8 week old - sleeps through the night....but not at all on the day

[CellarDoor75]

Dc sleeps from 8pm-7am and has done since 5 weeks old. Fantastic. However, doesn't sleep at all during the day. He'll have the odd 5-10 min cat nap but essentially it's non stop screaming from 10am until bedtime. He won't sleep by being bf to sleep, rocked, in pram, in Moses, doesn't take a dummy, white noise doesn't work, in my carrier - nothing just doesn't sleep in the day.

Obviously it's great he sleeps at night, it wasn't something I was expecting at this age, but I can't cope with the all day everyday of screaming from overtiredness.

Any tips? Even if it's only an hour or two in the day.

Try feeding ( and burping)
Then swaddle in blanket and pop in pram. Pull pram hood up and add a muslin over to block out a little light. Make sure he's warm but not overheating. Then go for a long walk.

At 8 weeks I would say they are tired roughly 90mins after waking up so by 10am probably way overtired. Try putting him in pram aroun 8.30-9am and go for a walk. If this works for a few days then you can gradual change so he is wrapped up in pram but in house and eventually wrapped and in Moses basket etc..

If he falls asleep after a little while then take yourself to a cafe with book to chill for a while

I second PP's suggestion of baby being tired after 90 minutes awake. I was having real trouble getting my baby to sleep in the day, but since adhering to the 90 minute schedule it's been easier, because he'll fall asleep with some gentle persuasion then. Leave it a bit too late and you've got a non-sleeping over-tired screaming baby and it just gets worse and worse as the day goes on because it perpetuates itself.

Let us know how you get on!

Definitely way overtired. Mine were like clockwork at that age, at the 90 minute mark they'd yawn and if I put them down after the third yawn (it was that specific!) they'd conk out for an hour and a half. If I missed the cue we were all over the show for the rest of the day.

Yep agree with others - 90 mins awake then forcibly put to sleep - sleep will breed sleep and baby will get used to buggy/ sling etc

Sling was the one that really worked - but you have to go for a proper long walk ! Once the naps work I'm sure it will be easier to move to cot - btw have you tried feeding to sleep or does that not work either ?

Definitely at 8 weeks they need day time sleep although your night sounds amazing !

So - wake at 7 - 830 is nap time - you get a walk and fresh air - repeat every couple of hours all day !

Yep, put to sleep after no more than 90 mins awake. My LO is 10 weeks and ive been doing this for the last week after weeks of him crying all day like yours and he is a different baby. Ive also found he is ready for a nap only an hour after waking in the morning and someone else told me this should be their shortest awake period. Not sure how true this is though...

Interested in this thread. My little one is 14 weeks and exactly the same. It's a fight to get him to sleep, even going on sleep cues, takes ages to coax him off (if at all)

He's definitely tired after 90mins, I read all the sleepy cues.he hates being swaddled and haven't tried it since he was 3days old. I also have a toddler so can't go for long walks as toddler gets bored and wants to get out and run about and everytime I stop, he wakes up.

I've tried my hardest to get him used to the buggy and he just screams bloody murder everytime he's in there. I've also tried the carrier and he screams and scratches at my throat. Nothing works to get him to sleep in the day. He's definitely tired though and I make sure I'm straight in there trying to get him to sleep as soon as he starts yawning,or it's been around 90mins.

Today he screams from 10am until 7.30pm when he went down for bed. Bedtime is no problem. He self settles which is amazing I think, but the day is an entirely different story.

Forgot to add, that even without toddler in the pram or if I ignore the toddler wanting to get out and just walk around trying the get the baby to sleep. The second I slow my pace, go into a shop or stop at a traffic light, he wakes up screaming.

I learnt this time round that sleep breeds sleeps, and babies get tired after 90 mins etc, but it's made no difference.

I put him down in his Moses after the third yawn he would stay in there screaming . I'm ashamed to say I've even left in there for 30 mins screaming his head off, but nothing works. Rocking, shhhhing, white noise, holding to sleep, feeding to sleep. A quiet dark room. Nothing.

Cellar I have no advice but feel your pain. Will be hanging in this thread for hand holding.

This morning he woke at 7am. Changed and fed and at 8.30am I put him in moses dimmed room all cosy with hairdryer app noise. Half an hour of crying later I've now bought him downstairs to rock. He's tired and nothing I do gets him to sleep in the day.

Have you tired laying on the bed with him until he drops off? I know this might be difficult with a toddler though. That sometimes works for us for the first nap of the day (he will routinely cry until he falls asleep though at this nap so I just stroke his face and ssh until he goes asleep mid cry)

I can't withut toddler running about. Her nap time is the only chance I could try that and even then it's only for 2 hrs which it sometimes takes more than that time for him to sleep the boob, if it all.

god that sounds exhausting poor you! there is a thing you can buy on amazon - an automatic buggy rocker - you can also put it under a crib or moses basket

www.amazon.co.uk/Robopax-Baby-Rocker-Automatic-included/dp/B004DORTGM

no idea if it works but it has good reviews - would it be worth a try?

this may be what you have already been doing, but my partner used to take the baby into a dark room and dance and sing softly while holding him...it would get him to sleep in the end..!

He hates his pram - that's part of the problem. His sister was the same, and only started to enjoy being in the pram when it was a stroller and she could sit up. She hated lying flat and it seems he's the same.

We had DS's pram mattress propped up at one end with a towel for the first 6 months so he was lying at a 30 degree angle. It was because of reflux in our case, but it might be worth a try for you as well, if he doesn't like lying flat?

Reflux? That would be my suspicion - he's too uncomfortable but come night time is exhausted hence crashing for the night (this does happen).

It took me several goes to get dd to take a dummy but she did and it was a difficult to find brand. I found she hated the sling if too hot or needed to burp (do you wind after feeds?) so watch for that.