Ok baby number 5 was a complete surprise for us...she is now 7 weeks old and I had to start back to work last week. She is the first one I had to go back to work after. I am breast feeding while home and pumping at work, all is goin good with all that. Now my question, can a 7 week old suffer separation anxiety? Last weekend was the first weekend after I went back to work and it seems like all she wanted to do was snuggle ans nurse, of corse I nursed on demand all weekend. Here it is into week 2 and she is still waking up any time I try to put her in bed and wanting to nurse back to sleep. She only gets 2 5oz bottles of breastmilk thru the day, I'm home to nurse the rest of the time. Is thus separation anxiety or what, its only started since I had to go back to work and we both r losing sleep over all this. I don't trust myself to cosleep.
Let me add daddy says she only takes about 4.5oz of the bottles.
Added: let me rephrase, I do nurse on demand when I'm home to an extent, I do keep her on the same everyday schedule of feeding ever 3.5 to 4 hours just if she wants to nurse in between and we r nit out I do, its usually only at night tho (7-10)and usually by 10 she is done and out till 3am for her next feeding. I have absolutely no issues putting her back to bed after that, she goes in and settles right in.. With the way I work he only has to give her 2 bottles.
Yes, she misses you and will want to be with you all weekend, and at night. I did co-sleep, because I missed her, too. It worked well for us.
No, this isn't separation anxiety. She is using the daytime while you are at work to be like "night time" as far as eating is concerned, because she prefers breast over bottle.
My younger sister did the exact same thing when my mom went back to work. Mom left at 7:30 in the morning, got home at 4:00 every day, and she only took two bottles while Mom was gone. She nursed her a lot once she got home.
If I were your husband, I would try to get one more bottle into her before you come home. She should be taking a bottle every 3 hours (timed from when she starts taking the bottle til the next time she starts a bottle - not from when she finishes it.) Actually, 4 1/2 ounces at 7 weeks is really good. Remember, their stomachs are very small at this age. My babies NEVER drank more than 6 ounces of milk, period, and they had bottles until they were 12 months old.
Don't ever let her fall asleep while nursing her. Put her down full and awake. That way she learns how to fall asleep on her own.
Until she drinks more during the day while you're gone, she won't want to sleep all night. That's fine for right now while she's so little, but it would be better for her to get used to more pumped bottles so that you can sleep more. The ped can tell you how many total ounces of milk she needs. That will help you know how to work this.
Btw, ask your husband (if he's the one feeding your daughter) to feed her the bottle with his shirt off so that she gets a lot of skin-to-skin contact with him. That's something she really needs. Also make sure that he holds her tilted up a little with that bottle - NOT holding her horizontally flat. Milk can get into those little eustachian tubes and end up causing an ear infection.
Good luck.
I don't think I would call it separation anxiety but your baby misses you. My baby did too when I returned to work and he nursed every chance he could.... He Cluster fed for hours each evening. Your baby will eventually get back to a "regular" pattern. I even worked from home and saw him more than I would if I worked away but he still went through this nursing adjustment . It will pass.
It's not separation anxiety... it's her adjusting to a new schedule and a new caregiver. Was she sleeping through the night before you went back? Probably not. She's figuring out her routine and most babies have a "new routine" every few weeks... it may just be the timing.
Talk with your childcare provider about keeping her awake more during the day. Make sure that the person who is with her during the day goes as long as possible between bottle feedings so that she's REALLY hungry when she eats and REALLY tired when she naps.
It's tough, but you'll get through it. I never co-slept either and it's really not necessary. She's too young to expect her to sleep through the night, but she's not too young to start attempting a routine. Nursing on demand is great, but it also "disrupts" the schedule she's establishing all week. Try getting into a routine that mimics her daytime routine and see if that helps!
I don't know if it is the medical/developmental same thing as "separation anxiety". I don't think they are really capable of that at 7 weeks, are they? But I do know that often breastfed babies whose moms go back to work, will switch their feeding around so that they nurse a lot when mom is available. They are going to prefer the breastmilk. So they eat when they can.
I have a good friend who went back to work after the 6 weeks and nurses (still at one year)... and her daughter wakes several times a night to nurse. And sleeps a lot during the day. She needs her mommy time. At 7 weeks, it wouldn't be true separation anxiety, but probably a natural switch to wakefulness when the breast is available.
Probably a growth spurt. But could just be her temperament. Or colic starting. Or reflux. Ugh. Babies need to speak up!
As for separation anxiety, my 6 week old was in the church nursery when I walked in after teaching Sunday School. He about jumped into my arms when he saw me from a few feet away! He was so glad to see me!
They do miss mama.
A little bit of missing her and a little bit of a growth spurt. If she doesn't have a problem with bottles, maybe have Dad give a bottle at bed sometimes so that sometimes you can sleep in?
At 7 weeks, no I don't think so. She's just a hungry, growing baby. I'd recommend getting a co-sleeper and then she can nurse on demand at night (you can usually pick one up on craigslist in mint condition for a song). My daughter refused pumped breastmilk bottles when I worked, so I was a human milk factory from 5:30 p.m. until the next morning every single night. It is what it is. :)
Sounds normal to me - I went back to work at 10-12 weeks with all of my babies and pumped at work, nursed at home. Co-sleeping was our savior. If you don't trust yourself to co-sleep, look into getting one of those little sidecar things that you can secure to the side of your bed. She will have her own sleeping space but you can nurse on and off all night without having to actually get out of bed.
