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Help! Baby wakes up every 20 mins

30 replies

exaustedsadmum · 09/10/2022 23:16

Help please, I cannot go on like this. Baby is 11 weeks old and for the last 3 nights, has been waking up every 20 mins no matter what I do. He is exhausted and so am I and DH.

He doesn't seem to be sick (no apparent symptoms), doesn't appear to be hot or cold. He's fed and nappy is clean. But every 20 mins he starts stirring and, if we don't pick him up within seconds, crying. He will settle on my/DH's chest eventually but we can't go on like this anymore after having to hold him in turns for 2 nights (and days). We're both exhausted and it doesn't feel safe holding the baby all night when we're this tired. We don't have any friends/family nearby who could help. Tomorrow DH will leave for work at 6am (so needs to get some sleep tonight after having had only 3h last night) and I don't know how I will get through the night and day.

The baby normally sleeps in a next2me. I tried putting him onto my bed but it makes no difference. Tried rocking his next2me. Tried putting him in a sleepyhead pod. Less/more clothing. Arms in and arms out of the sleeping bag. Nothing makes a difference.

What else can we try to get the baby to sleep? At this point I would be over the moon if he slept even an hour at a time. He used to sleep 4-6h stretches until 3 days ago. I'm literally at a breaking point.

OP posts:
Are your children’s vaccines up to date?
exaustedsadmum · 14/10/2022 13:37

@MayBaby22 he is on omeprazole. He used to be on gaviscon but that did nothing so changed to omeprazole.

OP posts:
numberthirtytwowindsorgardens · 14/10/2022 15:29

Oh OP. Mine is like this, but she's almost 10mo; she wasn't this bad when she was as small as your DS. When she's having one of her every 20m nights, I put her in bed with me and wait for her to cry herself to sleep. (She still wakes every 20m, but at least I don't have to get out of bed to comfort her.) She's safe, she's warm, she is in the arms of someone who loves her, she would be crying anyway, and it isn't safe for you to be this sleep deprived. But it took me almost crashing my car because I fell asleep at the wheel before I was able to do that, and I understand if you don't want to while he's so young. I just thought I'd put it out there - you're not abandoning him because you're there, and crying for a while (even quite a long while) won't hurt him.

Sending you solidarity Flowers

MayBaby22 · 14/10/2022 22:20

@exaustedsadmum my daughter is on the same. I’d still definitely recommend contacting your gp. When she first went on the omeprazole we had about a week where she totally settled right down again. Then she became so restless, clingy and needy again. We had to up her dosage and it made a difference. With the omeprazole you have to adjust the dosage as they get bigger. Definitely worth looking into. My attitude was well I’m giving her the medication….I need to ensure she’s getting the right amount that it actually serves it purpose and does her some good. I could be wrong but I’ve got a feeling it’s the reflux that’s causing this change in your babies sleeping. If not, at least you can rule it out. Hope things get better for you soon. Keep us posted x

paintitallover · 14/10/2022 22:42

Would this work? I used to have the baby next to me, lower than me, breast level, with my arm around the top of his head (so not under him). He would fall asleep on the breast, and after a week or so he learned to drop the breast and sleep for a few hours each time. I think it worked because he was next to me. I kept him on the other side from DH, and with a cot next, so that he wouldn't fall.

paintitallover · 14/10/2022 22:42

Either that, or persist with the dummy!

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