Sleepyhead at night

[chapso]

My 5 day newborn will only settle to sleep in a sleepyhead at night. He is very unsettled in a bedside cot and will instantly cry.

I gather that the general guidance is that these shouldn't be used for overnight sleeping, but wondered if people are still using, or have a similar approved alternative that they recommend?

Thank you!

Sadly there is no approved alternative. You will hear things about sleepyheads being breathable etc but it's nonsense - if your baby's face gets stuck in the side then it could lead to suffocation and it's not worth the risk. I heard some sage advice once which was no matter how bad a night you think you're having, none would be as bad as the night your baby does not wake up. I'm not trying to scare you, but get your baby out of that thing and don't use it at night again.

If baby won't sleep in the crib then you will either have to hold him in shifts with your partner if you have one, or find a safe way to cosleep with baby on the bed, look up the safest ways to do it, no soft bedding, on your side and not in the middle, thin blanket to cover you only from waist down etc, ONLY to be done if you're not drinking, on medication, extremely overweight, and so on and so on and ideally only if your Bf. Planned cosleeping in a safe environment is less risky than using a sleep positioner.
If none of the above is possible, you'll have to hold the baby and stay awake I'm afraid. But everything is a phase at this age, it won't be forever!

Oh I'm sorry that's so tough! My little one wouldn't sleep in the next to me at that age either, very normal. We did a few things that helped very quickly. We put the T-shirt dad had worn over the mattress so she had a familiar smell (slide it over so it's tight), we also used to warm the spot where she would sleep with a hot water bottle so it was warm (obviously move it away before you put the baby down), we also used to roll a large Muslin up like a sausage then make a U shape with it and when we lay her down her bum would be at the base of the U if you get me so it mimicked being held.

After a few nights of doing that we stopped doing various elements as she got used to the bed. Happily slept in it from then on, whenever she woke for a feed she would always go straight back to sleep once lay in the cot.

I'd try the above over a sleepyhead they are incredibly dangerous I believe. Good luck, the early days are tough!!

My ds was like this. I used to put the moses basket inside the bedside crib and as he got bigger he felt more secure without it.

I used the sleepyhead for nighttime as DD hated anything else. It worked well for us and helped us transition her into her cot. She didnt fit in it by the time she could roll over so there wasn't any danger of her suffocating herself. There are so many things that come with these warnings but if you're comfortable with it, give it a go.

@arcof is right in that they are a sids risk. BUT what is also a very big sids risk is if you fall asleep holding them - it increases by 50 times the normal risk I believe. But actually this shouldn’t really be called sids because in these cases there is usually a clear cause ie baby has slipped down off you and suffocated in pillows or whatever is around you. Therefore if you are very very tired and unable to sit holding baby without drifting off then a sleepyhead is arguably safer than holding baby while she sleeps. Not everyone can function on next to no sleep and not everyone’s partner or husband is able to help out overnight depending on work etc. It also isn’t very realistic if you also have to look after older ones the next day who won’t let you “sleep when the baby sleeps”.

For those reasons we did use a sleepyhead overnight with my first but we used a clip on nappy breathing alarm to give an extra bit of peace of mind. It isn’t totally fail safe but it would go off if baby didn’t breathe for 15 seconds.

For me this is one of the decisions you have to make for yourself. It's against official guidance. I knew that. But, we made the decision to use ours overnight, because, on balance, for us it safer than the risk of me falling asleep holding him. There are lots of rules and guidance and it's perfectly possible to understand why the guidance is there but make your own risk assessment for your baby and family.

However, with my second, we used Love to Dream swaddles which were amazing. They position their arms upwards and make them feel really snug. She would settle in her crib beautifully in those.

At 5 days old he isn't likely to settle anywhere but in your arms. Have you read about the fourth trimester?

Could you try swaddling?

I think there is a pod that is marketed as being safe for overnight sleep now - maybe the Purflo one? Might be worth a google. But it is a personal decision you have to make, like PP we used the sleepyhead and a breathing monitor as it was the only thing DD would sleep in and after I terrified myself by falling asleep with her in my arms, we decided the sleepyhead plus monitor was the safer option than risking me falling asleep again.

Can you look into safe cosleeping?

Cosleeping following the guidelines was the only thing that worked for us.

Try a Moses basket. They are much smaller, approved for overnight sleep and easy to transport. My DD much preferred it to the bedside crib which we moved her to at about 3 months. They like to feel cosy and the Moses does that.

Try swaddling.

DS was the same so I got a nanny breathing monitor and put it under the sleepyhead for extra peace of mind.

baby-monitors.co.uk

I know it's not officially advised, but if your DS was full term and no health issues, you put him on his back and you are in the same room, he's not too hot etc then the risks are very small.

5 days is very early tbh, I used to sit up for hours until my LO eventually went to sleep.

I wouldnt do a sleep head overnight.

This is normal for a 5 day old baby. However bad a night you think you're having is nothing compared to how you'd feel if your baby died of SIDS due to unsafe sleeping conditions - something you have direct control of.