Can't stop her jolting awake

[N1cole]

My 5 wk old baby girl seems to go to sleep with some shh patting in her cot but she can't get passed the jolting stage.

It goes like this...
Calm time (5-10mins in dark room holding her)
Put her in cot awake or sometimes just starting to nod off
May need a shh pat
sleeps for about 12 mins then jolts, sometimes so much so that she's wide awake, and then we start again.  This can go on 4-5 times which is eating into her sleep time. 
I have tried continuing the shh pat through this stage and it works untill she has a big one.  Iwatch her closely and watch her go through the different stages of sleep but why won't she go through the last one?

Nic

[pat26]

Hi aint no expert but do u swaddle your lo babies that young hav very strong reflexs and swaddling help my lo to sleep.
You will get some good advice on here.

Hope your lo is able to sleep soon for you  

[~Alexa~]

Hi Nic!! Swaddling may help a lot! So if you are not swaddling your DD it would be a good idea to start doing it.
Also, it is very common for this to happen.  So, keep shpatting her until she is in deep sleep (20 min). Or keep applying pressure on her arms and legs for 20 min.  This will help her get through the jolts.  At the beginning you will have to stay with her the whole 20min, but as she grows up, she will be able to get through the jolts by herself, so she won't need you to stay the whole 20 min.

Also, having the right A time may help.  If your baby is going down OT, then the jolts are bigger and wake her up.  At 5 wo, babies are able to handle around 60 min A time.

Hope this helps.
Alexa

[N1cole]

Yes she's swaddled and only has 1 hour, usually less as she starts showing signs of tiredness soon after her feed.  I shh/pat for a while then slow down the pat and stop shh'ing.  As I pat I watch her go through different stages of sleep until about 15mins then...jolt, she wakes.  We then start again!  It can take any number of attempts before she finally goes down.  I'm not saying it's every time that she does it but it does seem to be a lot of the time.

Does her awake time start from as soon as she wakes for her feed? That's when I start anyway?
Nic

[Joypharm]

my daughter is 4w old and we just started swaddling with the miracle blanket since yesterday...she hates it, but it does help ....it makes it easier to calm them down in crib and relax them eventhough they are wide awake when you put them down in crib.

Last night was the first night in miracle blanket - she settled down to sleep around 11:40p after a 30m BF session.  Then i woke up at around 4:30pm b/c my breast was getting uncomfortable and she was still sleeping.  I was concerned, i had to check if she was still breathing.  Then, she did finally start stirring at around 5:20am.  I had to feed her b/c it was close to 6h since she last ate.  Then i fed her again, she went back to sleep in the blanket again.

[~Alexa~]

I would say that you should keep applying pressure on your lo's arms and legs for the whole 20 min (until deep sleep), she is waking up b/c she is not in deep sleep when you stop shpatting.  So either keep shpatting until she is fully asleep (20 min), or stop the shpat but apply pressure on arms and legs so she makes it through the jolts without waking up!

A time starts from the moment babies open their eyes till they close them again, so yeap, feeding is included!

Joypharm,
Happy you had a good night!!

[marlowsmom]

My lo does the same thing.   She wakes, squirms, cries, and opens her eyes wide.    I always thought she was awake but if I keep patting she falls right into a deep sleep.    I just posted a question about this wondering if anyone else had the same issue.     Just keep her in the crib, stay out of sight, and keep patting.

[Padicindy]

My LO is now 9 weeks and have been jolting herself awake at the 45th minute ever since week 5 I think!! 

Finding the right A time and holding her jolts down helps ALOT. My only problem now is my LO does not sleep on her back but sleeps on her side half swaddled during her naps (her room is not dark enough during the day and she gets distracted when she opens her eyes!!). When she jolt, while I may be able to hold her jolt down, she suddenly decide to turn her face towards the mattress!! I could never understand why! And when she does that, she wakes herself up. *heaves a big sigh*

I haven't found a solution yet! have tried a wedge behind her back so she is leaning on her back, that doesn't help much. Tried unswaddling her and putting her to sleep on her tummy doesn't work! cos she jerks too much without a swaddle. Having her on her back again is chaotic. She gets distracted in the room. Boo Hoo.

Anyone has any ideas?

[~Alexa~]

I would try black out curtains!! They work wonders for helping babies get through the 30-45 min mark!  Also, you can try rolled up towels under the mattress sheet.  Place one on your lo's back, and one on her tummy so she cannot roll to her back nor her tummy. 

Hope this helps

[pat26]

I sometimes found with my lo she would see me aand wake up fully again so i put a blanket up on side of cot and when she starting to drift off i can watch her but she cant c me.I take the blanket down when i think shes in a deep sleep.

Think the picture of your lo with hat on is so cute

[Padicindy]

Alexa: I think I will try the rolled up towels under the mattress. I tried wedging them behind her back she is so active that she moves and kicks it away! :S Would they ever grow out of this 45 mins stage? I had to pat her when she transited to the next cycle for almost half hr. Then she opened her eyes wide and I decided to just leave her in the cot. She then babbled to herself in the cot till her next feed. *faint*

Pat: Thanks! I had someone come and do some shots of her at 8 days old, somewhat like Ann Geddes type photography. It was a lovely experience!

[~Alexa~]

They do grow out of this 45 min stage!! It sucks, doesn't it? My lo took 45 min naps until he was 5 mo.  He started taking short naps at 2 mo, I started using w2s for nap extension when he turned 3 mo, and kept doing it until he was 4.5 mo, and he started taking long naps by himself soon after! By experience, I can tell you that it is a good idea to set a timer for nap extension.  At the beginning, I tried to extend naps forever, it was really frustrating and disappointing.  So, then I decided to give it a go for 20 min.  That really helped b/c if after 20 min of shpat my lo didn't fall back asleep, then nap time was over and my lo had A time.  It was much easier to deal with this if I set a 20 min limit for nap extension. 

Pat26, that's a great idea!!

Hugs

[Padicindy]

Alexa: Yeah I guess that'll help keep our sanity! I was so demoralized for a period of time that I didn't feel like I was enjoying my baby! Will bear that in mind. Thanks!

[~Alexa~]

Good luck, hun!! Hope everything goes better soon!

[pat26]

Hope all goes well keep us posted