Infant and Sleep

from the time my kids umbilical cords fell off we'd bathe them every night, feed them and put them to bed. We started bath time about 730-8 and with in a few weeks they knew and would get cranky at that time b/c they knew it was their time to get ready for bed. As far as the nap thing goes, let him sleep when he wants, just not after about 4 o'clock unless it's just a 30 min nap. "nap time" routines didn't start till my kids were about 9-10 months old, then they'd take an early nap around 9 and then again after lunch. As long as you're willing to stick to the times he'll be glad to have a schedule...just keep in mind you're gonna have to be flexible occasionally.
Even now I have friends and family that want to start get togethers about 1 or 2 and I tell them that we'll be there after nap time, around 230 -3 and then they realize that's better b/c the kids are happy then.

I have 2 kids and one due any day now and the best thing I found for ideas was a book called "The Baby Sleep Book". I think its by Dr. Sears. Best book I ever got. It gives you ideas on how to get your baby on a schedule in a comforting manner without using the "cry-it-out" method. I was never able to just let my baby cry themself to sleep like people told me to. But most baby's don't really sleep well until about 2 1/2 to 3 mo of age. hope that helps.

The best advice I received (from many mom's on mamasource) and can give regarding sleep is to read the book "Healthy Sleep Habits, Happy Baby" by Marc Weissbluth, M.D. It is a really easy read and ever since I read it when my baby was 12 weeks, my son has been napping consistently and sleeping well at night. It has made all the difference in the world to me!

You have to get the book Babywise. It helped me so much with my twins. Its basic premise is a schedule of eating, playtime and sleeptime as opposed to eating, sleep time, playtime. I started my twins on it at 5 weeks and by seven weeks they were sleeping seven hours and by nine they were sleeping nine hours. They were breast fed and healthy. It was written by someone who had triplets. Or you can go the other route of nursing on demand like I did with my first son. He didn't sleep through the night until over a year. And then we had to let him cry while he was standing up, shaking the bars of his crib and screamimg until he fell asleep. I haev learned that there will be some crying any way you try it. Baby wise minimized the crying to about 10 minutes at a time when they are very small. They still sleep well through the night and they are four now :)

5.5 weeks is entirely too soon to expect or try to put a baby on a schedule. Their body will regulate their own sleep and if you try to keep them up or wake them you are interrupting the growth and development of healthy organ functions-such as the brain. Don't expect a schedule till around 4-6 months and don't wake a sleeping baby-unless it's been more than 4-5 hours since it's eaten when under 2 months old. This information was given to me by my pediatrician and my mother who took care of children for over 35 years.
My daughter is 7 months old, she has been sleeping thru the night since she was about 9-10 weeks old (we were told it was ok to let her go all night at that point). She goes down at 7pm and gets up at 5am, she takes 3-4 naps every day for 45 min to 1.5 hours. It does get better and it does get easier, just don't expect it till around 3-4 months.
Also, refrain from feeding rice in a bottle to help a baby sleep more. It is actually extremely dangerous and can get into the baby's lungs as well as cause digestive problems later. This info is on the net.

I think a "routine" that will help him know what to expect will eventually help him to go to sleep more easily, but it is very early to expect any kind of "schedule". Routines like baths, singing, turning the lights down can be soothing. Every baby is different, though--my kids hated baths until they were old enough to sit up!

I'm guessing you're hoping for sleeping through the night at some time soon--our kids' doctor said that a) most babies won't be able to do this until they are at least 13 pounds, regardless of age, because they will be hungry and b) "through the night" is defined as 5-6 hours.

If you are looking for a book with some ideas I'd recommend "The No-Cry Sleep Solution" or "Touchpoints". I also have the "healthy sleep habits..." book and it is OK but it seems to be more about fixing bad sleep habits than instilling good ones and is more rigid than the other books.

Hi,

First Congratulations on the birth of your son!!
Secondly...read The No Cry Sleep Solution and buy the Happiest Baby on the Block DVD. Both are excellent resources and worked miracles with my daughter.

Hi J.!

I am a brand new mommy (5 day old son), but I already have him sleeping 3-5 hrs/night in his crib. I owe it all to a book called ON BECOMING BABYWISE. It was given to me by a friend and it has become an invaluable resource about how babies eating and sleeping schedules work together -- what to do and how to do it to get them on schedules that work for both you and them.

I told my pediatrician about it today and she said she used the book for her 2nd and 3rd children and just swears by it as well!

Some quick hints I have been using:

Hunger Cue + Clock + Parental Assessment = Feeding time

After 1 week of birth (I strated immediately w/ good results):
1. Feeding
2. Some waketime
3. Naptime

ALWAYS in this sequence. Be sure they are full feedings. Don't allow breat/bottle snacking to keep him content and quiet during the day. I use a pacifier to help w/ urge to suck for comfort (not hunger) between feedings. I try to feed my son every 2-4 hrs and he sleeps very well at night as a result. :) Last night I had to wake him to feed him! YEY!!!

I really hope this helps. At least get the book. I bought one for my good friend on Amazon.com for real cheap. It is very popular.

Good Luck! M. W.

I read Babywise and it was a little rigid and harsh for my liking (so I follow its ideas, but loosely), but it really gave me some great ideas for routines and how to get my baby to sleep which made such a difference for us once we started implementing them. I would recommend reading it because of the great ideas it offers, and I've also heard the "No Cry Sleep Solution" is terrific.

DON'T nurse or hold your baby to sleep on a regular basis or else they won't learn to go to sleep on their own. Young babies should eat, have play/wake time, and then sleep in that order so they don't fall asleep on the breast and grow to depend on it. Babies should repeat this cycle about every 3-4 hours depending on how often they need to eat. It changes as they get older and start eating solids and nap less frequently. Babywise gives you an idea of when they'll eat/wake/sleep for the different stages of the first year. When they're real little their awake time won't be very long. Most importantly in this routine is making sure the baby doesn't fall asleep before it gets full because then they will be constantly hungry and you'll constantly be feeding the baby as they snack all day.

Bedtime routines are great. We change diaper, read a book, and sing a song before laying our baby down as our routine. As my son got older I added cleaning up toys at the very beginning of the routine. He's 2 and has been sleeping through the night since he was 4 months old (my doctor said that by that age he was waking up out of habit and not because he needed to eat). My 7-week old is practically sleeping through the night now (she fell into a routine much more naturally and with less work on our part than my son did. It took more effort to get him to sleep through the night, but it has been well worth it for him and for us). Getting her to fall asleep has been a little bit of a struggle, but it is getting much easier as we follow the same routine every time and just pat her and talk/sing to her when she's fussy instead of picking her up. She's learning to soothe herself and fall asleep on her own, so it's worth all the effort and energy.

Feeding/sleeping schedules also are nice because I know when I can run errands or make appointments because I have a rough idea of what time she'll need to eat.

5 1/2 weeks? You have some time here LOL

Scheduling IS the way to go ( I've had 3 ) but not yet.

Patience...........

I always had my on a schedule. Now that they are bigger 3 and 4 they know when it's breakfast, snack, lunch, dinner. I feel that is the best way for me, because they know when and where everyday what we are doing for the most part. I feel that it will help them as they get older. Hope this helps you.

I would highly recommend a schedule, the best thing to do is keep them awake until you want them to nap. Like you know you want them to maybe take a nap at 9 am so from when he/she wakes up in the morning try to keep them up til that time and then you know after they wake up they will eat lunch and probably in a few hours he will go back to bed. That helps also when you put them in bed. Even though you create a routine it does get messed up sometimes but it is the best thing to do is to create that routine- when they are that small they need the structure.