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Original poster

8 week old with cold - Gina Ford

50 replies

laurabow · 19/05/2010 16:14

Hi, my 8 week old baby has always been very content. He has self soothed himself to sleep since birth with no problem at all and I have been using the Gina Ford routine with great success. However he has had a cold for the last week and everything has gone to pot. Although he seems less unwell in himself he is still quite flemmy and is fighting sleep. When he wakes around 5am for his feed he then refuses to settle back to sleep and his naps are getting shorter and shorter, he appears to be fighting sleep more and more. I am starting to worry that this is becoming a habit. Will he return to his normal content self when this cold finally goes? I am worried I will be pacing up and down with him forever. HELP PLEASE

OP posts:
LeninGrad · 19/05/2010 16:21

This reply has been deleted

Message withdrawn at poster's request.

Lisassister · 19/05/2010 17:16

Hi there. We did GF as well with our ds (now 6 ). We didn't start it until he was about 8 weeks so I'm sure you'll be fine. It seems a long time ago now but I'm sure she mentions illness in the book somewhere and says not to worry too much whilst they're unwell but to just recommence it once they're better. You may have a bit more trouble as he's that much older but as I say we didn't start until that age and it worked well. Try not to worry too much, and give it a go again when he's better.

messylittlemonkey · 20/05/2010 09:48

Hello

We're in pretty much the exact same boat, in fact I posted on here yesterday about it!

In a nutshell, we have an eight week old DD. we have followed the GF plan more or less from the off as we had great success when we used it with our first DD who's nearly 5 now!

We were going great guns until last week and are currently on the 6-8 week routine.

LO has been a bit off colour s the whole family have had a virus which has knocked us all out and she seems to have got the tail end of it. Anyway, until last week she was doing really well at night, settling well after feeds and generally spot on. She started to go til about 4am after her 10.30pm feed and we were really pleased, then sudddenly she started stirring at around 1.30/2am and the only way we can settle her back to sleep is by bringing her into our bed which isn't ideal. We don't want to feed her when she wakes at 2am as we know she can last a lot longer and don't want to take backward steps.

The daytime routine is still on track although even that wobbled last weekend, it's just the nights which are frustrating us.

The responses I've had on my thread (Title: Any tips for settling 8 wo baby at night?) have been mainly suggesting co-sleeping, demand feeding etc and this is not what we want to do.

Perhaps we can support each other with this?

Best of luck

MLM

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Lisassister · 20/05/2010 14:12

Haven't got much time at the mo, but just quickly have you tried the "kiss and retreat" method? i.e. you go in , rub his back or whatever, but don't have eye contact and don't pick him up. Then you leave. You basically have to keep doing this, gradually lengthening the gaps before you go back in. The key is to not pick them up and not have eye contact. Very hard and stressful I know but we had to do this with my son and it does work eventually. This way you're not leaving them to cry unattended, but also not getting in a pattern of picking them up every time; they learn to self-soothe. Sounds harsh but I can only say that my 6 year old seems completely unharmed having been subjected to it as a baby! Good luck.

TheCrackFox · 20/05/2010 14:18

Have you thought about chucking the book in the bin?

I had it for about 3 days before it was binned.

thumbwitch · 20/05/2010 14:20

cor, I didn't know we were still allowed to use her name in full on here - do you think this thread will be pulled soon?

lovingmy2 · 20/05/2010 14:21

If baby isn't well then they need cuddling imo not gina ford rules. The routine will be back when lo is better. Give them the cuddles they are only babies for such a short time.

ABatInBunkFive · 20/05/2010 14:22

Newsflash, little babies don't care about GF routines, they have wants and needs.

'You know he can go for longer without milk'

I despair.

ABatInBunkFive · 20/05/2010 14:24

lisasister - You would advocate using kiss and retreat on an 8 week old baby?!?

I though even GF didn't advocated it for babies under 6 months.

smallorange · 20/05/2010 14:28

I echo that - GF is fine until they are teethi g or I'll, then they will need cuddles, sleep at odd times or not at all, be clingy and grumpy.

That is why babies sre such hard work.

I found a bowl of warm water with Vick dissolved in it placed near the cot helped with breathing, calpol, daytime naps in sling or buggy helped with phlegm and snot.

You will get the routine back when baby is better but until yhen it's needs must, I'm afraid.

expatinscotland · 20/05/2010 14:29

He's a newborn baby who breathes out his nose mostly so he can eat and is bunged up. Can't you cut him some slack?

Gees. My 18-month-old wants to be cuddled and wakes up all night when he's teething or ill. He's a baby.

Prop his cot up on phone books and try a humidifier in the room.

Or saline drops in his nostrils.

smallorange · 20/05/2010 14:30

Sorry not kiss and retreat. It's pointless. They don't 'learn' at this age and baby needs to conserve strength for fighting cold not exhaust itself yelling.

smallorange · 20/05/2010 14:34

BF is great too, just lie in bed and let baby feed, it will clear nose and ears. Read a book. Get some sleep yourself and fon't feel under pressure to have sleep patterns sorted etc.

Really it's fine to just let babies find their own pattern. It doesn't mean you sre getting into bad habits. And any probs sre easily sorted when baby is older.

Cadders1 · 20/05/2010 14:35

If the cold is better and routine has not improved - I think GF suggests getting them to sleep for prolonged periods for naps anyway you can for at least 2 weeks and then they become more used to it and you can start to put them down for naps.

But echo what everyone else has said - GF may work for some babies for some of the time - but not for all, all of the time. Try not to send your time worrying about a routine and give yourself time to enjoy yor baby. It took me a good 4 months to heed this advice myself and looking back it is so true!

rubyslippers · 20/05/2010 14:35

you won't be pacing up and down with him forever

but when you are ill, you want cuddles/comfort and extra drinks don't you? So, why wouldn't your baby? And an 8 week old baby at that

Please don't get bound up in following a routine to the letter - treat it as a rough guide only IMHO

I am a co-sleeping, feed on demand mum FWIW, but it makes no difference IMO

a poorly baby needs to have his needs met (bottle/breast whatever fed ...)

smallorange · 20/05/2010 14:35

Also young babies wake at night for milk because they need it - especially in summer.

rubyslippers · 20/05/2010 14:36

oh and Olbas oil on a tissue in their room helps and a bath in steamy room ...

ABatInBunkFive · 20/05/2010 14:39

Yes, the weather is warmer now, babies tend to want more milk, it's all perfectly normal, no such thing as a perfect baby.

And i have done kiss and retreat, on an older baby, so i'm not anti those sort of things, just when they are so so tiny...

FakePlasticTrees · 20/05/2010 15:02

Sleeping will settle down when he's over his cold. Books under the cot legs to tilt it is a good idea. As is a wet towel in the room to increase moisture. Make sure the room is well aired in the day. Calpol do a nose spray that's good. Ask in the chemists if they have anything to clear little noses.

Oh and MessyLittleMonkey - if you feed her at 1:30am-2am would she go through until morning or still wake for another feed in the night? Seriously, if she's only waking once, it doesn't really matter when it is, surely? (and 10pm-2am is 4 hours, if you then get another 4 until 6, I'd call that a decent night's sleep for you)

nickytwotimes · 20/05/2010 15:07

I am quite a routine fan, but an 8 week old baby with a cold will just need extra cuddles and milk and comfort.
Please do not stress yourself over what might happen next week/month. If he is the kind of child who enjoys a routine, he'll go back to it when he is feeling better. WHen he is ill, he needs extra cuddles, day or night.

Lisassister · 20/05/2010 16:05

OK. I think I did say on my first post to leave the GF stuff until the baby was better. But I don't have any problem with doing what I suggested once the baby is well again. But each to their own, just a suggestion...

ABatInBunkFive · 20/05/2010 16:12

At 8 weeks?!

teaandcakeplease · 20/05/2010 16:22

My 2 DCs routines always were thrown out by being poorly. I wouldn't worry. They would wake more from struggling to breathe at night and I would have to possibly give them an extra feed to soothe them than usual when poorly. You can settle them back into a routine when better. Do whatever it takes to survive for now, even co-sleeping temporarily maybe an option if it helps you and him to get a bit more kip? I always just gently re-trained mine once better, IF needed

I know the Karvol vapour drops say from 3 months but I'd be tempted to use them anyway but less and also tilting the cot a little as well for now as well? Maybe someone else mentioned that already. As I only scanned the thread, it's early days and they're only 8 weeks, I'm sure all will be fine once better again

ShadeofViolet · 20/05/2010 16:26

I agree with ABatInBunkFive

crumpette · 20/05/2010 16:29

Um, OP, colds/viruses/etc throw babies completely off kilter but as long as you keep meeting their needs, they will quickly get back to normal. Once baby is fit and well again then they'll be able to do the whole routine thing if that is what you want. Colds make them all bunged up and it's harder for them to breathe while feeding, so they take in less milk, feel hungry and also just feel ill, and consequently they aren't as easy to care for when they have one. But as soon as the snot goes they do return to normal.

At 8 weeks I wouldn't personally use any medication or cold specific products for him but perhaps would prop up one end of the cot slightly and also maybe try a nasal aspirator to help clear out some of the gunge in his little nose before he feeds.