My 8 week old son will not settle!

[Firsttimemum101101]

Hi everyone!

I have an 8 week old baby boy who is just absolutely incredible. He's had a rough start in life, reflux, colic, in and out of hospital with covid and a viral infection. I'm so exhausted I keep falling asleep with him on me which I know is extremely dangerous and I worry myself sick when I wake up and realise. I have a Snuzpod but he just will not sleep in there. The minute his head touches the mattress he screams. I've tried womb sounds and white noise, I've tried swaddling, I have the crib tilted at 15 degrees, I've slept with one hand on his tummy next to him, the doctor advised putting a pillow under him but under half his body however he rolls in his sleep so I took it out. I've tried putting the crib on the floor with me and sleeping next to him but he won't sleep, I've tried taking the mattress out and putting him to sleep on the floor with me on his mattress. This boy just will not sleep!!!😂 he has reflux medicine and colic relief but he will only sleep snuggled up on the sofa, in his swing chair or on me or my partner. We have a sock monitor however I know I can't rely on this and I am worried about SIDS. Can anyone please help?

@Firsttimemum101101
Hi, I don't have much advice, but I do know your little one is perfectly normal...I'm sorry you are so exhausted! It WILL get better with time...you sound like you've tried everything and more to make him comfy.

Here's one thing you might try which sounds a bit ridiculous. If he doesn't get proper naps during the day, his night time sleep will be affected...it seems counter intuitive...if baby stays awake during the day then he'll be good and tired and sleep several hours at night, right? WRONG...they need scheduled day time sleep to regulate their night time sleep. For some reason if they get over tired they can't settle...maybe Google it to learn how to look for signs that he's tired..they can be very subtle and then your window of opportunity can pass and he gets overly tired..
It's early yet, though, for figuring out a schedule that works for him...keep trying..it will come.
It's Heaven when you do figure it out ,MaMa !👼🏻👼👼🏼👼🏽👼🏾👼🏿

Such a tiring stage! The only tip I can think of is my little one was also a winter baby so we tried to make sure the sheets weren’t a cold shock when putting him down. Put a hot water bottle into the cot, and then remove just before putting your baby into it - obviously give it a feel first so it isn’t too hot for sensitive skin.
Congrats OP and good luck x

My ds was like this, we ended up putting his bouncy chair in the big cot, we had tried co sleeping but we never really got any sleep, he was happy in his bouncer with a blanket over him & slept for longer.

You must be exhausted! Can your partner do a shift so you can get a bit of sleep?

My LO is 7 weeks and has reflux so I’m also holding him to sleep a lot. We’ve got a snuzpod but at the moment the Moses basket is inside it. I haven’t been brave enough to try without yet. Do you know anyone you could borrow one from to see if it would help? We also ended up buying a Purflo nest for the early days. Apparently they are safe for overnight sleep but generally nests aren’t so I was glad when he outgrew it because I never felt quite right using it. Also my partner said it was probably safer than falling asleep holding him, which is what was happening.

The other thing we’ve done is leave something that smells of me with him. I had a nightie tucked tightly over the sheet for a while. I also left my jumper with DP when I went to bed and he said it was the most settled the baby has ever been with him.

Google safe cosleeping/bedsharing.

Bed share with him safely or get a Sleepyhead / Purflo nest. In my experience babies settle much better in them to sleep when they’re the type that like to be held all the time. It’s safer than falling asleep holding him. You should be able to put it in the snuzpod next to you, and with the sock monitor you have I wouldn’t be too worried. Yes they grow out of this place phase but you can’t carry on as you are, falling asleep with him on you on the sofa etc is the most dangerous situation so co-sleeping or a nest would definitely be preferable. Good luck!

Congrats on your new baby, and I'm so sorry you've had such a rough start. My son had the same problem with reflux and he found it so hard to settle in our bedside crib. I would hold him upright to get him to sleep when he was this age for naps, he LOVED sleeping curled up in a sling.

At night I did safe-as-possible bed sharing. I got rid of the duvet and wore warmer pjs. DH slept in our spare room. My DS would sleep beside me, I had one arm hooked up around top of him so I couldn't physically roll. I slept extremely poorly, as I was terrified of the risks, but it was enough to survive.

It is an absolutely exhausting time, I'm so sympathetic. People say, oh just put the baby down, a little bit of crying won't hurt, but when you think your baby is in pain because of reflux it is a different matter.

My DS was exclusively BF and I cut out dairy entirely which helped a lot (plus helped me lose about a stone as I wasnt eating any cake, biscuits, milky drinks, cheese or butter).

Co sleep.