Super worried! | Imamother

amother

Forestgreen

Tue, Aug 30 2016, 3:48 pm

My baby is 3 months old and sleeps so much! He sleeps through the night (10 hrs) and about 4 2hr naps in the day.... he is otherwise doing well.... should I be worried?
Please let me know if you had experience with this and Im just being an overprotective FTM
tia

esther11

Tue, Aug 30 2016, 4:03 pm

Sounds overprotective to me! Just count your blessings Smile

pesek zman

Tue, Aug 30 2016, 4:17 pm

He sleeps 18 hours a day? Sounds like a lot to me but nothing to be worried about

Jeanette

Tue, Aug 30 2016, 4:17 pm

Just make sure he's eating enough. If he's gaining well then it shouldn't be a problem.

imasinger

Tue, Aug 30 2016, 4:37 pm

Do your best to make sure his awake hours give him stimulation and a chance to develop large and fine motor control. And count your lucky stars.

amother

Mint

Tue, Aug 30 2016, 4:48 pm

I would be worried too, as a first time mom, even if that is a bracha Wink

you can always ask your doctor to be sure

cozyblanket

Tue, Aug 30 2016, 5:56 pm

I second the tummy time suggestion - when he is awake anyway. How does he do with tummy time? LMK if you need suggestions.

Also, about the sleeping, definately tell your pediatrician just to be safe. But, it may just be that you are doing a great job of letting him sleep. What do I mean by that? Sleep begets sleep. Tired babies don't sleep well. Well rested babies sleep much better. The way to get a baby to sleep well is to make sure they are well rested to start with and not bother them and wake them unnecessarily, etc. You seem to have gotten into a great pattern with him and that's great.

amother

Rose

Wed, Aug 31 2016, 1:52 pm

My daughter was like this as a baby, slept a TON. Possibly even more than your baby.

I brought it up with the pediatrician, he said there are 2 important things to watch for, but if both are fine, don't worry about it.
1) Weight gain - is the baby at least 11 pounds? Is she gaining weight well and staying on her growth curve? Is she not underweight? If all of these are yes, then let her sleep! (On a side note, my baby was underweight and not gaining well, so they had me wake her to feed her every couple of hours - she never really woke, just nursed in her sleep, so it didn't affect her. But this wasn't a concern about her sleep habits, rather a concern that her sleeping wasn't interfering with her growth).
2) When your baby is awake, is she active, alert, an calm? If yes most of the time, you're good to go! If your baby sleeps that much but is sluggish, sleepy, passive, or not alert during wake time, then you should get her checked out by a doctor. My daughter was super alert and curious while she was awake, so there was no doubt in my or the doctor's mind that she was fine.

So it's natural to worry, but most likely, everything is fine. I felt reassured when I talked to my pediatrician. Lo and behold, my daughter turned out normal. The best part is, babies who are good sleepers sometimes stay good sleepers throughout childhood if you continue to encourage healthy sleep habits. So you have lots to look forward to.

flowerpower

Wed, Aug 31 2016, 2:27 pm

My bil was like that as a newborn. Turns out he was very low muscle toned.