My 6Wk Old Having Trouble Falling Asleep... HELP!

Everything is a phase. And yes, they do tend to get more irritable around that age. You could try wearing her around until she falls asleep, that can work well. Just keep doing what works best and trying new things if they don't work well. She will keep changing, and might need a little more cuddling at this point. Don't worry, you are not spoiling her:)

As someone else did, I HIGHLY recommend Harvey Karp's "Happiest Baby on the Block" for this period of baby's life...I've heard this time (that peaks at around 8 weeks old then begins to diminish) called "Blue Baby Syndrome" Where babies can cry for hours, mostly in the evening, for seemingly no reason. The techniques in his book worked wonders when my daughter was that age and went through it. But as you mentioned it does sound like your little one is overstimulated and tired in which case watching for early tired cues (staring, wont look at you in the face or turns away from toys or other stimulation, and yawning, sometimes even scratching their face) are what you might look for. At the earliest sign, get her to her room...make it dark and quiet, swaddle her tightly and rock her only until her eyes get a little droopy then gently lay her down in her bed. You might also try using flannel crib sheets so the cold sheets dont startle her awake when you lay her down. My daughter was also sensitive to the position she was in when being rocked...I was able to transfer her easily into her crib if I rocked her while holding her horizontally...if I had been holding her upright then tried to lay her down horizontally in bed she would wake up instantly and scream. Also, be sure to avoid eye contact and any talking...at this point music would be included in that because it can be too stimulating. There is a good time to include music into most babies nap/bedtime routine but it sounds like it may be a bit too stimulating for your daughter at this point. Try reintroducing it a bit later. You could try playing some white noise and adjusting the volume as needed depending on what works. I also would pat my daughter's bottom in the rhythm of a heartbeat which always seemed to soothe her then and now my son who is almost 6 weeks old (though he was a preemie so we haven't reached the crying stage with him yet). You might also try documenting when you daughter does certain things in her day like eating, what time she shows signs of being tired, and actual sleep. You may begin to see a bit of a pattern emerging that will help you anticipate those sleepiness cues in the future so that you don't miss them. When a pattern does begin to emerge as you track, to remedy the over-tiredness try settling her for bed 20 minutes before she got cranky the day before and see if that works. Her schedule is probably still pretty loose and dependent upon what time she wakes and eats in the morning but you should be able to see that if she stays awake for 1 1/2-2 hour blocks of time (or longer) and when she begins to get fussy. If you do miss that window every once in awhile it's not a terrible thing to nurse her for a few minutes until she calms down just try not to do it until she's completely asleep. When you notice her sucking pattern change to a less effective suck and here eyes are droopy, take her off and then rock her or try a different type of pacifier. There are literally hundreds of different nipples available. Both my kids have done well with the Soothie pacifiers. My newborn is a bit sensitive and will gag if I don't wait for him to suck it into his mouth but then he's fine with it. Good luck! I know it can be crazy, especially with another child at home who needs your time also. It's all really just trial and error before you find something that works at that time for your child. I hope you find something that works well!

Personally, I'd bet on 'overstimulated' rather than 'overly tired'...

... it is uncommon for babies this young to fall asleep on their own. They are smart enough to know they can't survive if anything dangerous happens, but not aware of the 'safety' of glass and locked doors yet (and won't be for 2-3 years)...

What you may be experiencing is the transition from when the 'switch' works (when they'll fall asleep no matter where they are) to when it doesn't --at which time they have to learn to relax into sleep.

Research about sleep is pretty simple, and applies to everyone:

*don't do stressful things in the 'sleep' area (including crying in terror because you're suddenly left alone where the tigers may get you --do not look to infants for logic or knowledge of our modern world, just instincts)

*make sure the days are not overly stimulating, and ensure sufficient rest throughout the day (a brain that has been overstimulated all day will have tremendous trouble falling asleep at any age)

*make sure she's resting well throughout the day --and sleep when she sleeps so you're not going bananas when she's awake through the night-- specifically, do not limit naps by time (even if they start at 4pm) or duration... the better she sleeps, the more she will sleep

*calm your whole life down because no one sleeps well on prolonged stress: fewer outings, fewer visitors, fewer smells and sights and sounds and people and changes and textures, so she is not trying to deal with a whole new world every 20 minutes.

*when you want to go to sleep, turn the lights down, turn the noise-makers off (tv, computer, radio, phones, game systems) and leave the off for the night... put your feet up, talk quietly because it's 'all done now' and go to bed early enough to get enough sleep.

You may need to consider the possibility that she's already getting enough sleep and you're trying to put her to bed 'for the night' too early... if she's been awake and active for less than 1/2 your waking day, 7 or 8pm is probably 2-3 hours early for her sleep needs. It is uncommon for babies to sleep more than 6 hours at night, so if you want her to wake at 4am, 10 is a good time to start.

Count the total number of hours she's sleeping and expect it to add up to less than 15 in 24 hours... if she's having a 2hr morning nap and a 2.5h afternoon nap, and sleeping while you're driving somewhere or visiting or shopping once or twice for another 15-30 mintues, she's really not going to sleep more than 9 or so hours at night... which is 8pm until 5am.

Keeping her up because you're up makes more sense than trying to get her to go to sleep while you're still up and then hoping she'll stay asleep to a 'normal' hour.

She's going to be waking in the night for the next 3 years, whether you wake up for it or not... sleep when she sleeps, even if it starts at 7pm. You'll need it tomorrow.

The fussiness is the worst somewhere between 6 and 8 weeks so that's probably what's going on. If she's fussy when she's horizontal, it's probably worthwhile to have her ears checked for an ear infection. Especially if she's had any congestion or cold symptoms. Is she messing with her ears? She might not be that coordinated yet, but that's a symptom of an ear infection. They're very treatable, but also uncomfortable.

If she wants to use you as a pacifier, you might try letting her do that and then slip in a regular pacifier after she's fallen asleep. She might not let you, but it sounds like it's worth a try. It's exhausting to be a pacifier for a newborn!

Something that worked well for both my girls (27 months and 7 weeks) was to swaddle them and then bounce on our exercise ball. They're available at Target for about $20. Have you checked out Harvey Karp's "Happiest Baby on the Block"? It's got good ideas that have worked well in our household. We checked out the video from the library instead of trying to read the book. Good luck!!

As some of the other moms pointed out, this timeframe is when fussiness can really begin to kick in. I say "kick-in" because my little one was the same and she was a fuss-bucket until 12 weeks. In fact the doctor even said she may be mildly colicy. No fun! However, I got a great deal of value and help out of a book that I recommend strongly: "Healthy Sleep Habits, Happy Child" by Dr. Weissbluth.

One thing that worked for me was to use a "raggy" when I was nursing or holding my baby. It was therefore warm and smelled of me. When it was time to put my baby down, I would put the "raggy" down on the sheet between the baby and sheet. It really helped, cause my babies were tricky sleepers.

I second (or more) that the reflux meds may not be working as well as they should. My daughter started out with Zantac and then on to Prevacid and neither did the job for long.

What worked was getting her on Bifidus (probiotic) and glutemine. With my son, we went straight to the probiotic at 2 weeks old and that seemed to help tremendously. Better than any presciption did for my daughter.

With the little guys, you can just finger feed the powdered form of the probiotic. There are a couple that are really good for the underdeveloped digestive system, others aren't as good, but better than nothing. We started with a 1/4 tsp. and then to half a tsp. at a year. Couldn't hurt to try and boost the flora in her little tummy. You can also eliminate the need for Mylacon by using the probiotic.

Good luck to you,
D.

Hon, I have 4 kids, including a 6 month old little girl, too. I soothe little ones with a pacifier, stuffed animal they like, nice warm bath at night, singing lightly to him/her, talking to her/him in a sweet/soft voice, caressing their backs, having light/soft music playing in the background, or you could try a co-sleeper! I, personally have not tried that because I don't believe in taking that risk, but if you're careful and aware of the LO and comfortable with it, then try it! You also can take him/her for car rides around the block, or even just a walk in a stroller that lays them down. Another idea you could try is having one of those light up things like a night light that makes the ceiling light up in different colors or play baby tunes and doing that! I would think about the things you did to try and go to sleep with her while you were pregnant too when it became uncomfortable. I may be able to think of a few others, but not at the moment, so, I hope this helps or gives you more ideas! I always go by my instincts though and figure out what comforts my LO even before I relax and fall asleep or at least I did, until she started sleeping 10+ hours a night!
Good luck and God Bless,

Soft singing may not get past her distress, which could be either/both physical and emotional. (Medication does not guarantee the reflux has entirely stopped bothering her.)

Try a loud whooshing sound (hair dryer or vacuum cleaner), and snuggle her on your shoulder while you jog her rhythmically. I always used to jolt my heels on the floor at about the speed of my heartbeat. According to Happiest Baby on the Block, these, in addition to swaddling, trigger a relaxation response in most babies. Almost always worked for my daughter, and also my grandson.

Good luck. This is always so exhausting for all.

Perhaps the acid reflux meds aren't working? I bring it up b/c my son had it, and for some reason Prevacid did NOT work for him, but Zantac did. And Prevacid works for just about everyone, so it's really odd that it turned out that way. Good luck. Acid reflux is a drag.

AMD

My 6 week old does this same thing. I have to catch her at the very beginning of getting tired or I miss the window and she gets really cranky. When she shows early signs of being sleeping I squish her tightly into one of her carriers and she falls right to sleep. She will pretty much only fall asleep in her Moby wrap or Hot Sling. She needs lots of squishing (like a very snug carrier or swaddle) and zero stimulation (like something covering her face so she can't see). She refuses to fall asleep in arms, she'll just get more and more mad if I'm just holding her or try to use a swing (etc).

It's all about anticipating your baby's signs and catching the "window". Good luck!

My son is a great sleeper, but if I wait too long to put him down, it is a nightmare. I would recommend trying to get her down earlier, at the very very first signs of tiredness. Maybe a yawn, my son starts to stare. I know if I miss this window with him it really makes it hard.

Swaddling also helps him when he gets really worked up. Good luck, I hope this helps!