Five week old not interested in toys

[newmum234]

My 5 week old is still in the relentless change, feed, burp, cuddle, nap and repeat phase. I’m wondering if there’s anything else I should be doing to aid his development in between all this? He has a bouncy chair, playmat, black and white book and a cuddly toy that rattles, but seems completely disinterested in all of them. When can I expect him to start engaging and wanting to play?

Also, he’s on 7 formula feeds a day at the moment and feeds every 3-4 hours. When can I expect the number of feeds to reduce and when’s the earliest a baby will sleep through the night?

Thanks in advance.

my two ds are 15yrs age difference. second time around,was in lots of respects the equivalent to being a first offender.Thankfully,the worst of the first time werent as hellish. You have a 5 wk old babe,girl at 7days a week youre on day 35!in the rpid growth from fertilised i dunno it even had ears n eyelids.??..if healthy,feeding,wet n durty nappies n not causing you severe angst. Use this time to ENJOY your baby Itts gotta be THEE best advice I ever got. I breastfed so fraid no idea bout that....this time next year you gonna be astounded at the developmental rate.for now...rejoice.One thing i did 2nd go round,regardless of howshit\good the day panned out...was establish a night time routine............bath\bed...repitition tho on a "ish"time for first 6-8mths paid off,i have a 10yr old that bath\beds "ish"every night.....i honestly dunno 12wks ish is far off actual reaction to toys...might react to sounds(can go either way with reation)might appear to react to voices\faces,but,,as long as clean bum n fed prob sleep best u can hope for......xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxcongratullations xxx

I love the idea of a five week old settling down to binge watch Stranger Things

My poor DS binged The Staircase with me when he was about 3 weeks old... I was hooked. I wonder what that says about my sleep deprived state of mind at the time 😄

The best is when they discover a hand ... and then another 😱😱😱🥰🥰🥰 I miss my kids being babies 😅

YY to PPs

Just spend time with your baby, no need to consciously entertain or stimulate him. Life itself is enough entertainment and stimulation for the next few months.
He can barely see anything and his hearing is still developing.

Just look at his face, smile, sing,coo. Narrate your day to him.
Touch him, dress him, bathe him.
All of that is a lot of sensory stimulation in itself!

Imagine if you had been dropped off in the middle of Tokyo. It's completely foreign. It's noisy. It's bright.
It would take you a while to adjust! So imagine what your baby is going through after having been inside, never cold, never hungry etc

At two months I think my DD reached out for a hanging thing on her playmat but not much before then.

If you struggle getting a break then I would take a nice warm bath with DD in one of those little rocking chair things. She could hear me and see me but it was so lovely just to have a soak. I was a LP so working out ways to get a break was my specialty :)

Otherwise I pretty much sat and fed, ate chocolate and watched TV at that age. Took two weeks before I even moved out of the house due to episiotomy infection and then the first time I did I felt overwhelmed and cried. Perfectly normal to feel like this!

Oh...balls, pressed post too soon.

Anyway, you're in Tokyo and after a while you start to recognise familiar places and people. You start getting used to the hustle and bustle, but still prefer being at home in the quiet surrounded by familiar things,and feel happiest and safest when you ring your mum and hear her voice and see her face.

You are your baby!

😊

Discovering feet is another good one. Round about 3 months, DS's life's ambition was to get a foot into his mouth. He must have worked on it for the best part of a month, and got there in the end! We then had 2 months of soggy socks and baby grow feet.

My 9 week old will happily lay under his play gym now, but that didnt start until about 7 weeks. I think thats when he started to be able to see stuff properly.

As for sleeping through the night, hes JUST gone down from 4 feeds a night to 2. I dont think going through the night is going to happen anytime soon.

Im not sure you can 'expect' babies to do anything im afraid!

OP, I think maybe take a deep breath, and understand that you're not meant to 'love' every phase. Lots of people can't stand the newborn phase. It's a monotonous routine of nothingness for some.

My DS is 18 months and still doesn't sleep through, and woke every 2 hours until 6 months, so yeah, sleep might not come anytime soon.

As for toys etc? A long way off.

I'm sorry, but maybe start a

Posted too soon !

Maybe start adjusting your expectations and google the 4th trimester

OP your baby doesn't even know it has been born yet! Sit back, cuddle and read a few baby milestones books!

DD will be 2 next month, still doesn't sleep through the night, she's up at least once but more likely 2 or 3 times. Sigh!

Funny how much as a new mum you worry about these things, just give it time and your baby will get there. I 2nd reading the booklet another poster linked about development, brilliant info, i still have mine tucked away in a draw even though my girls are now at University.
Talking of development even 2 of your kids can be chalk and cheese. Me and my brother were just about as opposite as could be in development. I was very mobile, got frustrated when i couldn't get to the things i wanted my mum says and was actually walking at 9 months much to her annoyance. My brother was only just sitting up unaided at 9 months and then did the bum shuffling, then crawling and finaly he started to walk at around 16 months. I didn't sleep a night through till i was maybe 3 or 4 and as a baby apparently I screamed/cried all the time. My bro was the most chilled out, relaxed baby you could wish for, rarely cried, always settled down really quick and was sleeping through the night within his first few months.

And I should say, that when I say he'll lie under the play gym, he literally just stares at brightly coloured things and noisy things. He hasnt discovered his hands yet so doesnt 'play' with anything. He literally just looks, but he seems very content with that at the moment.

I think you have a fair few months yet before your little one plays.

After reading these replies I’m a bit worried that I’ve massively overstimulated my LO and freaked him out! I’ve been putting him in a vibrating chair with flashing lights and music, rattling toys next to him - when he’s probably already totally overwhelmed by the outside world! Do you think I might have upset or frightened him?

Umm no, but you really need to stop being so intense and just try to relax. He needs cuddles, milk, eye contact, and you to chat to him and sing to him maybe in a soft voice. Chill!

Honestly, hes probably unaware of 90% of what you're doing. You do need to chill a bit though....

5 weeks is so little. DS was about that age when he started batting at stuff but I wouldn't call it playing. What he loved more than anything was me just chatting to him.

In terms of sleeping, you can never tell. It's hard in the beginning, but they do sleep for longer stretches eventually.

OP the fact that you're worried about what your baby is feeling already shows you are a good mum. Try not to worry about over/under stimulating him too much. Just take the guidance on here and let your baby guide you. You will see in a couple of months when he starts looking around and taking things in. He'll stare intently at a bright coloured shirt you're wearing, or when the TV is on! He'll start grabbing your top or hair when you're feeding him. That's the time to buy him toys. For now, like everyone has said, just looking at you, being held and rocked and listening to your voice is enough for him.

Enjoy your newborn! It goes really fast

Tone down the electronics. They really don't need that kind of thing. They're expensive and not educational at all.
He doesn't need 'stimulation' in the way you're thinking. His attachment to the other humans in his life is the most important thing for some time. Spend time with him lying on your lap and chat to him whilst looking at him and encourage his dad to do the same. Human faces and voices are what babies look for. He will already know your voice and be learning your face. Cuddles and basic care is what he needs.
In the next couple of weeks he will smile at you and it will seem worth it. 5 weeks is tough.
Oh, and if you want to stimulate him over his childhood, talk to him regularly and try to give him your full attention when doing so. It's simple but it matters.

@newmum234

After reading these replies I’m a bit worried that I’ve massively overstimulated my LO and freaked him out! I’ve been putting him in a vibrating chair with flashing lights and music, rattling toys next to him - when he’s probably already totally overwhelmed by the outside world! Do you think I might have upset or frightened him?

newmum234 consider yourself hugged (in a social-distancing, un-mumsnetty sort of way).

He'll be fine, honestly. You won't have done him any harm. Babies can cope with enormous amounts of new stuff - they have to (think about it - they all get deposited from a lovely, dark, snoozy womb into this glaring, noisy, busy world - and they do just fine.

Though I do think you sound a bit overwrought (as a lot of us were at the stage you're at now - I definitely have the t-shirt for that one). If it's really overwhelming you, or you're suffering from really high levels of anxiety do think about talking to your health visitor. Post-natal depression can be a thing, and it can creep up on you without you noticing (I'm pretty sure in retrospect I had it) - but professionals can help you with it.

In the mean time, make yourself a nice drink and a tasty snack, snuggle yourself up with your new-born, and put on a good box set, and try not to stress.

Feeds every 3-4 hours at 5 weeks old? I'm sure my ds was still feeding every 2hrs at that age. Definitely not 4hrs.

If they sleep through by 6 months, you'll be very lucky.

He'll start grabbing your top or hair when you're feeding him. That's the time to buy him toys.

@LolaLollypop he’s already doing both those things, which is partly what made me wonder about toys!

Feeds every 3-4 hours at 5 weeks old? I'm sure my ds was still feeding every 2hrs at that age. Definitely not 4hrs.

@HelloRose I was told by my health visitor only yesterday that 3-4 hours is perfectly fine for this age.

Crikey give the poor baby a chance

My DS was swiping at the toys on his playmat about 10 weeks old but actual books & toys more like 4 months. He's slept about 8m to 6am (with a dream feed at 9.30pm) for about a month now (almost 22 weeks). Enjoy the newborn phase while it lasts! My son is so nosey and wants carted around constantly from room to room. He wont happily lie anywhere for more than 5 mins and gets frustrated not being able to do what he wants. He's down to 5 big feeds a day ranging from 150ml to 210ml and has been for a while. Bf before bottles too.