you can. It does get easier but it's survival mode for now. X

Make sure you drink lots of water/squash. Directly after a feed give the baby to DP and go and have a hot bath. Relax. Change into leggings and a t-shirt and try to stay relaxed but alert. Nap when the baby naps. You'll be ok in the long run. I know the early weeks make you feel crazy. You can do it though, it does get easier!

The feeds will become shorter and less frequent over a number of months. All the hard work will pay off. He is just creating demand for milk at the moment and your body is working to meet that demand and it will.

Also agree with swaddling for sleep.

Ditto swaddling. I didn't like the idea of it at first, so tried co-sleeping but he was a big baby and would wake up hot and screaming in my face. A friend had given me what I thought was a big muslin. After one horror night, I thought I'd try swaddling and as soon as his arms were wrapped, it was like someone had shot him with a tranq dart.

The Anais and Aden swaddles were great, as they are breathable. TX Maxx are stocking them at the moment. They are huge and folded over are great at swaddling the arms while leaving hips free to flex (which is one of the concerns about swaddling).

Good luck!

Agree. We did the A&A large swaddles and our baby loved them, and learnt they meant sleep time! Only worked until about 1 month old though...

Agree with swaddling.

It will improve, I felt the same at one week old, improved by week 4. (now 13weeks and a good sleeper)

For crisis management now, get all yours friends to come around in turns, feed, then give them your dc and go for a nap. Even 10 mins sleep is better than none, and if they hold dc, you can sleep with fear of squashing!

Good luck.