anyone used night nannies?

[miniegg]

i'm a new mum with a three week old and am really really struggling with the lack of sleep. most nights i'm only getting 4 or 5 hours. the baby doesn't sleep much during the day and is very unpredictable making it difficult for me to "sleep when the baby is sleeping" as people advise. i'd love to sleep when he's sleeping but often he only drops off if he's in the frontpack with me walking around or in the car or at totally random moments and then you have no idea if it will be for 5 minutes or an hour.
i'm still recovering from a difficult and traumatic birth, have had mastitis and have a uterus infection and am feeling quite desperate for some rest.
has anyone used night nannies at all?
they're very expensive but i'm at the point where I think it would be worth it. I'm in central/south west London.

You may find it cheaper to get someone in for a few hours a day to do a combination of nannying and housekeeping while you get some sleep.

If you're bfing you'll still be getting up in the night to feed him anyway.

Congrats on new baby!

yes, that's an option...i'm doing combination feeding at the moment as the baby is failing to gain weight from breastfeeding alone so that's not so much of an issue. however, you're right - 2 or 3 hrs sleep a day would go a long way to making the night more bearable!

oh you poor thing! I'm night nannying for twins at the moment and having a baby myself I know how you feel. I also do one afternoon to give their mum a break. How much do they charge in London? Even one night would help. Also would agree with other post, I got myself a cleaner and mil has my lo for a full day. I am lucky that she lives close by.

someone more knowledgable will come along and question the mixed feeding for failing to gain weight thing...

i think WT's suggestion is worth considering.

i used a night nanny. for much later tho - about 15m. to 'train' ds2 to sleep at night without waking 5 times and screaming for milk, little bugger.

she was great. stayed 4 nights and had him in a pattern by then.

i think you can get them in for a short period , like i did, to help get a routine you can handle and want established... or they can do that but come, say, every monday and wednesday for a bit so you know you can at least get a good nights sleep on those days...

i would recommend them, myself. but if money is tight, there are other options which dont neccessarily mean you jumping off a bridge out of exhausted desperation. promise!

If you want to up the bfing and cut down the ff, you want hunker or tiktok or mears (do a search.) Ignore the charts in the red book - they're for babies who are solely ff, I believe.

If you're good with the combined feeding, a daytime nanny/mother's help makes more sense because she can sterilize bottles, buy formula etc. (as well as shove a hoover around and tidy the kitchen!)

Try putting an ad on gumtree or, if you don't want to wade through the replies and you can afford it, try your local agencies.

Good luck!

how about a postnatal doula???
those first few weeks are hideous - have you tried swaddling your LO? Always found it calmed my cranky DS

If you had a difficult and traumatic birth then maybe the baby is still traumatised. If he falls asleep whilst in the frontpack, maybe he can hear your heartbeat and this is what sends him off. I bought a teddy bear for my LO which made womb noises when the baby moved or cried. It absolutely saved my life!! Google 'slumber bear' and you'll have no probs finding one. They are quite expensive though at around £30, but well worth the money!

I would give cranial ostopathy a try as well. We use a charity in Manchester called the Osteopathic Centre for Children. There's one in London as well. They will also treat you as well to help you get over the birth more quickly.

I got my slumber bear from blooming marvellous.

Have just read you other post about feeding. I would DEFINATELY go for osteopathy!

hi mini egg, the osteopathic centre for children Nat mentions is in farringdon - www.occ.uk.com. My DS had some treatment there and i can really recommend it.

DS2 refused to sleep for 7 months. Slumber Bear useless. Cranial osteopathy totally and utterly brilliant.

how about a postnatal doula or a live out maternity nanny?

They will both cost sbout about the same as a night nanny (£10 - £17 per hour)