Newborn sleeping schedule

amother

Wed, Nov 06 2019, 8:01 am

I'm looking for any and all advice. My 2 month old doesn't have the best sleeping pattern. He sleeps the whole night (bh!!!!), but he wakes up very often to nurse.
During the day, he eats every 3 hours on the hour. He's got himself on this great schedule, actually.
But at night, he wakes up every TWO hours! He eats a ton, so I dont think he's hungry. I give him mylicon so he's not gassy. I give him Ranitidine, so no heartburn. He's not too hot or too cold. He's swaddled and cozy, takes a pacifier, and I have a nose machine on.
What's wrong?

FranticFrummie

Wed, Nov 06 2019, 8:09 am

Is this your first? Why are you giving a newborn so much medicine?

Newsflash: You will not get much sleep for a while. Hashem designed babies this way. Welcome to parenthood!

Newborns don't have a schedule. Their body is still learning how to regulate itself, and it's going to take a few months or to sort itself out. Then your baby will have a growth spurt, and the schedule will change all over again. Rinse, repeat.

Personally, I don't believe that any baby under a year of age should have any kind of schedule, especially if you are exclusively breastfeeding. If your baby is on solids and sleeping nicely through the night, then you can try a schedule, but until then, let your baby grow in his/her own way. Nature knows what it's doing.

amother

Blush

Wed, Nov 06 2019, 8:18 am

That is normal for a newborn.

Is a dr prescribing those meds?

Welcome to motherhood! Babies don't sleep. Just try to get through it

rivkam

Wed, Nov 06 2019, 8:20 am

Sounds pretty normal but the fact that your baby is only waking up to feed is great. You can try feeding more during the day and then your baby may be less hungry at night.

amother

Scarlet

Wed, Nov 06 2019, 8:20 am

IME when I increase day time feeding they wake up less often at night to nurse. Every three hours during the day is probably not giving her enough calories so she's making up for it at night. At two months I offer nursing every hour and a half to two hours during the day unless the baby is sleeping.

dancingqueen

Wed, Nov 06 2019, 8:20 am

You can try waking him every 2 hours by day to see if he will sleep longer at night. But I agree with the questions about the meds.

Tzutzie

Wed, Nov 06 2019, 8:25 am

Again, why the meds?

My 5 mo was up this night every 1.5 hours. He also nursed every 2 hours yesterday. I think he's going thru a growth spurt. He's it twice before for up to a week then he went up a size....
And if you're wondering, yes I'm TIRED.

amother

Periwinkle

Wed, Nov 06 2019, 8:33 am

Don't expect a sleep schedule this young, but it is possible based on the kid. My 3m sleeps through the night
Definition: I nurse at 4, 6 and 8pm and again at like 11. Then he wakes at 7ish to nurse.
This is the baby whisperer schedule
He is fat and huge, double the size of my first who also did the same and is still a tiny kid.

Also, I'm going to echo, the meds sound concerning

Edit: to explain, you can "tank him up" by doing a few feeds close together before bedtime so he does one longer stretch, like 4-5 hours, and that's considered "sleeping thru the night". Should not be expected or aimed for before 3m.

keym

Wed, Nov 06 2019, 8:40 am

Does he fall asleep in the middle of the night feedings?
One of mine did so he would wake up every hour and a half to eat because he wasn't really full.
I learned to wake myself up fully, sitting up in bed or chair, watching something or whatever to encourage him to eat a full feeding-including the fatty hind milk. When I pushed myself to do that, I could usually get him to 3/3.5 hours.
But otherwise every 2 hours is not unusual and he is sleeping between. Agreed that I'm concerned about all those meds.

amother

Ginger

Wed, Nov 06 2019, 8:54 am

You're describing a great baby schedule! But why are you giving him medication? Is it under doctors orders? Mylicon is not made for long term use.
You can try giving him a pacifier when he wakes up after 2 hours and see if he falls back asleep.

amother

Wed, Nov 06 2019, 9:13 am

Thanks!
No, he is my second kid. Mylicon because he's colicky and it helps. Ranitidine was prescribed. I dont give it every night.
I cant just feed him whenever because I work FT. He eats a lot! A full feeding is like 30 min long, and he's drinking a lot the whole time. If I wake him during his day naps, he'll be overtired and wont sleep at night.

Odelyah

Wed, Nov 06 2019, 11:33 am

amother [ OP ] wrote:

there has been so much good advice given here! (only thing I really don't agree with is the last suggestion about formula)

so I'll only add that Ranitidine is Zantac, which has been recalled recently, so you should really check with your doctor about that.

bracha v'hatzlacha!
Odelyah

mig100

Wed, Nov 06 2019, 11:37 am

Odelyah wrote:

What's wrong withnsupplementing formula? Especially if it helps baby and mother sleep better?

Odelyah

Wed, Nov 06 2019, 11:37 am

Odelyah wrote:

and the more I think about it the more strange it sounds to be prescribing meds like that to what I assume is a healthy baby? I nursed 8 babies bli a"h and as my dear MIL always says "I never heard of such a thing!" I'm actually curious who OP's doctor is

Odelyah

Wed, Nov 06 2019, 11:40 am

mig100 wrote:

What's wrong withnsupplementing formula? Especially if it helps baby and mother sleep better?

sorry I just saw your question now-- I actually have to run but I will try to respond later b'ezH

tichellady

Wed, Nov 06 2019, 12:02 pm

Does he sleep through the night or he wakes up to nurse? I don’t understand your post. Are you saying he wakes up to nurse and then goes back to sleep?

amother

Wed, Nov 06 2019, 12:06 pm

tichellady wrote:

Does he sleep through the night or he wakes up to nurse? I don’t understand your post. Are you saying he wakes up to nurse and then goes back to sleep?

He wakes up to nurse but goes right back to sleep after. I'm not up with him the whole night, that's what I'm saying.
He's bh such a good, cute, lil muffin. He just needs to eat every 2 hours at night vs his regular 3 hours during the day. And I'm not sure why or what to do. It's very hard for me to wake up every 2 hours and then be up nursing for 30 of those minutes.

amother

Ginger

Wed, Nov 06 2019, 12:12 pm

OP, he might be waking every 2 hours out of habit. Try giving him a pacifier instead of a feeding.

amother

Ginger

Wed, Nov 06 2019, 12:14 pm

Odelyah, there's absolutely nothing wrong with supplementing with formula! I do it with all my babies, it helps them sleep better.