Newborns are tiring in every way BUT they can (and apparently do this commonly) sleep really well and lull you into a false sense of security, thinking you’ve hit the jackpot with a unicorn sleeper. Then the 4 month regression knocks you off that high horse faster than you can say “he’s slept through since 7 weeks!”
When parents of older babies say theirs started sleeping better at 6 months except for illness or teething they really mean the baby slept well for around 8 nights between 6-12 months. But mostly they’re ill or teething.
Consider a floor bed, if you want the baby out of your bed (because let’s be honest, most parents cosleep for at least some of the first year). That way YOU can be in the BABY’S bed and that’s totally a different setup.
Everyone seems to have a different definition of sleeping through. Some consider it to be 7-7. Others will allow 6+ hours followed by a few wakes. And some consider babies to sleep through when they only wake to feed and go back to sleep straight after. With that last definition I guess mine has “slept through” since, idk, December, but I’ve not slept longer than 3 hours in one stretch since August. So take what you read online with a pinch of salt. Some parents with babies who sleep through may still be up 15 times a night!
When you find a schedule that works, after a few weeks of transitioning, it’s now time to tweak it again! Don’t get hung up on nap schedules, wake windows etc because your baby will grow out of it before you blink and need a new schedule again.
Every time you wonder what the hell you are doing wrong because the baby won’t sleep, the answer is NOTHING! Babies just don’t sleep and the sooner you accept you can’t fix it the sooner you stop wasting energy stressing about it.