10 week old not sleeping more than 1hr and won't nap except in sling

[catrionagray]

Hello!

Not posted much before. I have a gorgeous and smiley 10 week boy who is really not keen on sleeping.

At night at the moment he's waking ever hour or sometimes every half hour. He seems uncomfortable but can't pass gas. A small feed and he's asleep on the boob. You can then transfer him back to cot but he'll wake up again in no time.

He also won't nap in the day (never has) unless he's on me or my partner or in the sling.

Any tips?????

We bought an electronic swing. We could put DS in for naps (only for daytime use). It rocks at different speeds and the white noise lulled him to sleep. I relied on it for naps until 9 months!

For night time, have you tried the sleepyhead? (It's like a cocoon pillow the baby sleeps in) It didn't work for me unfortunately, but I have many friends who say it's wonderful and helped their babies sleep longer. You can put it in your baby's cot or in your bed if you co sleep.

www.amazon.co.uk/gp/aw/d/B00A39335C/ref=mp_s_a_1_3?ie=UTF8&qid=1506591026&sr=1-3&refinements=p_4%3AGraco&pi=AC_SX236_SY340_FMwebp_QL65&dpPl=1&dpID=41D8u224w2L&ref=plSrch&tag=mumsnetforum-21

Here's a link. There are cheaper/ fancier versions too.

Sounds pretty normal, albeit obviously exhausting.

Stuff you could try at night:

• swaddling and white noise
• cosleeping
• a dummy (although tbh I just found it easier to cosleep and stick my boob back in his mouth - I'd basically sleep while he fed).

is he putting on wieght ok if he's falling asleep at the boob it might be hes not feeding enough and then wakiung from hunger. Maybe wake him and feed him again?

My baby used to get really upset and cry hysterically if she needed ot pass wind or poop, she's calmed down as she's gotten older.

Also as a PP I found our baby swing a god send some nights we put her to sleep in it as she would not settle anywhere else.

Have you thought about cosleeping? It's quite normal as they wake up and they're no longer in your arms. He may sleep in much longer bursts if next to you. Otherwise swaddling creates a similar feeling to the womb but also I can't rate the sleepyhead highly enough!

Hi everyone! Thanks for your suggestions :)

Tryingtokeepfit I can't really afford all that stuff or have space for it. Also, then what do you do when you want to go away with them? You can't take all that stuff with you...

Tiramisuqueen - he's been happy (ish) with swaddling until a few days ago. Now he suddenly hates it...! I use Ewan the sheep for noise, seems to like it but still wakes up half an hour later. He takes a dummy for a while but just cries through it :(

Fuzzywuzzy - yes, he feeds well but these tiny nighttime feeds are definitely more for comfort than food at all. He sort of sucks but doesn't swallow anything at all. He's basically using my boob as the world's nicest dummy.

He's not sleeping in our bed but is in a cosleeper cot and I sleep right up next to him...

In that case keep trying with a dummy at night times when you see he's just comfort sucking.

Mine does the comfort sucking and it made my nipples so sore, so I tend to gently pull my boob out of her mouth and replace with a dummy. I have to hold it in place for a few seconds before she starts sucking on it and then once she's fast asleep it either falls out of her mouth or I take it out.

She's slowly become more accepting of dummies now. And takes it when she's sleepy and grizzling from tiredness.

Fuzzywuzzy, that's a good idea, to put it in straight after the boob! I'll try that 😊

A bouncy chair is fantastic for daytime naps. I had the Fisher Price one, but here is one for £15 which would do the job.

The idea is to put baby in bouncer, sit om the sofa with the bouncer at your feet and use your foot to bounce baby relentlessly.

With age baby's sleep will nature and change. The suggestion is not that a bouncer would be used forever, just that while extra help is needed they are fantastic (as are dummies) to help you develop regular sleep habits.

Does he have colic or reflux? My DC preferred sleeping upright (in sling or being held) would wake up as soon as they were put down. Tiger hold position helped as putting them on their backs created more pressure on their sore tummies. Maybe see what HV says?

Fate - I have 2 bouncers. He likes them now (didn't a couple of weeks ago) but he's SO wiggly he'll just kick and kick and kick, then cry when he gets really tired... I'll just keep trying!

Marmalade - He is a bit colicky I think, yes. Also, has started sicking a lot in the last week. Poor little thing. You're right, perhaps I'll talk to the HV.

catrionagray - try to team the bouncy chair relentless bouncing with the dummy.

There's a knack to dummy use, don't just put it in when baby is crying because it will just sit limply in the mouth. You want to get baby to actively suck it, not just have it in his mouth. Some ways to encourage this:

• remove dummy and pick baby up to soith if crying. Feed or cuddle usually does this. Put dummy in when baby is calming down, not when distressed.
• stroke cheek or lips with dummy teat so baby seeks it to suck with his mouth. Much the same as tactics used to gr8 baby to latch to the breast
• angle the dummy upwards towards the back of the mouth (like breast feeding) when putting it in
• tapping the outside of the dumny encourages the sucking reflex
• try different types and brands of dummies
• keep on trying

The HV or your dr should be able to spot it if it is colic - fingers crossed for you it isn't. You can always try some infacol to see if that makes a difference and make sure you're doing lots of burping.

Things will change and you will get more sleep - I promise! we've all been there with sleep deprivation and feeling like you're not helping your baby and sleepless nights (and days) will never end, it does though.

Try and enjoy the warmth and closeness of your DC in the sling. When they start getting wriggly you'll miss it!