How do I settle my baby??

[Angela123]

Hi

My baby girl is almost 3 weeks old. She did really well when we came home but over the last few days has had real problems settling her. I feed her and know she is not hungry, I change her and also give her clean clothes so she is all very clean. She usually falls asleep when on the breast so I take her off and then she wakes up and seems wide awake and starts crying for food again.

But once she is done with the food, I put her in her cot, and within minutes she is screaming. When I pick her up she is fine, and quiet, she starts falling asleep so i put her down again and then she starts screamign again.

Can anyone help? I have used a dummy, tried rocking her to sleep but I dont want to get into the habit of these. Should I just let her cry? I feel like I am being so mean if I let her cry.

 

[Huddsgirl]

hi .
there is a couple of things i tried.
1. when you put her into her cot it is obviously different from mummys arms so try putting a hot water bottle (not boiling hot water) under her blankets and placing it near
2. as she is a newborn she is used to being really secure in the womb, i found my ellie like to be cacooned in her shawl and on her side , this way they dont feel so unsecure with there arms and legs waving about (as this they are not use to in the womb)
hope this helps, know exactly what ur going through )

 

[mummysarah+co]

Hiya
I swaddled both of mine when they were newborn.
i used to finish feeding them then lay them on a blanket and wrap it snuggly round them then put them down in the moses basket/crib they were nice and secure being sawddled and they got used to being put down to sleep and i've not had a problem with either of them when it comes to bedtime.

 

[clarey]

I was going to suggest swaddling too...

 

[lisa&alex]

id never put a hot waterbottle in with the baby.. they canty regulate their temp so i would say thats not a good idea even if its only warm.

babys need to be cuddled.. they are used to being tightly encased in your womb.. your warmth and heart beat and breathing settles them you can try swaddling, but dont get upset if the baby wont settle by herself, its normal for them to want to be with mummy its a natural animal instinct.
dont leave the baby cry, they dont know the difference of a minute to a few hrs at their age. enjoy your baby if that means you have to lay on the sofa with ehr on your chest all day then thats not a bad thing.. you cant spoil a newborn.

 

[flowergirl]

My baby is exactly the same- It's really difficult as you want to do EVERYTHING to make them feel calm and happy and if they're not then often you are not either. I found that I had to use a dummy to settle my LO and she is loads better. I am able to put her down to sleep after a feed now which NEVER happened in the first 3 weeks. She did all of the things your LO is doing and I felt quite desperate as if I'd never be able to wash the pots or even go to the toilet unless I had someone else in the house with me. Because it took me so long to settle her after a feed it meant that night times were awful and I was up for at least 3-4 hours between 11pm and 6am which meant that I was totally exhausted and miserable. Persevere with the dummy if it works- I felt under pressure not to use one but it has made a big difference. PM me if you want to chat or moan or anything... these first few weeks are amazing but exhausting but things will get better- so I've been told!