Am I letting my baby sleep too long?

[FTMRLH]

My 6 week old baby goes to bed around 10.30pm (same time as us) and wakes around 3 and then 6/7 for feeding.
After each of these feeds she will go back to sleep. This means she isn’t actually waking ‘for the day’ until 9-10am….

Is this too late? Should I start her day when she wakes at 6/7?

During the day she can get overtired from refusing naps but usually a walk out in the pram or some cuddles I can achieve 2x 2 hour naps in a day.

Although in an evening from around 7 until bedtime she is wide awake but overtired.

Thanks for your advice

Could try bedtime routine, you have to consider your sleep too

That sounds fine, OP. She's tiny! And sounds like she's doing well overnight. Gradually you'll find she'll probably start doing her longest sleep stretch earlier and earlier of her own accord. I certainly would feel I had to get out of bed at 6am when there's no reason to. Believe me, you've plenty of that to come! Enjoy the sleep.

@TwistMyOlive

Could try bedtime routine, you have to consider your sleep too

Eh? The baby is only waking up once between 10.30pm and 6am! Pretty sure most mums of 6 week olds would kill for that.

It sounds fine, enjoy the extra long lie ins while they last 😀

*wouldn't feel

I miss those days with DD, going back to sleep after a 7am feed. Now she's up with the bloody lark

I've just posted because my 6 week old only sleeps around 8 hours in 24 hours. Would literally give anything for that amount of sleep 😂

@TwistMyOlive

Could try bedtime routine, you have to consider your sleep too

Advice will be divided between those who advocate a routine, and those that don't. OP, I think your baby is far too young for a routine. From what I have read, it's not advised to start any sort of routine until your baby is at least six weeks old. Even then, I think it's more about responding to your baby, rather than imposing a strict routine. As your baby grows, she may well start falling asleep earlier in the evening. I have five month old twins, and although they are sleepy from about 9pm ish, they don't fall asleep properly until about 10:30-11pm. They then typically sleep til about 6am, have a feed, and sleep again until between 9-10am. Babies are typically not able to sleep for longer stretches until they weigh at least 11 pounds, as their tummies simply aren't big enough to go for long between needs. It sounds like sleeping til mid to late morning is working for your baby, so I would go with what they are telling you. Once your baby starts sleeping a bit earlier at night, they will likely wake a bit earlier in the morning so I think it will even out.

your baby is good sleeper - enjoy. As could very much change.

During day - eat sleep and repeat. Baby is overtired as you state and may need shorter awake windows x

Personally I think 1030pm is too late a bedtime for a baby - mins have always gone down between 6pm and 7pm

@Fancyties I am trying eat sleep repeat but it doesn’t seem to be really working at the moment. She seems overtired by the time she’s finished feeding.

@tiggerwhocamefortea did you do such an early bedtime from newborn? I was told to keep them awake until I go to bed originally as this is when they do the longest stint. However I’m not sure if bringing it earlier would be more beneficial for her?

When are you feeding lo? As soon as they wake or are you waiting for a bit?

Follow your baby not the books, baby hasn’t read them. You’re overthinking this, she has her whole life for ‘routine’ just enjoy her.

Try not to worry/over think it so much. She's too young for rigid routines/structure etc so just follow her lead and feed and sleep when she wants to. Our baby is 10 weeks old and usually falls asleep for the night anywhere between 8.30 and 10. Morning wake up is usually between 6 and 7.30 with one or two wakes for feeds in the night. Day time she usually has around 4 naps. The only thing I do keep an eye on is the wake windows advjce in not having her awake for more than 90 mins ish (occasionally she stretches this to 2 hours and seems okay). Nap time varies from 30 mins to 3 hours, led by her. She usually does 1 longish nap of several hours and the rest are shorter. This seems to work for her but she has very much fallen into the pattern rather than us enforcing it.

did you do such an early bedtime from newborn? I was told to keep them awake until I go to bed originally as this is when they do the longest stint.

Yes right from newborns.

The whole keeping them awake until you go to bed thing is more for the parents than it is the baby

I just let baby sleep when it wanted to sleep. I don't understand why you'd train your baby to go to sleep ridiculously early so it's likely to wake up just as you're going to bed? Why make it hard for yourself? Tired mom is a miserable mom.

I disagree with early bedtime for a newborn. Firstly they should be in the room with you due to SIDS, so you shouldn't be putting them to bed without you and you don't want to spend evenings in your bedroom. Secondly you make a good point that you get a good stretch of sleep when you are sleeping too. Thirdly in my experience bedtime naturally shifts earlier. Our DD went to bed at 9/10pm and slowly shifted to 7.30/8. A friend spent many miserable weeks in a dark room trying to get her little baby to sleep at 7 until a professional told her it was fine to do a later bedtime. Your baby sleeps in in the morning so is getting great night time sleep. Just enjoy the relatively good sleep for now and bedtime is bound to shift earlier in time. Plus the clocks change tomorrow night so that will potentially shift it earlier if you want.

Omg let her sleep until 9.30/10. Enjoy it while you can! Is she your first baby? If she is, def enjoy because if you have another one, you will never be able to stay in bed until 10am with that one with a toddler running around who probably will wake up at 6am!

I'd go with it for now OP. It seems like this is working well and it will all change anyway over the next few weeks.

It's working well so don't worry!
Personally think too young for a routine.
Enjoy it whilst you can as it won't stay like this.

Currently expecting my first baby and this is my dream 🤣 she sounds fine and I’d try and enjoy it xxx

@JustGotToKeepOnKeepingOn

I just let baby sleep when it wanted to sleep. I don't understand why you'd train your baby to go to sleep ridiculously early so it's likely to wake up just as you're going to bed? Why make it hard for yourself? Tired mom is a miserable mom.

My twins naturally were tired between 6-7 so that has always been bedtime since they were born - no sleep training required - yes they'd wake for a feed every 3-4 hours but that's normal for a newborn obviously. Now at 9 months they still go to bed at 6-7 and one sleeps through the night fine, the other one tends to wake around 2am but settles after a cuddle. I work full time though and have been since they were 20 weeks. I have to get all the kids up at 6am for school etc so it suits us to have an early wake up time - no luxury of 9am wake ups in this house! 😂

I think at that age, you go for what you can get. They will naturally work out their own routine in time, there's no need for your baby to be getting up early at the moment and if she's happy and healthy go with the flow

@tiggerwhocamefortea I was very lucky with my baby. She slept pretty much for 20 hours of every day for her first 6 months. I had SO many people telling me to wake her to feed her. I didn't. She gained weight perfectly well with me feeding her every 4 hours in the day, but I let her sleep the rest of the time. I had been so worried about her waking up early. She never did. Still loves her sleep now and weekends are bliss for us all - nice lie ins. So if your baby sleeps. Let them!

My daughter did more of less the same routine, breast fed, cluster fed all evening, sleep at 10.30, awake for feed at around 2.30 then awake for feed at 6.30 am then 2-3 long sleeps during the day. At 8 weeks she dropped the 2.30am feed and then gradually stopped the cluster feeding and slept 11 hours solidly. She put on weight like a dream so I never woke her to feed. She’s nearly 30 now and has been staying with us recently while her flat purchase goes through, god can that girl sleep! Easily manages 10 hours straight but strangely enough works nights by choice.

Without even reading your post, I shouted ‘NO!’ when I read the title.

In summary : NO