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Original poster

Help! Keeping newborn warm at night without overheating - cold feet/hands/face?

42 replies

Aberforthsgoat · 30/12/2019 19:09

Hello!
I have a newborn DS a week and a bit old. He was born at 37 weeks and is a under six pounds.

I have a room thermometer one of those egg things that says my room is a toasty 20 on average overnight although it can drop down to 18-19, which I know is still optimum window for babies.

However, to me it feels draughty and a bit chill sometimes. A few times at night, I've picked up DS and he feels cold when I put him against me. He was a c section baby and when he was born his hands were bluish purple tinted which was apparently normal, they pinked up a bit yesterday but then today when I picked him up from a nap his little hands were like blocks of ice and back to how they had been. His face was cold too.

I'm really bad at judging temp with my hands - I know it sounds silly but I can't really feel how warm his skin feels when I check, I can just tell that he doesn't feel hot or ice cold but struggle to tell if he feels too cool or just pleasantly warm.

I put him down in a short sleeved vest and a baby grow (both cotton) with feet. Then I cover him with hand knitted blanket that's doubled up and tucked into his moses basket - he tends to wriggle up a bit so it ends up not covering his chest completely sometimes as he sleeps - and then if the temp drops I add another blanket.

I have a grobag 2.5 tog but I think he's too small for it at the moment :( i've tried it on him and I'm not 100% convinced it won't go over his little head so don't want to risk it yet.

His head always feels cool but I know that's a good thing to stop him overheating. I'm just at my wit's end and starting to dread nighttime because I'm panicking that I've not kept him warm enough and I'm going to make him ill or there's something wrong with his circulation.

I guess I'm asking, is it normal for babies to have cold hands/feet/face? When the room is 20 ish? Are gro-eggs reliable? It seems to be.

I did have a thermometer but it ended up being inaccurate and telling me his temperature was REALLY low - like hyperthermia low - and did the same for DH who was clearly not that cold - so the midwife told me to ditch the thermometer and just use my hands.

Which I'm terrible at.

Sorry for the long rant, I'm sleep deprived and anxious and on the brink of ringing up the midwife ward for advice on how to keep him warm which is making me feel like a crushing failure of a mum and it's barely even been a week.

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Heymummee · 30/12/2019 19:16

Try not to worry. The best way to judge their temperature is to feel inside the sleep suit on their back or chest, if they’re warm then don’t worry about cold hands.
Could you put some socks or scratch mittens on his hands if you’re worried about those?

Also look into getting a small grobag, I had some suitable for babies from 7lbs upwards.

Heymummee · 30/12/2019 19:18

Also you are absolutely not a failure. It’s awful when they’re tiny and you become uncertain about everything and wondering if you’re doing it right. If you want to call your midwife or health visitor, go for it! That’s what they’re there for. There’s also lots of useful information here -

www.lullabytrust.org.uk/safer-sleep-advice/baby-room-temperature/

welshweasel · 30/12/2019 19:19

It’s perfectly normal for their hands and face to be cold. If they are too cold they will wake up and let you know. Not so if they overheat. My first was only 5lb 9oz and we used grosnugs for the first couple of months, they are gro bags for newborns. You can usually get them cheaply secondhand as they only get used for a short period of time.

Frlrlrubert · 30/12/2019 19:20

They do often have cold extremities, you need to feel their temp on their back or chest.

I run hot, but also have Reynauds when I get cold, so am quite a bad judge too!

You might feel more comfortable with a cellular blanket you know the tog of, rather than a knitted one, so you can use the 'what to dress baby in' charts?

Advice when DD was newborn was that if they are too cold they'll wake, if they are too hot they may not, so I always erred on the side of too cold.

And I bought gro-bags as soon as she was 8lb or whatever the minimum is, they are worth it.

welshweasel · 30/12/2019 19:20

gro.co.uk/product/gro-snug/

Yoohoo16 · 30/12/2019 19:23

Totally normal to have cold hands, feet and face. That’s why a lot of advice says to feel chest, back of neck for a more accurate temperature.
Try to worry. I’ve always thought to myself a too hot baby is at risk of sids, a too cool baby not feel 100% comfy but they’re safer and will soon let you know if they’re too cold.

isadoradancing123 · 30/12/2019 19:24

Some small babygros have hand covers inbuilt, they are really good for first few weeks

randomsabreuse · 30/12/2019 19:25

Hands/feet take a long time to be warm... basically ignore and check inside vest.

Try gro snug for the first 2-3 months as they're designed for small babies!

OverthinkingThis · 30/12/2019 19:26

Another vote for gro snugs, they have extra poppers (under the arms I think) that help stop their heads going inside.
Also the sleepsuits/babygros that have the fold over scratch mitts built into the wrists are fab. Next, Mothercare, boots and a few other places do them. But I think the advice is to check their chest/back of their neck to see if they are warm enough and not to worry so much about the extremities. He'll cry if he's chilly, it's more dangerous to let them get too hot.

Yoohoo16 · 30/12/2019 19:26

Oh and we’ve used a gro egg since dd was a baby and it’s always been very accurate. Smile

RandomMess · 30/12/2019 19:27

I well remember those block of ice hands against my boobs when feeding in the night, totally normal for them to be freezing.

Far better for them to be a bit too cold than too warm.

dementedpixie · 30/12/2019 19:29

help.mothercare.com/help/products/nursery/bedding this says 1 sheet plus 2 blankets (or 1 doubled over blanket) for 18/19 degrees

PixieDustt · 30/12/2019 19:34

We have a gro egg. DS was born in July and it was so hard to get the room down to the right temp absolute nightmare.
I have noticed now he has cold hands and the room does feel chilly at 20 and like you it goes between 18-20 at night. I've tried not to focus on his face being slightly chilly now as when he comes out of his grobag he is nice and toasty.

Original poster
Aberforthsgoat · 30/12/2019 19:38

Thank you thank you thank you. I’ve been in tears today convinced I’m
A terrible mother and I’m going to give him hyperthermia or something. It doesn’t help that our house is a bit draughty.

We have a grosnug - but I ordered light and it feels very thin so might order a cosy. It also seemed to be really quite tight around his neck is that how they should be?

Thank you again for taking the time to reply, I feel so anxious about this.

He does wake a lot in the night, but I think that’s cluster feeding as it’s as soon as I put him down usually, but it could also be that he was cold.

I just wish I was better at judging how warm he is back of neck and chest he always feels a bit cool to me unless I feel his clothes if that makes sense? But I have cold hands and feet often too so I’m a really poor judge of temp

OP posts:
Original poster
Aberforthsgoat · 30/12/2019 19:54

@welshweasel did you find the grosnug tight around the neck?
Did you use a light or cosy?

I’m wondering if the light one with a blanket would be too much with the baby grow and vest

OP posts:
blueskiesbrighteyes · 30/12/2019 19:56

Gro bags usually have a button under the arms so you can make it smaller and stop them slipping down x

Original poster
Aberforthsgoat · 30/12/2019 20:02

@blueskiesbrighteyes I have a gro bag but he’s so tiny I’m not sure it won’t go over his head - it says for 7lbs and above but he’s under 6

OP posts:
Wavingwhiledrowning · 30/12/2019 20:05

We used Gro Suits for ours. They have thicker arms so they keep them a bit cosier when they're in a sleeping bag. We also got given an amazing open top sleeping bag/pram blanket affair (really old fashioned) which was brilliant. Eventually I found someone on ebay that made me another one. It was like a quilted envelope!

Original poster
Aberforthsgoat · 30/12/2019 20:06

God there are so many gro products! Will go look up gro suits thank you

I feel a bit better now. I might try the light grosnug tonight with a blanket over the top.

OP posts:
dementedpixie · 30/12/2019 20:09

Grosuits are for using with sleeping bags to keep the arms warmer.

justsotiredallthetime · 30/12/2019 20:11

Don't panic, some great advice and your baby is just fine. I worried so much too! House temp sounds perfect tbh and as soon as baby is big enough definitely use a grobag.

welshweasel · 30/12/2019 20:12

@Aberforthsgoat yes it’s meant to be tight. We used a cozy one but our room was only 16, if yours is 20 the light one will be fine. You won’t need a blanket over it. Perhaps give it a go?

Echobelly · 30/12/2019 20:15

The way I looked at it was that a baby in a onesie and blanket in a warm, dry house is not in any medical danger from cold - at worst, they will feel a bit too cold and cry. They are at more risk from overheating, so I erred on the side of cooler (NB, I never even had a room thermometer, just went by what seemed sensible). I used grobags ASAP and they were great.

dementedpixie · 30/12/2019 20:16

You arent supposed to use a blanket with the grosnug