Will I ever sleep again?đ©
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No tips. I had to keep a boob out for my babe all night. She never stopped nursing for like 8 months.
Yes. A routine is very important. My baby sleeps the entire night since 2 m
I topped up with pre-made formula in the evenings for the first 5 days or so till my milk came in , helped baby sleep so much more and didnât affect babies latch either.
Hi Becca, this is a totally normal and really, really tough stage! As a breastfeeding mum, I can only advise to stick with it and youâll be out the other side before you know it, but youâll feel like a zombie! As the above comment says, try co sleeping and get as much help as you can. I was lucky that my mum came over most days and cuddled the baby for an hour or two so I could nap. If you want to continue breastfeeding, Iâd avoid a bottle at the moment, it wonât help anything really, your baby just needs you and cuddles. Also just check you are following hunger cues (very likely at 3 days old, they do cluster feed), but it can also be burping and cuddles they need too. Youâll be ok, it gets waaaaay easier, this is just the hard, unknown bit thatâs really daunting. Iâve breastfed all the way and my baby was always a great sleeper - itâs a myth that BF babies sleep worse. She never slept in her crib til 9 weeks, but she still slept well, just on us!! X
Are you swaddling? White noise? Dark room with no white or blue lights? Using a red night light for feeds?
Offer a pacifier to soothe the sucking reflex after a feed. The avent ones are great for breastfeeding.
Congratulations on your baby boy đ and you are doing so well feeding on demand. It is totally normal for babies not to want to sleep in their cot (or anywhere but on you) at first as you are all they have ever known. It sounds like your little boy wants your boob for comfort some of the time rather than milk if he is just falling asleep on it all the time. Co-sleeping helped me get through this with my little girl who didnât want to sleep anywhere but on me. Lullaby trust has info on doing it safely. Other posts on here about same thing mention partners taking it in shifts to let the baby sleep on them while the other sleeps - I donât know if this is an option in the short-term if your little boy will settle on you and be handed to someone else if you do have someone to help. It may not feel like it now but you will sleep again - it is a very intense and exhausting period but it doesnât last forever (even though every night feels like it at the time). Sending lots of love x
Totally normal newborn behaviour. It gets easier after a few weeks / months.
Check out this baby sleep resource. https://takingcarababies.com/feeding-every-hour-and-not-sleeping
For sure cluster feeding my little one did it after she was born and I had to give her a bottle to make sure she was getting a full feed then would put her on my breast to soothe herself then when I knew for sure she was in deep sleep( deep breaths and not quick little ones) I would slowly transfer her.
I had this too the first few days the midwife told me to pat or rub his back while feeding so he doesn't fall asleep. If this doesn't work maybe try a bottle and see if he does settle down, maybe he doesn't get enough from the boob?
Look into safe cosleeping! It saved me the first few months
I breast feed during the day and in the night I give her a bottle mixed with pumped milk and formula or only formula after which she sleeps for atleast 4 hours and wakes up early morning and then I breast feed her again.