7 week old not sleeping

[LorraineKev]

Our 7 week old suddenly doesn't want to sleep. She takes her feed, has a kick in her playmat or we do tummy time or another activity and once she starts yawning and exhibiting other sleepy signals I put her down. She then lies awake for ages - sometimes over an hour. She mostly lies quietly but sometimes grizzles. What am I doing wrong? Any tips?

Hi LorraineKev is this your first child?

Is your baby breast or bottle fed?

7 week old babies aren't usually very good at just "falling asleep". Like everything else - babies have to learn how to fall asleep really. She is a tiny tiny baby and just wants mummy to feel safe and secure.

At that age I always nursed my baby to sleep and then would hold him until he was in a deeper sleep. Then I would transfer him to the moses basket - where he would usually wake up immediately. He slept best in my arms which is why I got into babywearing.

Please know this is normal. It may sound cliche and it may feel neverending but your baby will grow up so quickly so cuddle that baby and hold that baby as much as they need it.

Yes it's our first baby. She has been bottle fed since 4 weeks as she rejected my breast milk as she developed a cows mIlk intolerance.

She was sleeping very well and falling asleep on her own but she seems unable to do that suddenly. Is it possible for them to develop insecurities suddenly or is it just a bad week?

Have you heard of the Wonder Weeks? It is a theory that all babies go through mental development leaps at the same stages and that it can cause certain predictable changes that may be similar in all babies. You can download an app on your smart phone (I think it was about $1.50) and I found it very accurate. You put in your DUE date and it predicts the leaps for you, there are many in the early months. But basically your baby is so young and changing all the time - so everything is a phase and nothing is guaranteed to be a constant. So she may sleep great one week and terrible the next - that is totally normal.

Try to just go with the flow and follow her lead. Try not to stress too much if she needs extra cuddles or wants to be held all the time. You can't spoil a baby despite what some people may tell you.

Having a young baby is tiring work, but we all survive it with a bit of rest when we can and lots of coffee.