My lo is 5 days old today and since i went into labour i havent had any sleep whatso ever. The midwife came to visit today and i told her how Lo is not settling at night and ends up crying non stop. Im exclusively breastfeeding and hes fine during the day, he will have his wakeful periods then sleep for 2hrs then awaken again. When it comes to evening cluster feeds start, i know hes not hungry because ill feed him a good hour and half and from both breasts, He will fall asleep only to awaken 10 mins later screaming for another feed to help him get back to sleep. He also cries to feed if he needs a poop. He will keep doing this from say 10pm all the way till 3-4am. A viscious cycle of feeding, falling asleep and waking up 10mins later screaming. Then he will just become even more unsettled. He cries thrashing his arms and legs about. Even his head moving about left to right. But will not go back on the breast. Clamping down on the nipple and inconsolable. Ive tried swaddleing which makes him cry even more. Ive tried white noise. Nothing will sooth him once he gets to that stage. When it reaches around 7am hes finally settled n has his undisturbed sleep. As for me no sleep at all. I have a 9 & 6 year old. People have said sleep during the day when baby sleeps but i just cant seem to knock off. Even though at night my eyes are shutting constantly while feeding and im fighting to stay awake so i dont fall asleep with baby Anyway sorry for the long post. But i dont know what else to do. Seems like my Lo is in pain during the night. The midwife didnt look slightly intrested and just kept saying awww. I dont know how long i can go without sleep.
5 day old not sleeping or settling at night
- Thread starter mrsmnk101
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well, as you know newborns dont necessarily settle st night but this does sound extreme. so he sleeps for reasonable periods in the day but not at night? Is he in a different position at night than the daytime naps? I'm wondering if he is uncomfortable maybe even with a bit of silent reflux which can make lying flat on the back painful .
Yes during the day he only sleeps while being held. If hes put down in his moses basket he wakes up and cries. Ive got him in my arms right now and ive been listening to the loud noises in his tummy. I also keep noticing hes sicking up and swallowing it back down, hes done this atleast 5 times in the last hour as im holding him while he sleeps. He jerks and makes a uncomfortable face and moves his mouth just as if hes brought up somthing nasty. Yep i know newborns can be fussy and require alot of feeds as did my other babies but i can tell something isnt right here. I was suspecting reflux but the midwife just didnt seem to give a hoot
she's probably thinking "does this woman expect him to sleep all night?!" and not considering if there is something wrong. My son had silent reflux for the first couple of months where he wasnt really sick but he would do the swallowing back and screamed if you lay him down and was unsettled like you say. (he also hated being swaddled at all) But he was the same in the day with the silent reflux symptoms. (actually got it sorted with a session of cranial oestopathy)
Controversially i have had two tummy sleepers but of course you arent supposed to recommend that. But a book I have on reflux says reflux babies are more comfortable on their side or even front. Can you not get a few hours sleep co-sleeping with him with you kind of propped up? as he is so young. Or even with his basket propped up a bit see if that makes a difference.
Controversially i have had two tummy sleepers but of course you arent supposed to recommend that. But a book I have on reflux says reflux babies are more comfortable on their side or even front. Can you not get a few hours sleep co-sleeping with him with you kind of propped up? as he is so young. Or even with his basket propped up a bit see if that makes a difference.
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My eldest was the same but being a young new mum i had no idea why he was crying. Only now i realise through experience this baby is doing the exact same thing. The only way i got my eldest to settle was in a car seat. Which now they say is dangerous. Im using a chicco next to me co sleeper at the moment with it tilted as u can ajust the level of one side so baby can lay sloped. But he wont even give me chance to put him down in that without crying. I would co sleep with him in the bed as he usually does drift off while breastfeeding but i wouldnt be able to forgive myself if anything was to happen to him. Should i go to my gp? Or find an osteopath? How do they treat silent reflux? P.s little man is still bringing acid up as i type
the thing is with the gp if they suspect reflux, first they put them on gaviscon, which usually does nothing. Giving them infant gaviscon is such a faff, you have to express or use formula as it has to be mixed in and the amount you have to give them, well its almost impossible. Then when that fails it moves on to ranitidine...which is easier but for my LO it seemed it freed him up more to be actually vomiting rather than swallowing it down, so he might have felt better but it was very messy and only brought a slight improvement.
The cranial oestopathy is one of these things that has no real science behind it but anecdotally people swear by it. The theory is that the baby has tightness around the skull from the delivery, and it eases it off. At worst its harmless, but can be expensive. It worked for us thats all I can say, and we only had one session although usually you would have a few.
I did co sleep for the first couple of months with him lying on his front on me but whenever he napped or slept off me he was always on his front aswell. But i felt very sure he was safe like that because he always had his head turned to the side and my daughter had been the same (i used a baby alarm sensor mat with her) .
If this current baby has reflux i dont think i would want to try all those medicines again. its such a lot for a tiny baby. Maybe the ranitidine but...thats not the first thing they try.
The cranial oestopathy is one of these things that has no real science behind it but anecdotally people swear by it. The theory is that the baby has tightness around the skull from the delivery, and it eases it off. At worst its harmless, but can be expensive. It worked for us thats all I can say, and we only had one session although usually you would have a few.
I did co sleep for the first couple of months with him lying on his front on me but whenever he napped or slept off me he was always on his front aswell. But i felt very sure he was safe like that because he always had his head turned to the side and my daughter had been the same (i used a baby alarm sensor mat with her) .
If this current baby has reflux i dont think i would want to try all those medicines again. its such a lot for a tiny baby. Maybe the ranitidine but...thats not the first thing they try.
Ive found pediatric osteopath close to me Its £45-75 for the first session. I shall phone them in the morning and tell them the problem im having and see if they can help me. Im just abit scared about what they may do with the baby. Like manipulating the skull or bones? When you took your Lo what did they actually do?
My LO is 4 weeks old and most nights we go to bed around 10. Sometimes he sleeps until 4ish and wants a feed before being fine until about 7, but sometimes hell be awake every two hours. I think by now my body has adapted to it as I dont feel tired at all, but in the very early days I was very sleep deprived and shattered - daytime naps are key.
I know its difficult to sleep in the day. It feels a bit wrong for me, like Im being lazy. Google Spacemasks, it works wonders! Its so important that you look after yourself.
As for co sleeping, my LO did NOT like to be in his moses basket or even his next to me crib. The first nights were so difficult because I didnt sleep as he cried every time I put him down. But after a little bit of reading about co sleeping safely, we tried it and we both sleep so much better. I lay him in the middle of the bed (firm mattress) and give him his own blanket. I lie next to him with a seperate blanket and keep the duvet low down by my feet. I put my arm above him and bring my legs up under him, so Im like a C shape and wont roll over. Things are so much easier now.
Things always get easier but just make sure you get plenty of rest, ask for and accept a little help and figure out what works for both you and baby
I know its difficult to sleep in the day. It feels a bit wrong for me, like Im being lazy. Google Spacemasks, it works wonders! Its so important that you look after yourself.
As for co sleeping, my LO did NOT like to be in his moses basket or even his next to me crib. The first nights were so difficult because I didnt sleep as he cried every time I put him down. But after a little bit of reading about co sleeping safely, we tried it and we both sleep so much better. I lay him in the middle of the bed (firm mattress) and give him his own blanket. I lie next to him with a seperate blanket and keep the duvet low down by my feet. I put my arm above him and bring my legs up under him, so Im like a C shape and wont roll over. Things are so much easier now.
Things always get easier but just make sure you get plenty of rest, ask for and accept a little help and figure out what works for both you and baby
Thanks for the help and advice. Im going to try keep him next to me tonight without transfering him to his own bed. Your Lo seems to be doing really well. Ide be thankful for just an hour or so. My sleep wasnt all that before i had him with the 5-6 toilet trips and pregnancy insomnia. This is definatly worse. Im awake 24 hrs a day
I did sleep somewhat last night with him beside me on his side. He only woke to feed. During the day i feed him in all different positions, mainly upright. Im trying to keep it as normal as possible during the day with the noise and everything else.
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its cranial oestopathy that you need so check thats what it is and make sure they have experience with newborns! The lady i saw was in Witney, oxfordshire just on the offchance if thats anywhere near you. To be honest whatever she did looked so subtle I was like "Are you even doing anything?" lol. It loked like she was just holding his head. She said she could feel tension across his forehead. I did have a very painful birth and also lots of false labour and stop-start contractions so there could be something in it that the baby's head has got tension, I dont know. Anyway they definitely dont do anything major or dangerous. My baby was so uncomfortable with his silent reflux even in the daytime you couldnt even hold him as he would be thrashing about.
Glad you got some rest co-sleeping last night. I think thats definitely the best way to get some rest in the early days!
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Browneyed Girl
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How is his feeding generally? Is he a noisy feeder (clicking noises when sucking, gulping noises when swallowing?), does he leak milk at the corners of his mouth (are there gaps there?), does he take a long time to take a small amount?, does he raise his arms as if in discomfort when feeding?, does he ever seem content after a feed? This is how both of my lo
Browneyed Girl
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?s were and they had tongue tie. Tongue tie can also cause reflux symptoms so it?s not necessarily one or the other. If your lo has these symptoms when feeding it?s worth checking out x
elizabethsingl
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I hope you are starting to sleep better! 
Hes 6 week old in 2 days. Still unsettled. No he hasnt got tongue tie and doesnt make clicking noises while feeding, or any of the other symptoms. Im having problems getting him to sleep during the day also. Its now 6pm, hes been awake since 12 noon. He has only fallen asleep whilst nursing and then woken up again when finished. He now only spends 15-20mins at the breast and seems content after. Other than not sleeping. An hour ago he had a cluster of crying fits seemed like he was in some bad pain. Now its either colic or the silent reflux which was previously suggested. Im currently giving him infacol & gripe water. I think im going to have to take him to to the doctors.
sorry things are still tough. Infacol and gripe water did nothing for my LO when it was silent reflux. In fact gripe water made him worse. Because if it is silent reflux, its a heartburn pain that is suffered, not a windy tummy. I hope the dr can suggest something that helps
The only difference ive noticed with the infacol and gripe water is that his tummy isnt sounding as bubbly and hes pooping more frequently. Maybe it is helping some what. How would i know ifits silent reflux? He used to bring stuff up and swallow it back down before but i dont see that often anymore. Hes finally fallen asleep after been awake around 7 hours. Hopefully he will be settled for a few hours now.
Karenb
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I co slept with my daughter for 9 months and swore I wouldn’t this time as it killed me hips but it’s the only way I can get any sleep as I can’t feed him then transfer him to his next to me crib without him crying. If anyone has any tips I’d love to hear them! He’s feeding hourly now as he’s four days old and my milks coming in! So so hard but worth it as by six weeks, breastfeeding is so much easier x
