Overstimulated and struggling

[ameyatk]

My baby is 1 month today and I'm really struggling with feeling overstimulated. I love my baby so much and I find it so hard hearing him cry but I understand that he's just trying to communicate his needs. Does anyone have any tips for helping with sensory overload whilst also caring for a young baby?

I know it’s been a few months since you posted this and things have probably changed but I just wanted to say I see you! I found the first three months with my baby so challenging and confusing and I was so overstimulated I felt like I wanted to get out of my skin. I promise it gets easier with time and you get more attuned to each other. Some things that worked for me with sensory overload (they may or may not work for you!)

• saying it straight out that I was overstimulated when my partner wanted to cuddle or touch me, or when I needed to hand the baby off to him after a feed or to put to sleep or whatever else. Being overstimulated is a completely legitimate reason to need to have a break from anything.
• Having a warm shower while someone else was holding the baby so I knew if he was making noise someone else had it under control
• listening to some calming music
• breathing deeply, especially while feeding (this is good if you’re breastfeeding to make it less overwhelming and sensory overloading but it could also be good if you’re bottle feeding as a time where you being calm can help your baby associate feeding with calm and safety and give you a regular time to take deep breaths)
• Wearing comfortable clothes, especially cotton, that didn’t irritate my skin
• prioritising getting to the bathroom when the need strikes even if that meant I had to put an unhappy baby down for a moment so I avoided getting trapped under the baby and desperately needing to go to the bathroom
• developing some scripts to say to the baby that helped me remind myself that he wasn’t screaming at me to hurt me or make me stressed on purpose (not to invalidate that it makes you feel this way, totally normal and natural). It felt kinda stupid but I’d say things like “thank you for telling me that you need something”, or “I’m listening to you and I know you’re tired”

I hope this helps in some small way. This is one of the most challenging things in the whole world and you have got this, you brave, beautiful mama.