Any tips for getting 5 week old to sleep less in day & more at night?

[helenlouisey]

My 5 week old is nocturnal :( She sleeps beautifully during the day, I have to wake her for feeds (every 3 hours) and she goes straight back to sleep afterwards. Night time is a different story, last night i got 2 and 1/2 hours sleep, which with a three year (who doesn't nap during the day) I'm shattered.

During the night she's not tired, she wont go down after her feeds, takes me up to 2 hours to her to sleep, just wondered if anyone had any tips as to how I turn things around and get her to be more awake during the day and sleep better at night?

Thanks

x

you could try waking her more frequently during the day. and after she has had her feed don't put her straight down to sleep?

Get her outside around midday for a good hour. Apparently daylight helps to set their body clock.

www.amazon.co.uk/Solve-Your-Childs-Sleep-Problems/dp/0863181228

great book

try stimulating her a bit after the daytime feeds - if she gets sleepy immediately after feeding, or falls asleep during a feed, try a nappy change, or stripping her off completely for a bit of kicking time (both mine loved this and it really helped keep them stimulated a bit during the day). Just some time lying on the floor having a kick could make a real difference. She's old enough now at 5 weeks to be interested in a cot mobile, looking at some simple black-and-white or coloured toys, or try something like a wrist rattle to absorb her attention....I'd aim for an initial 10-15 minutes awake time after feeds and try building this up gradually until she's able to stay awake for nearer an hour.

The other thing I would do is wake her at 10/10:30 for a late feed and try keeping her awake for half an hour or so after this too.

It may take a while to help her adjust but it will happen...both mine were quite sleepy at this age but trying a little bit of gentle playtime after daytime feeds really helped.