1.5 hour EASY! Where am I going wrong?

[SarahDP]

Hello
I love how this site is so helpful.  I'm hoping you will be able to help me...
I've read the sleep book.  I've mastered shush-pat.  My baby can sleep at night, but the days are a mess.  

My lovely 8 wk, 6kg (I know!), baby is on a self-initiated 1.5 EASY routine, which makes my life very difficult and going out impossible. How can I modify this in time to going back to work?  We have a 7am-7pm routine, BUT!  5-6 naps a day is a lot of shush-patting, ironically not much real sleeping and makes for a very anxious baby going into evening routine. I'm not sure if the problem lies in the naps or the feeds: you can't keep a baby awake when she's tired; and my baby won't take on any more than 80-90mil (breast) at any one time, and usually not that much.  Maybe she is a victim of accidental parenting...

It's a vicious cycle.  My 5YO didn't have this problem, but she wasn't as big. Where should the changes in her routine start?

Regards, Sarah

[*Jo*]

Hi there, well first of all at this age your baby should really be on a 3 hour EASY as he needs to stay awake for about an hour and then sleep 2 hours, Im just wondering why you let her be on just a 1.5 hour routine? I would try and push her out more, she may not be taking much at the breast because shes just snacking as you are feeding her so often. I think she would take more if her feeds were spread out more as she would be hungry enough to eat more.

are you able to put up your routine at the moment?

[SarahDP]

Thank you so much for getting back to me!
Here is our 1.5hour not-very EASY routine below:

0700     E: breast - not much
            A: nappy; kick on kick mat; cuddle; grizzle or fuss
            S: 0745hr no problem

0830     E: less than 0700hrs, if at all
            A: dress; top and tail; bounce in bouncer
            S: 0915hr In pram - beach walk

1000     E: loads - usually both breasts (first decent feed of day)
            A: dance to music; maybe a bit of yoga; cuddle
            S: 1100hr no problem

1145    !!! She's tired but won't go down!
           E: not offered - trying to extend sleep time
           A: none except if you consider 45 min - 1 hour of crying is activity
           S: 1300ish, sometimes 1330 - totally knackered (both of us)

1400    E: amount varies, usually not much (concerning in Darwin weather)
           A:walking around the garden; maybe a shop run
           S:1445hrs, no problem, happy to go down

1530    E: not offered unless fussed for
           A: Tummy time; toys (20-30 minutes)
           S: 1615hrs in pram

1700    E: Starving!
           A: nudie kick; bath
           S: we start at 1745 because that's when the wailing begins.  Another feed then Calm at 1800, set into bed, lies happily with the occasional moan until 7pm.  Usually I have to feed her again.

0130    E: Best feed of all. Have done away with Dream feed as she wakes at 1.30am regardless and always feeds better.
0430    E: one breast
0700    ....... etc


I'm not sure if she's a snacker, because she doesn't want food alot of the time, despite being more than 6kg.
I would love to consolidate her feeding so I can hand it over to someone else occassionallly.
Have no idea why lunch and evening routines are so tricky!

Your insight is welcomed.

Sarah


       

[*Jo*]

Ok, the A time you are having at the moment is one for a newborn so you need to up that A time to an hour for about three days and then increase it again another 15mins to 1 hoour 15mins, she is going to bed undertired so will be sleepy enough to fall asleep but not sleepy enough to sleep more than 45mins and then by the afternoon shes overtired from all the activity (yep we count crying as activity, if shes not asleep with her eyes closed then its considered A time) and not alot of sleep.

I would increase her A time and see how you go

[SarahDP]

Thank you!

I will get back to you in a couple of days...

Sarah

[SarahDP]

Dear Caleb's Mummy,

I'm back!
It's four weeks later...and thought I'd let you know how it went.  Went on holiday, so actually only tried your suggestions properly for two weeks.  It was the A time!  Definitely understimulated in the morning and overstimulated in the afternoon.  So what I did was this:

• Encourage LO to stay in bed (instead of picking her up when she woke at 6-6.45am)
  Stretched out A time til 8.30am
  Insisted on one nap at lunch time instead of two (this took two full weeks in a darkened room, but now she knows and sleeps through 2-3 hrs)
  Ditched dream feed for complete 30 min wake up at 10pm.  (she now sleeps 6 full hours til 4am)

Thank you very very much for your support.