How to get newborn to sleep without nursing

amother

Sun, Jan 03 2021, 11:27 pm

Whenever my newborn doesn’t fall asleep nursing, I cannot get him to fall asleep at all. He can be up for hours as I try to get him to sleep. If I put him in his bassinet he just makes noise for hours without actually falling asleep.

He also wakes up the second I put him down (at night. By day he sleeps like a dream).

He wakes up very frequently to eat because he literally falls asleep a minute or two into the feeds and although I try waking him up I’m not successful usually so probably doesn’t get enough milk. Help!

Any ideas? I’m seriously sleep deprived.

MommyM

Mon, Jan 04 2021, 12:17 am

Sounds like he's getting his quality sleep during the day instead of at night. Try keeping him in a well lit room during the day and try to keep him for his awake hours then. Don't let him sleep too long undisturbed during the day.

amother

Burgundy

Mon, Jan 04 2021, 1:01 am

He doesn’t know how to settle himself.
I had the same problem! Unfortunately was not able to find a way to solve this without some crying. I spoke to my Dr., attended a seminar, researched, I ended up doing a version of Ferber. BH everyone is much happier now! I regret not doing it sooner.

amother

Mon, Jan 04 2021, 4:37 am

amother [ Burgundy ] wrote:

He’s a newborn. I can’t train him yet. Just looking for ideas because I’m incredibly tired.

Rappel

Mon, Jan 04 2021, 4:53 am

You need a break.

1. Enlist DH, a mother, a sister, or a good friend to help you stay on track for the following plan:

2. His day/night are reversed. That's easily changeable, but it will take several days of work (hence the partner.):

During daytime, put on loud music, occupy a sunny room, turn on lights, and otherwise go everything to make it clear that it's day. At night, lights off and quiet.

3. Feed baby when he's naked and a little bit chilly ,- not very cold, understand, but not all swaddled and comfy either - and you can tickle his feet if he nods off anyway. Every time he nods off, pass him to your partner in number 1 to burp him. He'll wake up, burp, and have a clear belly with more room for milk. Repeat these steps until he is so tired that burping doesn't wake him. At that point, he's full and sleepy, and will stay asleep for a while.

4. You need to eat, drink, shower, dress, sleep, read, and so anything else that makes you feel like a person. Partner in #1 is there to take charge of the baby for an hour or two at a time while you take care of your needs. You are not a milk machine, but if you want to be producing good quality milk and care for your baby, then you need to take care of yourself first.

Hatzlacha OP!