Newborn Sleep

[gigi556]

DS is 5 days old. He slept in the cot at hospital but since we got home he will only sleep while being held. He wakes as soon as we put him in the Moses basket. Over the last 4 days we have only managed to get him to sleep while not being held for about 30 minutes one time...

I get that this is completely normal. He's just getting used to his new world and likes to hear a heartbeat and feel someone's body heat, BUT I'm wondering how long it might last or if we should try something else? When DP goes back to work we won't really have the option of baby sleeping while being held as it means that person holding him can't sleep. I just want to be able to sleep when baby sleeps

Did you end up with baby in the bed? Did you use some kind of baby nest pillow thing? HELP!

www.isisonline.org.uk/where_babies_sleep/

Read this information for safe co-sleeping

I ended up doing this with my first. He would only sleep with us. On reflection I wish I'd worried about it less and embraced the co-sleeping more.

Things to try include swaddling, warming the Moses basket with a hot water bottle before transferring him, putting a muslin that smells of you over the sheet, using something like a sleepyhead or similar with or instead of the Moses basket, and using white noise.

You could also try safe co-sleeping at night, and breastfeed lying down (if you can get the hang of it), then you're more likely to maximise your sleep.

With ds (pfb) either dp or I was awake holding him for 12 days (he did occasionally sleep in the car seat too). We then started to transfer him into the (warmed)moses basket. In our case it was at least in part milk related- he was tongue tied and really not getting enough, he settled when we gave him a f top up. With dd she just came straight into bed with me- me consigned to the spare room.

Recreate womb conditions:

• never the feeling of being hungry. Feed feed feed feed. If in doubt, feed again.

• asleep most of the time and awake for only short bursts of time. 30-45 minutes awake only.

• tight, secure, enclosed feeling. Recreated with a swaddle if not being held in arms.