Author Topic: please help!!  (Read 1055 times)

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Offline ballenger2

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please help!!
« on: January 27, 2006, 09:16:23 am »
I am at my wits end with my 6 week old and am close to a breakdown.  He is my second and we are on EASY which has been working fine during the day.  I do no let him go past a 3 hour eat, activity, sleep cycle.  Although many times during the day I cannot keep him awake for the activity part, and I have tried everything.  He has a brother that is 15 months so keeping downstaris with  the noise to keep him awake does not even work.  The problem arises because every night around 1 he wakes and stays up for 4  hours.  It is now 4:15am and I am still up with him, he crys, fusses, will not go doen.  I was in his room wiht him for 2 of them, he was swaddled and I shhdd patted until I was alsmost dizzy.  After the 3rd hour started I had to leave the room.  He is a big baby weighing in at 13 pounds and I have no idea what to do.... i feel like I am going crazy and need help!!  Can anyone please tell me what to do as I don't think that this is right!!??

Offline Kimberly®

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Re: please help!!
« Reply #1 on: January 27, 2006, 11:03:04 am »
{{{{HUGS}}}} take a deep breath. You're not alone. I can't count the number of night I was where you are. It sounds like colic may have reared its ugly head.
First thing to know is that at 6 weeks its not unusual for a LO to not have a lot of activity time. For many 6 wk olds a diaper change is all the A time they can handle, so if thats all your LO can do thats ok, you can lengthen that in time.
Him being able to sleep through noise is actually a good thing in the long run so I wouldn't cut out the noise entirely.
I'm not sure if your bottle feeding or breastfeeding, but either way its possible that your LO is having gas pains and thats what keeping him up.
If you bottle fed try burping him after every ounce or two to help with gas.
If breast fed try to cut foods that might upset his tummy, like broccoli or milk.
Either way if after a few hours he's still fussing, try feeding him again, when they are fussy they burn off more calories and may need more to eat.
Now something that worked for my LO is I swaddled her, and sat in the rocking chair, I held her on her side facing me, sitting in the crock of my arm, not to close to the breast so she didn't think it was time to feed, then I rocked with her, and shushed or talked softly to her and I gave her a paci. This bothed calmed her and help relieve the gas she was having. Once she was calm I would try putting her down. Sometimes this would take an hour, but she was clm most of it and, while it was hard, it didn't last forever and she learned to sooth herself.
At this point its really about survival. Do what you need to to help your LO sleep.
HTH
Kimberly

Offline MelissaS

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Re: please help!!
« Reply #2 on: January 27, 2006, 12:23:53 pm »
HUGE HUGS it will work out!

I agree with Karita - particularly if after around 2 hours he is still fussing try feeding him again and put him down as soon as he has finished his feed.
I know this is not a final solution but it may help you in the short term. Also one more thing - do you or are you interested in using a dummy in the early hours? Tracy's book states that bubs dont become attached to them until around the 4 mth mark - thsi might calm him a little?
Just want you to know we are here to support you and it is going to be OK. I really feel for you as I remember those nights where I was up at those times very tearful.

Please let us know how you go,

Melissa
Melissa
(Mum to David 20/02/2005 - mostly spirited/textbook)