Baby hardly sleeps in the day

[Ohfairenough]

My 7 week old was really sleepy to start with but for a couple of weeks now he’s not slept more than about ninety minutes in the day all broken into little cat naps. I’ve tried long walks with the pram to see if that gets him to nod off but it doesn’t seem to work. I’m a bit concerned that it isn’t helping him develop and also it’s a very long day when I get no time to myself at all even if only pushing a pram. Does anyone have any insights?

Went through the same thing from about 6 weeks until around 4 months. I was also worried. My baby is now 6 months and has slept much better in the day the last 8 weeks or so. He will have about 3.5 hours of day sleep split into 3 or 4 naps now depending on what we're doing, usually 3 these days but he might have 20 minutes in the car.

I will say mine categorically needs darkness, white noise, and contact to nap now. I hold him facing outwards on my lap with a comfort toy blanket and just wait for him to drop off, I don't rock him anymore. Could be worth a try? I can't get any longer than 30 mins out of him if I put him down to nap in the cot yet, so I've just accepted it for now and try a cot nap once every week or so to see if it's any better.

Its totally normal for their naps to go to shit around that age so don't worry about it too much x

I don’t think he’d ever sleep in a cot to be honest. I can sometimes get him to drop off for very short periods (I mean less than ten minutes) by walking around outside but all it takes is a motorbike or loud lorry and he wakes up. It’s so bloody stressful when he’s crying constantly through exhaustion but won’t sleep. I wouldn’t actually but sometimes I am tempted to just put him down and go about my day as nothing I do makes a blind bit of difference!

I know its so hard and I thought it would never end but it did 💐 you'll get through it. Will he nap in the car?
I remember at about 8 weeks my son didn't sleep for about 10 hours. That was a horrible day.
If you haven't already tried it I really would try positioning him facing outwards on you on the sofa, it was a gamechanger for us. I think they get overstimulated sometimes.

I think it’s normal. DC1 did it and 7 week old DC2 is exactly the same having also been very sleepy until 5 ish weeks. They ‘wake up’ and realise they want to hold their heads up and look at all the interesting stuff. They can tolerate ‘awake time’ more (before 5 weeks DC2 was literally awake for a feed, a nappy change and back to sleep again), but not much awake time before they get overtired. It’s a large reason why 5-10 weeks are peak for fussiness and witching hour - they want to be awake but can’t handle much of it at all. You suddenly have to work really hard for their naps. Like a PP, where as DC2 used to just drop off on the boob in bright lights/loud noise there is no chance of that now. Would need darkness and white noise etc.

Assume you’ve tried a sling? Say that rather tongue in cheek as it hasn’t really worked for either of my DC2 inside, but some of my friends have had success.

DC1s naps lengthened again at 3 ish months when he could finally tolerate a good couple of hours of awake time…before dropping back to half an hour again at the 4 months regression 🙃 It got more consistent at 6 months. Basically I think you aren’t going anything wrong, it’s just
something a lot of newborns do.

He won’t nap in the car - that was always my go-to with DS1! 😭

Slings … I’m hit and miss with. DS will sleep in them but I have to be stood up and on the move. And in this weather … it’s 29 degrees here today. I have to admit I do find them really claustrophobic and sweaty and milk leaking everywhere … but I’ll have to bite the bullet I think. I just wish there were a few hours where I don’t have a baby on me - even if in a pram or car seat, horrible I know but I am a tad frustrated.

Your DC sound exactly like mine. It’s exhausting so you have my sympathy. At least I was extremely fit and slim by the end of the newborn stage due to all the outside sling and pram walks.

I totally agree and to be blunt I can't wait for those mythical 2 hour cot naps when I have my body back to myself!

We don't like the carrier too much either tbh. Use it mostly for shopping but never had much success with sleep in it apart from when a few weeks old.

What about a swing? Joie do a few I think but they're quite expensive, over 100 quid at least. Try marketplace.

That is a hidden benefit - I’ve nearly done 8000 steps already and the little fucker sweetheart still isn’t asleep (said tongue in cheek in case anyones easily offended!)

I doubt he’d sleep in a swing - we have various contraptions to purportedly aid babies to sleep and he won’t go in any! I get they like being held but doing that all day is breaking me!

How long are you giving him after waking before you try putting him down for a sleep?

Sit on the sofa, feed baby to sleep - let them sleep on you. Watch tv. Repeat.

He doesn’t feed to sleep. If I sat on the sofa all day watching TV he’d be thrashing around in my arms, crying and fretting and shouting. Not fun. Maybe you meant this supportively but it came over as if it is oh so easy and I know it is for some babies.

We have now been awake since 820 with one twenty minute nap. I’m slowly losing my mind.

@CocoPlum - I don’t ‘put him down for a sleep’ - he’d just scream. I spend the entire day trying to get him to sleep. Sod all works. Fed up!

I do know about wake windows but the thing about wake windows is that they are no help if the child won’t sleep!

Oh that's hard.

When my DC didn't nap it was because he would get over tired, I would wait for sleep cues like yawning etc but when those appeared he was already overtired and then couldn't settle. I set a timer for 1hr 45m when he woke. Then when it went off, we would change and feed, then upstairs for swaddle/dark room/white noise. He'd fall asleep at exactly 2 hours. Tjat was at 5 months so a 7wo could possibly go to sleep maybe 90 mins from waking?

Don't be afraid to pop earpods in and listen to music if he's kicking off with tiredness. If you are present with him, that's fine, it might take the edge off.

This is rough, I know. They change so quickly in these early days, hopefully he will settle soon.

I have heard of these babies, who you can put down for a nap - it isn’t happening here. If I had a surefire way of getting him to sleep it would be fine but I don’t, so I could put him down for a nap at say 945 but if he won’t sleep it doesn’t really make any difference.

My twins are 10 weeks today and are hardly napping at all in the day now it seems to of dramatically changed over a couple of days from lengthy naps to being awake most of the day. Then it gets to teatime and theyre over tired and grizzly so i completely get you its not much fun at all x

I don’t know how you manage with twins! I think the challenge is it isn’t as if he’s happy and chilled but awake, he’s grouchy and tired but won’t sleep - really frustrating.

Hugs!

Currently sat trapped under my 9 week old. He was 3 weeks early so feels a bit younger than that. Went from a lovely long nap lover to major FOMO when it comes to nap time. I swear he finds the bare walls interesting at the minute 🙈. He’s definitely not getting enough sleep in the day.

I’ve resorted to turning my bedroom into a tomb with towels blocking out any light and it has helped to calm him….I think because it’s too dark for him to be nosy now. He is suffering a bit from silent reflux recently so has started having really disturbed sleep on his back which is fun and keeps waking up way before he should. He wakes up tired.

I completely get what you mean about just having a little bit of time with no baby on you. Tried explaining to DH yesterday about being touched out, not sure he entirely got it. Slings are fine and I do use one for some of his naps but they are definitely restrictive. Every time I bend down he has a moan so end up doing some weird straight back crab squat to pick anything up. It’s not easy.

I have offered no advice I’m aware….I’m just hoping it all passes!!! X

@Ohfairenough thats the frustrating thing you can see they are tired but fighting it and all you want them to do is sleep. I dont have any advice myself because im in the same situation and im assuming youve tried everything possible to get them off. Mine are awake and content (ish) until about 4pm then its WW3 in our house. Sometimes putting them in bouncers with dummies in buys me 20mins here or there but thats not everyday. I try and get stuff done in the house in the morning when they are chilled out because i know come the afternoon it will be impossible. I really hope its something that gets better as they get older. Or when they get a few months older can be distracted more if they are awake with toys etc x

Still no nap. I really regret this right now!

Would he sit in a bouncy chair and not be asleep but quiet and just happy to watch the world go by?

Absolutely not. Happy and this baby don’t go together

Sorry, probably sounds like he takes after his mum! Just really fed up, tbh. Trying not to get annoyed but it’s been eight long hours now.

How is night time sleep?

My eldest was not a napper. He did 30 minutes on the dot and would only sleep in the pram. He slept all night though from 11 weeks old. So I just accepted it because I got a good night's sleep. He was a miserable baby and spent the first 16 weeks of his life crying. We weaned him early because he had reflux and then he was a different baby. But he still didn't nap. It wasn't until he was about 18 months old he slept for longer than an hour in the day.

He is 10 now and I've since found out he is autistic. He does not naturally settle to bed until late and he wakes at the arse crack of dawn regardless of when he went to bed. He also does not sit still much.

@Ohfairenough oh poor you and poor little dude.
Hope it gets better for you soon 💐