Two Week Old Sleeps All Day and Is up Most of the Night

I read a book that saved my sanity!!! On Becoming Baby Wise, people love it or hate it. I loved it. It teaches parent directed sheduling. By 3 month my Son was sleeping through the night! And this is normal, she is just getting used to being here! Gently persuading her into a schedule might just bring you a full nights sleep! :)

Good luck, and Congrats! Sounds like you have a perfectly healthy baby girl.

Hi K.,

My daughter did the same thing around two weeks. When we went in for the two week check-up the doctor informed us that she probably had her days and nights messed up. This is pretty common for newborns. I did plenty of reading to try and figure out how to get her switched. The readings suggested getting a nightly routine (i.e. taking a bath before bed). Something that would give them a clue that it is bed time. Other suggestions was keeping the rooms really light during the day and dark at night. After reading all the suggestions we worked at getting her scheduled changed and it worked. It took a couple of days.

As for waking her up to feed. I am all for it. I wake my daughter up every three hours (currently trying to move to four hours) to feed her. Many of the books that I have read talk about making sure that the parent is in control of the feedings and not the baby. Fortunately, I think since I have kept her on a regular schedule she sleeps through the night. She has been sleeping through the night since she was about 4 weeks old and she is now 8 weeks old. One of the books (Babywise) also recommends waking them up at the same time every morning to establish the same routine every day. I am all for waking up my kid unless it is bad timing and I need to wait 30 minutes or 1 hour for convienence.

Hope this helps.

Of course she has a hard time staying asleep. She is currently being taught to wake up every three hours and eat. During the day I encouraged my children to get a few good naps in, but was sure to wake them up an hour or two before I hoped to put them down for the night. This helped "tire" them out to encourage more sleep at night. I agree with the dr.- let her have her own schedule. When she's hungry enough she'll wake up and eat. Eventually she will get to three meals a day (plus snacks) like grown ups. Feeding her every three hours inhibits her ability to get a schedule closer to yours.

K., The first month is the hardest, it will get better. It just takes a few weeks to get her biological clock set right. I'm a huge fan of the book Babywise. My fist daughter was sleeping though the night at 10 weeks and my second daughter, now 2 months old, was sleeping through the night at 5 weeks and now goes 10 hours between feedings at night. She is gaining weight, growing and happy and healthy.
Babywise is about using a flexible schedule. I think Babywise sometimes gets a bad name because people see it as a concrete schedule but it's meant to be flexible. So if you get off schedule one day it's fine and easy to get back on schedule. I had a harder time with being flexible with my first but am doing better this time.
Hope this helps!

K.- Welcome to motherhood. Isn't it great. I would encourage trying to nap while she is sleeping during the day as much as you can. D.

K., my son did the same thing, sleeping through the day and waking at night. My doctor told me in order to change his schedule, I had to start waking him during the day and keeping him up for some period of time so that he was more tired at night. It took me a half an hour at times to wake him up, but eventually his schedule changed and we both got some sleep at night. Your baby is pretty young so I wouldn't force him to wake up much just yet. He needs his sleep. As far as the feeding goes, I think it is best if you feed him often, or at least pump, to keep up your supply. I also highly recommend reading "Healthy Sleep Habits, Happy Child" by Marc Weissbluth, M.D. It is an amazing helpful guide for each stage of your childs development. It made all the difference in the world in my son's sleeping habits and he has been a great sleeper since 3 months. Good luck!

Wow, you have gotten a lot of responses to your question, and I haven't really taken the time to read them, but I just want to put in my two cents, for whatever it is worth. I personally feel that schedule is very VERY important at this time because you are setting a foundation for the future. If you want to hold on to any of your sanity, try for as long as possible to keep to a schedule.

Try the book Healthy Sleep Habits Happy Child by Dr. Marc Weissbluth. It worked miracles for us. My friend gave it to me after my 3-month old only allowed me to sleep for 3 hours one night. It took about two weeks to implement and then he slept from 7PM - 6AM with two night feedings. He took three one hour naps during the day too.

Since then, I've recommended it to a number of people and they've loved it.

Good luck!

Hi K.!!
First and foremost-- You're doing a FANTASTIC job. :o) Being a mom to a newborn is soo very tough and not very many people these days take the route of parent-directed feeding. I applaud you for doing this. I did the same with my two boys despite criticism from friends and they are both EXTREMELY healthy sleepers- and were from a very young age!!!
I am surprised that your doctor told you to let your baby sleep and not wake her. Right now is a key time in building your milk supply and making sure that your baby is getting enough. I would continue to wake her every three hours during the day and work as hard as you can to get her to stay awake for longer periods of time. This may mean giving her a few baths during the day, etc, but it should only take one to two days to get her back on track. Keeping it very light in her room during the day is important. Also.... You can try swaddling her at night (but not during the day). Swaddling helps babies sleep for much longer periods of time because it imitates the feeling of being in the womb. I found that it worked wonders with my youngest. The trick is swaddling correctly though. I have a diagram from the book, "The Happiest Baby on the Block" and nothing works better. If you'd like it, just let me know and I can email it to you. Like I said, you're doing a great job and don't let your doctor sway you away from parent-directed feeding. In the long run, it will be better for your family. :o) Good luck!!

Hi! I also am reading "Healthy Sleep Habits, Happy Child" and it sounds like until about three to four months there's not really anything you can do to manipulate their sleeping/eating habbits. Those that think they do have probably just lucked out and have babies who happen to sleep better. They're just made to eat and sleep when they feel like it at this point. There are a few things you can do now like putting them down in a crib when they fall asleep in your arms or making day time more stimulating than night but other than that you're probably just going to have to relax and know that this is as bad as it's going to get as far as sleep. This is such a tough time but some time very soon when your baby is sleeping 12 hours straight you'll laugh at all the funny things that you did when you were so incredibly sleep deprived. Also, this book makes it sound like day time feeding isn't as related to night time sleep as some people think. However, I think you should make sure your baby's getting enough to eat just for the sake of needing the nurtition if not sleep.

I have raised my first child with PDF. I believe that it works and it helps the entire family function better together.I just had my second child and he is taking well to the Parent directed feeding. He is almost 3 weeks old so you and I are in the same position. My son is happy and alert during the day while still napping throughout. At night he wakes to eat and goes right back to sleep. He is nursing every 3-4 hours. I believe it is what makes you happy so the baby can be calm and happy too. I have read the book Baby Wise and it helps give you an understanding of PDF. If you haven't read it I highly recommend it. Research all options and pick the one that fits your family best. Good Luck and Take Care, K.

Hi K.,

The sleep patterns of your baby are indeed normal. Most newborns don't start sleeping at night until around 6 weeks of age. Most babies will wake up to eat, but if she were to start to lose weight that would be the point at which you would need to wake her up. Feel free to try it. Babies are born with instincts and most will not go hungry unless they are "sleepy" babies. Also,I would like to point out that during her waking hours it is desirable that she nurse every two hours at this age. It is important for your milk supply. Joining a La Leche League group is helpful to most women because it puts their mind at ease and is a way for them to get their day to day questions answered by other mom's who have been there. It is very encouraging to meet, speak with, and form friendships with other women with similar parenting practices. Women who do this tend to be more successful at their parenting goals. It is important to have support - even if things are going well.

Good luck to you,

F. H.
Certified Lactation Counselor
Independent Midwife

My now 11 week old had day/night confusion in the beginning, as well. We started out by creating a routine following her own schedule, then moving things as fit our schedule. I have never tried to keep her to an exact time schedule, though--I don't think that would even be possible.

Most importantly, I used light to show her the difference between night and day. She always woke up around 9pm-ish, so at that time we would bathe her, put lotion on her, then put her pajamas on. Part 1. She would nurse and nap for a bit (she is still just a catnapper), and we would then go up to our bedroom at around 11pm (once she woke up), keep the lights dim, play with her for a short time, then I would nurse her to sleep with only a very dim light on. For night wakings, we would not talk to her except very quietly, and would change her diaper and nurse her with only a very dim light on. In the mornings, I would open the curtains up or turn on a bright light, talk to her, turn the TV on, etc. I tried to show her with noise and light that it was sleepy time in the dark, and waking time in the day. It worked within a few days to a week, I believe. I had to do the same with my first child, as well. Both started sleeping through the night by 5 weeks and 7 weeks! Good luck! I HTH. BTW, I am currently working on moving her bedtime to earlier. As it is, she still goes to bed late (usually around 1am) then sleeps 11 hours. It was like this with my son, too. I was able to slowly, but surely, move his bedtime back by a few hours over a period of time by tweaking the schedule we set. It's important to try and stick to your loose schedule to make all this work, though. Again, not exact times, but following baby's cues and typical schedule.

I read the Baby Whisperer and found that her E.A.S.Y. method worked really well for our two little ones when it came to getting them to sleep through the night and have their active times during the days. It stands for Eat, Activity, Sleep, You Time. You do E.A.S.Y. during the day only. Basically, you feed your baby, then do some activity with them to keep them awake and engaged, then they can sleep and you get some 'me' time. She does recommend keeping them on a schedule during the day (which could mean waking them at first). At night you only do the eating and sleeping parts. She also recommends 'cluster feeding'(feeding closer together) at the last feeding to help them sleep longer. I found in the end that putting them on a schedule made my life and theirs easier. They knew what to expect and I could really anticipate their behavior and needs. It made going out of the house really easy. Of course, you will find that you need some leeway and wiggle room and your baby may dictate things to you sometimes, but overall the method above worked really well for us.

Hello,
I can't believe your doctor told you to just let the baby figure out his own schedule. It is definitely up to mommy to direct their babies on when it is time to sleep and eat. It has only been two weeks and your lack of sleep is going to get worse and worse until you get him started on a schedule. I totally agree with waking her up and feeding him in the day and getting her used it quickly. My baby was totally opposite.....she hardly slept all day but at 3 weeks old she was sleeping 7 hours a night. I was nervous because I wasn't sure if I was suppose to wake her up to feed her. My mom was the one that told me to let her sleep at night.....she will wake when she is hungry. But day time sleeping is a whole different thing. I can't stress how importnat a schedule is. My daughter is so scheduled that she tells me when it is time for bed if I am a just 15 mintues past her 8:00 bedtime and she is only 2 years old. Try to wake her up, feed her (don't let her go back to sleep while feeding) after feeding it is time for some stimulation time or playtime (whatever you call it) then back to sleep. At her young age, she will adjust in a matter of days......so mom and dad can get some rest. The other thing to do is to swaddle....tightly....don't be afraid to get it too tight. The idea is to not let them move. One other thing I did with my daughter was to give her a bath at night to get her into a warm fuzzy feeling. I also gave her about a 1/4 ounce of formula after I nursed her. Not sure that that was the reason she slept but I alway figured that it might have given her tummy that nice full feeling and enable her to sleep a bit longer. But only a tiny tiny bit will do.....it also gets them used to having a bottle as well as nursing.

Honestlly I wouldn't worry about it at 2 weeks. She is still trying to find a schdule. I don't want to upset any of the other moms but I found the more I read the more concerned I got. Women have instincts for a reason and so do babies. If you want badly for her to get on your schdule go for it, however it will happen naturally. My daughter was awake in the day 13 hours straight for like 3 days when she was that age. I thought I was going to die, I needed a nap so bad! the doctor said it was normal to happen sometimes.
I also wrote in (mammasource) about having to always rock my daughter to sleep and I was very concerned. I got alot of responses that were wonderful with book titles and advice. Although the one that I really liked was a woman that just said ..enjoy it because she won't let you do that when she's 10 months old.
If you have questions about breastfeeding I go to a little group with a lactation consultant at the Mercy Gilbert hospital, Friday's at 10am. The woman are fabulous and the nurse is so sweet. it's really just a whole bunch of us that get together and chat. We have new people every week.
Enjoy your little one.

Dear K., your daughter is only two weeks old, don't worry so much about regular schedule yet. Try to enjoy the breastfeeding and let her do the schedule. I had three kids and the best bonding time for me was the breastfeeding. I fed them when they wanted in the beginning, and around 2-3 months I was feeding every 5-6 hrs. It was tough being awake in the nights, but I did sleep during the day, when they slept. Let her sleep, and take advantage to rest yourself when she does. This is very crucial for you, otherwise you'll be exhausted. Which I'm sure you're are now. When she getting closer to 2-3 months she should be in a more regulated schedule. By then she can sleep most of the night. When breastfeeding you can never overfeed her. But if you bottle feed her that's when you can get into overweight babies. The formula contains so much more fat. Don't get discouraged, it will get only better:) Good luck with your little family.

Hi K.,

I have three children, two boys ages 2 1/5 and 1 1/5 and a baby girl who is 1 month old. With my two youngest I breastfed them but I never woke them up every few hours. My Pediatrician never recommended it. I feel your pain with the lack of sleep. My husband and I would wake up our babies a few hours before we wanted them to sleep and try our hardest to keep them awake. It was incredibly hard but after a few weeks of keeping them up they'll sleep through the night. It worked wonders with my daughter. We only had to keep her up a few days and now she only wakes up once a night to eat. I hope this helps. Good luck and sweet dreams.
R.

Okay, this may sound werid. But my 11 year old use to do the same thing. When I brought it up to my Father-in-law, he said to "flip" him. You would lay the baby on their back, on the bed. (During the day is better, trust me.) Then you hold them under their shoulders and support their head, and flip them over to where their head is where their feet are, and thier feet are where their head was, but they should be on their bellys, now. Then you should grab their feet, and flip them towards you, and have them back the way you started. IT will wake them up, but when I did, my son never "slept" during the day, execpt at nap time, ever since. I never had that problem with my other three kids, either. You may think that I'm crazy. I thought he was crazy for telling me this, but I felt so much alieved when he started to sleep during the night.

Babies will adjust on their own, given the chance. When they are born they have no idea of day or night--in fact some studies show that babies are more active/awake at night in the womb than during the day, when the mother's walking and motion lulls them into inactivity.

I'd say to give it another couple of weeks to let things settle in. I read Babywise but I really disliked it, I know some people love it but it was not for me. I liked The Baby Book by Dr. Sears (he also has The Sleep book if you end up really having trouble :) We didn't have a "schedule" but we had a "routine" in the evenings. It didn't always lead directly to sleep at first but I think it helps. The big thing to remember is that babies grow and change so fast that just when you think you've got everything figured out it will be different in a week!

Our pediatrician said not to expect your baby to sleep more than 5-6 hours at a stretch until they weigh at least 13 pounds, regardless of what you try to do. so, I say, feed her when she's hungry, take a nap during the day when she naps, and just take some time to adjust to each other. Let her nurse when she's ready and learn to read her cues. She knows what her body needs and she will definitely let you know--this is not scientific at all but I think that babies who nurse when they are hungry vs. on a schedule manage their own food intake better as they get older and are less prone to overeating.

Try to live in the moment, it may sound totally nuts but I actually miss the 2AM feedings with my kids, they are 4 and 7 now and so big!

Hi K.,

Thinking back to three weeks ago... your baby was still tucked inside your warm tight uterus. There was constant motion. Even when you were completely still, your lungs and diaphragm were still moving, gently swaying your baby. It was also very noisy in there, loud like a vacuum cleaner. Ever gone underwater in the bathtub and tapped the side of the tub, it was loud right? Your heartbeat is amplified by the water. The wooshing of the air moving in your lungs, not to mention the digestion and gurgling of your intestine creates a pretty noisy surrounding. This is ALL your baby knows.

So, baby is born. Daytime is filled with noise & motion, TV's, radios, car rides, in and out of people arms. This is when baby is most relaxed and sleeps better simply because it is closest to the environment of the womb.

Now night comes... it's cooler, it's quiter, it's dark, we put baby on a flat, firm, non-moving surface to sleep and they say to us "NO WAY!" This is a very typical infant response. That is why so many people tell you it's normal.

The good news is we can help them turn aroun days and nights pretty easily. You need to get "The Happiest Baby on the Block." By Dr. Harvy Karp. The DVD is best, but if you are a book person you can get that as well. I HIGHLY recommend it! It make so much sense when you get right down to it.

As for the parent directed feedings... I am a Lactation Consultant, which is why this caught my eye in the first place. At two weeks old your baby should be nursing every 2-3 hours during the day. If she gets about 7 or so feeding in during the daytime and get enough calories then she should be able to sleep longer at night. Nursing from 1 to 3 times at night. Most babies will cluster feed (many feeding in a short period of time) in the late afternoon, early evening hours. This is also training of sort for sleeping longer periods of time. So allow cluster feeding.

I know I just threw a lot of info at you, sorry it is so long. If you wanna chat - give me a call. CONGRATULATIONS on the new baby! J. www.everymotherandchild.com

same thing happened w/my daughter. For us the miracle was creating a nightly routine and swaddeling...first night she slept 12 hours! I used a routine of bath, feeding then swaddle - she began to anticipate what would happen and came to expect it. If she slept longer than an hour during the day or when she ate I used a wet washcloth on her face or changed her diaper - even if she ddn't need it I went through the act with using the wipes.

I hope this gives you some ideas to find some peace.

K.,

It is really normal and normally just takes the baby a few weeks to get it figured out. If it were me, I'd wake her every 3 hours all day long to breastfeed. And I'd try to keep it calm and boring at night to encourage sleep. There is certainly nothing wrong with gently encouraging your baby to be awake during the day and sleep at night. Although, honestly, no matter what you do or don't do, it will likely just work itself out in time.

T.

Read Baby Wise! It's heaven sent :)

CONGRATULATIONS on the birth of your new baby!

I have four kids - and I what was a MIRACLE for us was the Miracle Blanket!! WANT MORE SLEEP? www.miracleblanket.com which is GUARANTEED to work - and boy does it. You'll find she sleeps well at night with it, and you can reserve it for her night time sleep (until she adjusts her day/night schedule) which works wonders! I recommend it to all of my doula clients as well.

As far as feeding, so long as your milk supply is good and she is peeing/pooping okay, than letting her tell you when she is hungry is fine. Of course within reason. If she goes more than 4 hours (this early) it could affect your milk supply.

Best of luck!

Its common for them to switch their schedules. Now I do would wake her up during the day to eat. Then at night if she sleeps thats fine and would not wake her. I always woke my kids during the day whther they were gaining or not.

Like some of the other Moms suggested, I would highly recommend you read the book, Babywise. The Babywise method suggests you use a combination of parent directed feeding and watching for hunger cues from your baby. I followed their suggestions for both my kids (waking the baby same time every morning, keeping them awake for a while after each feeding during the day, etc.). My daughter, who is now almost 3, was sleeping through the night by 7-8 weeks and my son, who is 4 mos old, was sleeping through the night by about 9-10 weeks. Good luck!

I did Babywise with both my boys. I will use it again with our third. Our first slept through the night before the doctor wanted him to. The second did not until after 4 months and a lot of work. The other thing that did wonders for our second, though, was watching the video "The Happiest Baby on the Block". You can buy it at www.babyslumber.com, but I would just see if you can get it through your library or a friend. I think it's kind of expensive. My cousin read the book and was unimpressed, but I know lots of people who love the video. I think it's because he shows you how to apply the techniques, and it only takes 20 minutes to watch. It made a huge impact on our second son. He went to sleep and slept for 4 hours and we tried it at his awake time. It also cured his colic. I will use the techniques from that video as well with our next.

Hang in there. If you keep feeding every three hours during the day, it will improve. K.

Babies this age often times have days and nights all mixed up. I brought my son to bed with me, and it worked wonders! He started sleeping at night really well! Babies are most active when we are resting when they are in the womb. When we are up walking around, it rocks them to sleep. Unfortunately, this means many babies end up backwards with their sleep when they come out... luck us!!

As far as BabyWise, I tried it, devoted 4 months to it, and it worked terribly for me. My poor son was miserable, and I will never try it again. I have friends it has worked for, though. I, personally, have found that demand feeding just leads to a much happier baby and mommy. So many people get so caught up in the schedule and how things should be, that all they do is stress, and they forget to enjoy their baby and bond with it. Just relax, let things come naturally, and all will be good!!

Also, babies tummies are only as big as their fists. They can't stretch, though, like ours can. With that in mind, I wouldn't force them to not eat when they are hungry. Their tiny tummies only hold so much! I love the resources on www.askdrsears.com, and would HIGHLY recommend The Baby Book by Dr. Sears. It's great!

I have a 2 and 1/2 year old, but I think everyone goes through that some in the beginning. You are worrying about it at a good time though! At least you aren't waiting until you go completely insane at 3 months when your baby still doesn't have a routine. I had a friend recommend "The baby whisperer". This lady is awesome! She came up with the EASY routine. It stands for eat, activity, sleep, yourself. This definately helped me keep a routine and it was pretty close to the 3 hour schedule without having to have the clock out and alarm on. :-) So, it basically goes...have your baby eat, keep them awake with an activity for a bit, then they will be tired enough to sleep and then you get some time to yourself. And, if you are tired that can mean sleep! I hope this works for you, it really helped my sister and I both.

I didn't ever try parent directed feeding so I can't help you there. Having a newborn is very exhausting for parents. Be sure to take care of yourself and take naps during the day. I ignored that advice with my first baby and I shouldn't have. I would have felt much better and could have handled the night wakenings much easier. There's so much excitement with a newborn it can be hard for the entire family to settle in and get sleep. Can you put yourself on the baby's schedule for a week and get some much needed rest? Sometimes the days (and nights) will seem very long, but when you look back the years will seem short. Hang in there!

There are lots of theories on this. I tend to read a lot of books and pick and choose what I like best. What I did with our babies is to let them sleep up to about 3 hours (or so), then I would wake them. The thought with this being that it helps them to distinguish daytime sleep (naps) from nighttime sleep. At night, at first, we would change, feed, and then put back to sleep...each time taking about an hour or more. After about 1 month or so, I would not change unless poopy. Try not to turn on any lights, and try to limit interactions. Our first baby consistently slept through the night after about 6 weeks with this approach. Our newest addition, sleeps through about 50% of the time. The other 50% she wakes once.
Good luck!

Trust your instincts. And try to nap when she does. I tried to be super mom after my first (Who turned 14 today!)and just about ran myself into the ground. When my second came along, I knew to nap when both kids did. I know it's hard trying to adjust. Maybe try to keep her up for as long as you can during the day and you might be able to slowly adjust her days and nights. My daughter was such a sleepy head, I could barely get her to nurse. She, too, was rather fussy and crabby at night. As she got older, the nightly bath really changed her attitude. We used to say we were washing off the crabby.

Good luck!

E. N.

hi, i have a 2month old boy who is sleeping for atleast5 hours a night for 2 weeks now, what did with both my kids ,
-i bring thier beds with me in my room,
-keep them in family room in the day, so they can feel the difference between day n night.
-i also put him in the bouncy seat in night so when he moves it rocks him back to sleep and also help avoid the rolling of the baby.it also vibrates thats reaally calming.

studies has shown newborns sleep well if they can sleep most of the day hours,so dont try to push her to remain awake in day she ll have a routine in few days .normally they start sleeping when they are 12-13 lbs .hope it helps

You need to wake your baby during the day, so that she feeds every two to three hours, since you are breastfeeding. The time you want to her to let you know she is hungry, is during the night. By waking her during the day, you are adjusting her to me awake and eat during the day and then to sleep at night.