6 week old sleep help please!!

[Beejaybee]

My little one is 6.5 weeks old and fights tiredness most of the day resulting in him seeming to be constantly overtired. There are few warning 'cues', he mostly goes from being winded to wailing/banging his fists etc.

I've started using a dummy as a last resort to settle him but only want him to associate it with naps/sleep. I seem to be needing to use it more and more frequently for every nap... unless I constantly hold/rock him. Neither of these seem like positive sleep habits but does it matter at this age??

I was told by a sleep consultant that good daytime sleep encourages good night sleep. Does anyone have any advice for instilling sleep routines?

We are bottle feeding every 4-5 hours and each feed is followed by a nappy change and maybe some brief play/tummy time (if he's not having a melt down straightaway).

6 weeks is far, far too early to start introducing a routine, or worrying about dummies or rocking.
You've got a tiny baby who is still just trying to work out what's going on, and needing to be held and reassured that someone is there

4-5 hours seems a long time between feeds. Is that based on the baby or the routine?

I think at 6 weeks you have to let go of any idea of routine, st least for a while, and I wouldn’t worry about using a dummy whenever you need to either, do what works for you. I’m assuming you don’t play after night feeds!

I guess I'm trying to figure out what he needs and am concerned the dummy will mask it.

His last feed of the day is normally between 8-10pm followed by changing for bed/lullaby music. Still takes plenty of rocking etc. He wakes between 1-3am on a good night and I feed him in the dark/quiet with no interaction. Tends to go back down ok but very noisy/restless though still asleep.

Daytime naps seem to be more the issue

Your baby barely knows day from night and doesn't know what a daytime nap is yet
You're still months and months away from that

Please don't get suckered into a sleep consultant trying to flog you their services this early

Your baby just needs sleep, milk and love at this age

Have you got the wonder weeks app? It's a useful way of helping you understand what's going on in their brains

Normal at that stage, I'm afraid

Try white noise. DD has slept through the night (8:30-5:30) since she was 8 about weeks old and I'm certain that white noise has helped immensely.

Thanks all.

The feeding 'schedule' is based upon the Aptimil recommendation of 5 feeds per day though we'll be led mostly by the LO. Sometimes it will be 3 hours sometimes longer. 150ml per feed.

Just dont know how to console him when crying due to overtiredness.

I have just got the wonder weeks book and gave also found white noise helps x

Have you tried swaddling? My LO slept really well at that age when swaddled.

We used a book based on a 90 minute sleep schedule for both my children. I can't remember the title offhand, but it was based on the fact that babies have a 'window' of tiredness 90 minutes after they wake up and if you miss the window you end up in the situation you describe.

Like a say, we used it with both boys and both were/are champion nappers. DS2 is a shit sleeper at night and always has been but he naps really well during the day and has done since he was tiny. The 90 minutes gradually increases to 3 hours between naps etc and that's where he's at now. With a morning nap about 9:30-11 and afternoon about 2-3:30.

It's worth looking at as I found it takes the pressure of looking for cues because you just get them ready to nap after 90 minutes (or a bit sooner preferably so you catch the window) and gives structure without being really fixed, as naptimes will vary depending when they wake.

Can't hurt to try!

Personally I would not go more than 4 hours without a feed and would aim for a nap between every feed. A baby bouncer is great, you can pop the dummy in after a feed then bounce away with your foot until they fall asleep. I’m a big routine fan and started with a loose routine at 4 weeks, it depends on you and your baby but I disagree that 6.5 weeks is too young- just don’t force anything and be guided by your baby.

Thanks all for your suggestions xx