5 week old won’t stay asleep for naps

[KatrinaW]

Ds#3 will be 5 weeks old on Sunday. He currently does 2.5/3 hours between feeds during the day and sometimes up to 4 hours at night.

Our problem starts early morning around 4am. He starts to groan and move constantly. I usually pick him up and try to burp him again and then set him back down. He continues this until his next feed. At around 50 min A time, I swaddle him and do shh pat. Within 10 minutes he will fall asleep but he only sleep 3-5 minutes and is awake again. I can usually resettle him within 5 or so minutes and then he sleeps again for 5 minutes....sometimes (like this morning) he will not go back to sleep. Most often he will go back to sleep but will wake up again if I set him down. He will only nap if being held. At night he goes to bed around 7pm and wakes to eat and goes right back to sleep.

I have two other boys, one of which has to get off to school. I’m not able to hold him all day.  I spend my whole day trying to get him to sleep or trying to keep him asleep. What can I do?

[becj86]

Hi

Unfortunately, what you've written sounds very normal for 5wo. Lets see what we can do to help.

Our problem starts early morning around 4am. He starts to groan and move constantly. I usually pick him up and try to burp him again and then set him back down. He continues this until his next feed. At around 50 min A time, I swaddle him and do shh pat.

I'm a bit confused here - is he getting up for the day at 4am? I'm thinking that this unsettledness may be related to feeding in the night. I presume he is being fed at night? Assuming that, I'd say he's possibly got some wind as this is prime time for it (supply is highest at night and so your milk flow is higher when he's feeding in the wee hours of the morning, so he gulps and takes in air). Otherwise, have you tried feeding at this time? Its pretty reasonable at this age to be feeding every 3-4hr at night so if its been 3hr since the last feed, its worth feeding. Falling asleep then waking again pretty much tells you that whatever caused the waking has not been resolved.

Can you please write out a day or two in EAS format so we can see what's happening? I'm not getting a clear enough picture of the day to make any suggestions.

 

[KatrinaW]

He usually eats around 2:30/3am. He doesn’t wake at 4am just moves around a lot in the crib and makes grunting noises. He’s formula fed.

This was yesterday

E - 2:40am
A - 2:40am-3am
S - 3:00-6:10am but started grunting and moving at 5am

E - 6:10am
A - 6:10am - 7:10am
S - 7:10-7:15, 7:20-7:25, 7:30-7:35, 7:40-8:40

E - 9:10am
A - 8:40am - 10:30am no amount of rocking or shh pat worked
S - 10:30am - 10:35, 10:40-10:45, 10:50-12pm

E - 12pm
A - 12pm - 1pm
S - 1pm - 1:05pm, 1:15pm - 3:10pm In car seat

E - 3:10pm
A - 3:10pm - 4:15pm
S - 4:15pm - 4:30pm, 4:40pm-5pm, 5:10pm - 5:30pm

E - 6pm
A - 5:30pm - 6:30pm
S - 6:30pm-9:00pm

E - 9pm
A - 9pm-9:30pm
S - 9:30pm - 11:30pm

E - 11:30pm
A - 11:30-11:45pm
S - 11:45pm - 2:50am

E - 2:50am
And this is where we are at.

[becj86]

S - 7:10-7:15, 7:20-7:25, 7:30-7:35, 7:40-8:40

This is quite unusual as a post here. It must drive you crazy! Hmmm... I think it might be that he's waking with the jolts as he falls asleep. They're quite normal but maybe (I know this is hard with other children around) if you could try shush/pat or hold through the jolts for 20mins after he's asleep, that might help him learn. He's really tiny, he may well just grow out of it but if you're wanting to help along the way, HTTJ may be the way to go. White noise that plays for the duration of the nap may be of assistance too.

WRT wriggling whilst asleep, have a read of this: https://babywhispererforums.com/index.php?topic=64515.0
Babies all move and make noises whilst they are sleeping. Adults do too, just not as much and we don't tend to notice as we've learned how to go back to sleep.

[KatrinaW]

He doesn’t move when he wakes up after 5 minutes, his eyes just pop open. I already hold him for his entire nap, with white noise playing. The only time he sleeps without being held is when he’s in his car seat. If I lay him down even after an hour of sleeping, he wakes up.

[becj86]

He doesn’t move when he wakes up after 5 minutes, his eyes just pop open.

And then what happens? The jolts would usually be before he wakes.

What happens if you lie him down drowsy and shush/pat in his cot (or whatever you do at night when he just pops off to sleep and stays asleep)? How do you know he stays asleep then?

I'm not suggesting you hold him - hold through the jolts is done whilst LO is in bed, you just gently hold the arms and legs to help prevent waking from the jolts.

E - 9:10amA - 8:40am - 10:30am no amount of rocking or shh pat workedS - 10:30am - 10:35, 10:40-10:45, 10:50-12pm

I'm guessing there's a school run in here somewhere? Overstimulation could be part of this picture too. Do you have a wind down for him?

[KatrinaW]

We wind down in a dark room with white noise, swaddle and shh pat. If I lay him down drowsy he immediately opens his eyes wide and wakes up so I’ve been holding him for all naps. At night it’s the same wind down but he just stays asleep while I’m holding him. 20 min or so after he falls asleep at night I set him down and he stays asleep until his next feed. During the night feed he falls asleep while eating, I hold him upright for 30 min and then lay him down.

There have been no school runs lately as my DH is home and has been taking DS1.

[becj86]

During the night feed he falls asleep while eating, I hold him upright for 30 min and then lay him down.

Reflux?  Given the 'only sleeps in the car seat', its worth considering. Have a read: https://babywhispererforums.com/index.php?topic=654.0 and maybe consider a few of those simple tricks to see if that helps.

[KatrinaW]

He’s on medication for reflux but it hasn’t really made a difference. Our pedi wanted to try it given his stridor and previous family history. My oldest has GERD still at 6.5 years old and my middle son was on medication for about 6 months. That’s why I hold him up after feeds and his crib is already elevated. He’s also burped frequently.

DH will be home for another week but when he does go back to work and I’m doing school runs etc I won’t be able to hold him all day long. I’m afraid to let him get OT but I’m finding it really hard trying to get him to stay asleep any length of time. Yesterday afternoon he kept sleeping for 5 minutes, then waking for 5 min at a time for more than an hour.

[becj86]

I’m doing school runs etc I won’t be able to hold him all day long.

But presumably he'll get more carseat naps...

Are the symptoms still there? I'd be getting a stridor seen to by a doctor if it is still there. I'd also probably ask if the pedi will trial a higher dose/check the dose is still correct for weight or even trial a PPI if he's not on that already.

Is it possible he's stopped breathing for a period before his eyes pop open? Maybe there's some sleep apnoea there.

I don't think the issue is routine related, your routine looks fine for his age, etc. I think there are a few other medical questions to be asked though before we try anything much more.

[KatrinaW]

Stridor is still there. I noticed it the day he was born and mentioned it to the doctor at his two week checkup. He wasn’t overly concerned as he said some stridor can be normal. DS2 had a stridor as well and sleep apnea. I haven’t noticed him stopping breathing before he wakes.

He’s on a PPI and I checked the dosage with the pharmacy.

Yesterday he was very unsettled and it continued on into his night sleep. He woke up at 2:45am to eat and it’s 4:45am now and he’s still unsettled. When I lay him down he starts to move and cry. I think it might be wind.

[becj86]

He definitely sounds uncomfortable.

When I lay him down he starts to move and cry. I think it might be wind.

This could well be wind. It could also be uncontrolled reflux. Have you tried anything for wind as yet? Different feeding positions, different burping techniques?

[KatrinaW]

We tried gas drops and gripe water. I’ve tried different techniques. We burp him after ever 20-30ml and he burps usually with no issues. He still seems to have wind while sleeping though. Today he fell asleep just before an hour A time but kept waking up every few minutes, I kept patting him and rocking him and at the 30 minute mark he woke up burped, spit up and then went back to sleep.

[becj86]

I kept patting him and rocking him and at the 30 minute mark he woke up burped, spit up and then went back to sleep.

You've done all the basics that I'd suggest. Hmmm... Clutching at straws...

What about:
- Pre-emptive pre-nap burp (though I guess feeding probably takes up almost his entire A time) +/- tummy massage to try and get that wind out
- Trial without the gas drops - they basically make the little bubbles of gas all join together and sometimes can be more hinderance than help

How are his poos?

[*Ali*]

Do you have a sling or baby carrier you can wear him in for some naps? It's natural for a baby this young to want to be need mum to sleep. It would keep him upright too. That way you could still go out or get stuff done around the house.