Getting My 7 Week Old to Sleep

Hi B.
a few things, I have never met a mom whose child slept through te night even at 3 months. the most common age when babies start sleeping through the night is between 3-5 months, realistically 6-9. mine started sleeping through the night at 6 months
also, cereal or anything of the sort if given before digestive system is fully formed can cause problems later on, like allergies, constipation, even tummy problems etc.
so emily is too young to sleep through the night is my opinion.
i had even tried giving more just before bedtime in terms of formula but my girls ended up throwing up so it was more damage than good.
just give it some time. next couple of months will be trying for you in terms of sleep deprivation but they should get back on track by october.
good luck
vlora

My daughter didn't sleep through the night until she was a year old, but I'm told that formula fed babies will start to sleep through the night at about 2 months. Don't know - Rachel wanted the breast at least once a night until I weened her.

My best advice is to recognize that you can influence, but not control, your daughter's sleeping and do the best you can to make yourself as healthy as possible. If you have a long drive to work consider taking the train or bus instead so that you won't be at risk of falling asleep behind the wheel. My husband was deployed for a big chunk of my daughter's first year and if it hadn't been for the VRE we probably would have crashed on the side of I-95.

If you have a great neighbor or relative who can help out, ask them to watch the baby for a few hours so you can get some rest too.

Establish routines for her and for yourself so she knows when bed time is coming and so you are less stressed getting out the door each morning.

Hang in there - things will get easier every day!

Hi B.,
Congratulations on little Emily.
No cereal! Babies that young cannot tolerate it. Cereal as another mother pointed out should be given with a spoon. Some doctors allow cereal at around 3-4 months but alot prefer to wait until six months when their digestive systems can better handle it. That being said, I am a nursery nurse and have looked after many newborns. Some lucky parents have babies who sleep through almost from the begining, most do not. With the ones that do it has nothing to do with the parenting just a preference within the baby. All newborns need to be fed when they are hungry and sleep when they need to sleep. Around three months you will find things settle down more and you can get yourselves into a more workable routine. Hang in there it's only another five weeks or so! Sorry I can't give you something better. A tiny newborn has such a small stomach it can't hold much at any one time and needs frequent refills day and night. This is a huge growing period in their little lives and they need the constant fuel to do it.
There are a few books that you might want to read. The Baby Whisperer and Happiest Baby on the Block seem popular choices right now but the book store is full of self help books for new parents.
Good Luck!

I know you have already had many responses and already headed back to work. I hope things are going better for you. I just wanted you to know it isn't typically until 10-12 weeks that they start sleeping through the night. Now some parents are EXTREEMLY lucky and get it to happen earlier. For me the best thing in the world was a book called Babywise (how to get your child to sleep through the night). I don't know the author, but it has some very key steps to making it happen. Most importantly they talk about routine and the feeding routine throughout the day. During the day after you feed your wonderful baby you keep her awake for 30 minutes playing, changing diaper, ect (now this time will get longer the older she is). Then put her down for a nap should last 1-2 hours. At her age she should be eating every 2 1/2-3 hours during the day. The only difference at the last feeding of the day or any night time feedings is that you put them down awake in the crib or sleeping space and let them fall asleep on their own. No play time late evening or during the night. This book I felt was great for me with my two babies. I can't say it is always easy and they will always sleep, but it does help. Also definatly agree with NO cereal until 4-6 months. Their tummies are not ready for it and they don't have the control in their mouth to spoon feed well until at least 4-6 months (more toward 6). I am a pediatric occupational therapist and what I know about feeding I didn't do solids with both of my children until 5 1/2-6 months until they really were ready for it. Hope this all helps. Hope she starts sleeping better!

Hi B.! I have to say that after 3 kids who all have different sleep patterns, I don't think there is any sure-fire way to get your child to sleep through the night. You can try not feeding her every time she wakes up. If she knows she won't get fed, there may not be a reason to get up. You can try adding some cereal to her milk (you didn't say whether you were breastfeeding or not). There are different schools of thought on this and my opinion on it doesn't matter. You have to be the one who is comfortable with it. Supposedly the cereal keeps their tummy full longer so they don't wake up for a bottle. You could try a bath product like Johnson's lavendar bath soap and shampoo. The lavender is supposed to help calm and relax baby before bed. I have also heard to make the bath a little warmer than you would in the morning or during the day. Not warm enough to burn but warm enough to help her relax and calm down. Sometime the additional warmth of the bath will help make her sleepy. I don't know whether you have used a pacifier or not but some babies just like to suck. My youngest was one of those. He would nurse all day if I let him. He ended up with a pacifier! But it helped him sleep as well.
Hopefully some of this will help you. If not, I am sure there will be more people who have more ideas. Good Luck!
T.

B. -

Congratulations on Emily, the journey has just begun. More likely than not you are still at least a couple of weeks away from Emily sleeping through the night. Keep in mind too that the first time she does sleep through the night you will not because you'll be worried about why she isn't waking up. I'm a mother of 4 and I would say that none of my kids slept thru the night before they were at least 2 1/2 to 3 months old. The key is to find out why Emily is waking up. If its because she's hungry obviously there isn't much you can do but feed her. I know that healthcare professionals will frown on this but as several mother's have suggested a little (very little i.e. 1/4 to 1/2 tsp to 8 oz of milk/formula) can go a long way to getting a little one to sleep thru the night. However, you have to do what you feel is best for your daughter. If she's waking up because she needs some cuddle time with mommy, may I reiterate what one responder already said "swaddle". My husband and I affectionately referred to this as the "burrito wrap" for our kids, the key to swaddling is to ensure the child is tightly (securely) wrapped up in the blanket. Obviously you don't want the wrap so tight that baby can't breathe, but tight enough so that a little wiggling by baby isn't going to dislodge the blanket. Also, you could try white noise to help her go to sleep and stay a sleep. I hope these suggestions help and good luck.

Hi B.,

First, I reiterate the responses of those who mention that it is the exception, not the rule, for such a little one to sleep through the night-don't be discouraged by those who suggest otherwise. At that young age most babies still need to feed quite frequently (especially if breastfed). I am the mother of a beautiful 14 month old nursling who still night-wakes on occasion. I resolved my sleep deprivation by part-time co-sleeping for less disruptive nursing. However, if this is not an option for you, and like me you refuse to allow your little one to "cry it out" at bedtime, I recommend an insightful read called the No Cry Sleep Solution by Elizabeth Pantley.

Also, though I have not read it, many of my mommy friends tout the recommendations of Marc Weissbluth in his book Healthy Sleep Habits, Happy Child.

I hope that helps! Good luck and happy parenting! And remember, they are not so little very long...try to enjoy those precious nighttime moments together!

I agree with the no cereal in the bottle. Its extra calories and can lead to your little one gaining too much weight too soon. As for sleeping through the night, swaddling worked wonders for me. I wasn't doing it for the first 3-4 weeks but a research project I'm involved in (for soothing/feeding techniques) pushed the swaddling. The first night I did it my little one slept at least 5 hours straight (and she's breastfed) and continued adding a few hours of sleep every few weeks until she was around 8 wks and would sleep from 9-5. I'm aware this isn't always the norm (esp for breastfed babies) but maybe it will help get a few extra hours of sleep for you! I personally couldn't get the hang of swaddling with a blanket (she always wiggled out) but they gave me one of the Kiddopatomus swaddlers with the velcro and it worked wonders! Good luck!

when my daughter was younger i had the same problem. around four months we started giving her cereal with her formula at night for her last bottle and she started to sleep until about 6 or 7, it was great!! im not sure if you try it with your daughter because shes so young but an idea when she gets older or call and ask the doctor if you can. hope this helps

I know you're super tired, but Emily is just way too young to be sleeping through the night! At her age she needs to eat often, and she should be fed throughout the night for her health. Unfortunately you've got some months to go, yet - but the good news is you'll be giving her everything she needs for a healthy start to life. She's too young for cereal, too, your pediatrician will confirm that. Check out The Happiest Baby on the Block book or video for a little help on understanding why/how she's feeling and ways to calm an infant - it REALLY works & helped me in the early days. Best of luck and hang in there.

I wanted to start off w/ the cereal. Usually Dr don't recommend cerearl until 4-6 months but every situation is different. My daughter started cereal at 5 wks. Normally it isn't recommended by a Dr that early unless the baby has reflux so you probably wouldn't need to start cereal yet but as you are the mother always do what you feel is right for your baby(but look into all options and get as much knowledge as you can). By 3 months my daughter was going to bed for the night at 6pm and then would wake up around 12am eat and go right back to bed for another 4-5 hrs. She got sick at 4 months and that went right out the door and I didn't get her back oon that schedule for a month. By 5 months she could sleep 10-12 hrs straight w/o waking. By this age they can sleep w/o waking to eat but wake up out of habit. I'd say at 7wks she should be able to go about 3-4 hour stretches w/o food and in another couples of weeks she'll beable to do 5-6 hours. But as PP said she's still young and really does need to eat. As long as you go to bed at the same time you should be able to get enought sleep as long as when she wakes for a feeding you get her right back to bed and then you too. Goodluck-A.

Hello, and welcome to motherhood. You lil emily is just ike alot of babies at her age. In my honest opinion your baby needs to be fed if she awakes at night. I have found that if babies have more calories during the day, they will sleep better. Maybe try feeding her more often during the day, but not so close to bed time that she is over full. Cereal in the bottle is not good to do! Cereal is to be done with a spoon. I would wait a little while longer before introducing that. It is not going to make her sleep. It might make her belly achey. It is all trial and error with infants. When things just start to pan out, something else is trialing.It is going to be tough on you for a little while longer, but that is why god made women the moms.We can handle it!We are strong!

Hi B.,
I was wondering if there is anyone in your family that could assist you with your baby's bedtime routine, as you go back to work?

Honestly, when my baby was 7 weeks old and she couldn't get to sleep or kept waking up, After I fed her,
i would gently rock her in a rocking chair, sometimes I would bounce up and down using my knees and just hold her untill she slowly fell asleep.
Playing some lullabye music helps, too.

All the baby needs is a calm environment.
If she wakes up in the middle of the night,
try consoling her in your own way and make it a time for you and her to bond, see what she needs from you to help her sleep better.
Hopefully, she will adjust as you go back to work.
If you have any questions feel free to ask!
Take Care.